Senior Leadership Team
Head of Casework Assessment and Support
Esther Grew
Esther joined the Ombudsman in 2008 as a caseworker, where she investigated complex cases, worked with landlords to improve local complaint handling, and led cross-team learning initiatives.
Following her move into management roles, Esther led high performing teams across all casework operations and casework support functions, including externally contracted teams. Esther was operational lead on large-scale recruitment activities, casework jurisdiction lead, and held responsibility for monitoring key areas of operational risk. She introduced quality control processes, led on the service’s first systemic investigation, and transformed casework support activities. Esther also led a team in the design and delivery of the service’s first casework triaging function.
Esther has most recently held the positions of Interim Head of Dispute Resolution and Head of Casework Assessment and Support (CAS). She has established new structures and ways of working within CAS with a focus on improved customer experience through proportionate intervention. Esther recently revised the Ombudsman’s approach to casework risk assessment and allocation and co-authored the Ombudsman’s guidance on compensation.
Prior to joining the Ombudsman, Esther worked for a large London local authority in the areas of homelessness prevention, allocations, projects and policy development, complaints, and with elected representatives – all with a focus on delivering excellence through innovation and improving customer experience. Key achievements included the development of improved housing strategies for care leavers, and improved ways of working with elected representatives.
Head of Casework Dispute Resolution
John Hoarey
John joined the Ombudsman in 2017 as an Adjudicator from another regulated sector Ombudsman. Prior to this, he’d worked in legal roles.
After being an Adjudicator, John then trialled new ways of working in a project team before becoming a manager in our Dispute Support function.
John became a Dispute Resolution Manager during a period of change and oversaw our all cases awaiting a decision being risk assessed. He rolled out the quality control application for quality checking cases. He assisted in developing our approach to legal proceedings and service charges, before becoming a Senior Dispute Resolution Manager.
John became the interim Head of Dispute Resolution in October 2025, providing senior leadership to our statutory Dispute Resolution function.
Head of Casework Excellence & Development
Mark Smart
Mark joined the Housing Ombudsman Service as Head of Dispute Resolution in November 2022, after many successful years at the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO). Mark made a significant contribution to the Ombudsman sector through his pioneering work on peer reviews, supporting complaint handling schemes to make efficiencies and achieve excellence, and in chairing a cross-Ombudsman group on implementing, benchmarking and reporting against the Ombudsman Association’s Service Standard Framework.
Mark became Head of Casework Excellence and Development in May 2024, providing senior leadership to the reviews and casework guidance, knowledge and development functions. He also leads our work on joint investigations with the LGSCO, which aims to extend fairness where complaints span both areas of jurisdiction. Mark has experience of driving improvements in quality, proportionate and effective decision making, streamlining processes and leading high performing teams.
Head of Communications & Stakeholder Engagement
Helen Tobias
Helen joined the Housing Ombudsman Service as Head of Communications and Stakeholder Engagement in January 2025. A communications leader and professional with over 20 years’ experience in both internally and externally facing senior strategic, stakeholder management and communications positions in the public, private, defence, infrastructure, and transport sectors.
Prior to joining the Housing Ombudsman Service, Helen was Associate Director and Engagement Leader for ARUP. Leading communications and stakeholder engagement planning, delivery, and activity for a range of clients on diverse projects including implementation of the Building Safety Act (2022). She has also led consultation analysis and reporting activity on nationally significant infrastructure projects going through the planning process.
Helen has previously led communications and stakeholder engagement teams and activity in large and complex matrix organisations such as Defence, Equipment & Support (DE&S) MoD and Highways England (now National Highways).
Head of Digital, Data and Technology (Acting up)
Lehan Fielding
Lehan joined the Housing Ombudsman Service in 2022 as a Data Protection Advisor and has worked in a variety of roles within the Service in the digital and data arena being made Head of Digital, Data and Technology (DDaT) in April 2025.
The DDaT is a new Service which encompasses the IT Team (consisting of our Support Helpdesk, systems administration and Cyber Security responsibilities), the Information Governance Casework Team (facilitating Data subjects rights and Freedom of Information requests and having responsibility for records management) and the Information Governance Compliance Team (responsible for GDPR and Data Protection compliance). Lehan is the operational Senior Information Risk Owner (SIRO).
The DDaT Service is focused on enhancing service performance through the smart use of technology and data. We champion innovation while ensuring systems remain secure, reliable and user focussed. We are passionate about improving our service by using technology and harnessing data effectively. We are committed to fostering a culture of continuous improvement, collaboration and digital inclusion.
Lehan is an experienced information management professional with a strong background in creating and maintaining information governance frameworks in a public authority setting. Lehan has over 20 years’ experience creating and maintaining data privacy and information management frameworks in the public sector including the police service. Lehan has worked at all levels of data protection and is a strong data protection practitioner and strategist.
Head of Dispute Support
Suzanne Foreman
Suzanne joined the Housing Ombudsman as Head of Dispute Support in October 2022.
Her career in housing has spanned over 20 years, with the last 15 of these working at a large housing association where she successfully centralised the housing management enquiries service. Prior to this she worked in specialist roles delivering income, estate management, and antisocial behaviour services with a key focus on service improvement and operational policy development. She is passionate about the customer journey and delivering excellent services.
Suzanne is a corporate member of the Chartered Institute of Housing and member of the Institute of Leadership and Management. Suzanne uses her skills, knowledge, and experience to build effective high performing teams to deliver excellent services.
Outside of work Suzanne volunteers in her local community, currently holding the position of Treasurer for a community-based charity.
Verity joined the Housing Ombudsman as the Head of Dispute Support in March 2021 after spending over 12 years working at a large, national housing association in various roles.
She is a member of the Chartered Management Institute and the Chartered Institute of Housing and uses her skills and experience to ensure that we intervene fairly where there is evidence of delays in complaint handling by member landlords.
Since joining the Housing Ombudsman, Verity has overseen the expansion of our Dispute Support teams, developed our Customer Charter, refined our approach to managing unacceptable behaviours and delivered operational changes to case handling following changes set out in the Building Safety Act. Verity is the operational lead for the interactive online portal, having been involved in its design, development and trial prior to roll out in 2023.
Her current focus is leading operational change in response to the Social Housing (Regulation) Act 20203 to ensure that landlords comply with the statutory Complaint Handing Code and that a strategic, intelligence-led approach is embedded in the Dispute Support function.
Head of Finance & Procurement
Ayo Odufuwa
Ayo joined the Housing Ombudsman Service in February 2023.
Ayo has over 20 years’ experience within the private and public sector with adept experience of setting up and supporting ‘local authority trading companies’ across housing, adult social care, and the education services. Having sat on every seat within the modern finance functions; she brings on significant knowledge and experience in financial and budget management, financial reporting, and financial forecasting to enable executive decision making.
Ayo has been a part of decision making and influencing board committee over the last few years and has successfully led various initiatives and projects improving efficiencies, increasing profitable margins, and enabling sustained business growth with the trading companies within local government.
Head of People & Culture
Tracey Hindley
Tracey was appointed to the role of Head of Human Resources in July 2018. She has extensive generalist experience at an executive level and is CIPD qualified. Tracey has a background of working in the not for profit sector including housing and care. Tracey has 15 years’ experience in human resources roles and has proven operational and strategic skills.
Head of Planning, Projects & Business Insights
Michelle du Bock
Michelle joined the Housing Ombudsman Service in July 2021 having worked 27 years in local government across a range of services, with her last role working as a Senior Manager for Complaints and Information Governance across a large borough council. Initially joining us as Governance and Assurance Manager, Michelle is now the Head of Corporate and Information Governance and operational Senior Information Risk Owner (SIRO), leading the Digital and Data team, Performance and Business Information team, and Corporate Governance and Executive Support functions.