Dr Kevin Lavery
Group Board Member
Dr Kevin Lavery has a town planning degree from the University of Manchester and a PhD in urban and regional studies from the University of Kent. He was a Harkness Fellow at the University of Southern California in the mid-1990s. Kevin has been the Chief Executive of three large local authorities – the City of Newcastle upon Tyne, Cornwall Council, and the City of Wellington in New Zealand. Kevin had a significant spell in the private sector as a consultant with Price Waterhouse, the founding CEO of a successful digital start-up, Agilisys, and the Managing Director/Divisional Chief Executive of two FTSE 100 companies and one FTSE 350 company. He has also worked in the NHS, where he helped to transform health services from an acute to community centric system through integrated care. Kevin is Chair of IAWAI - Flowing Waters, the first multi-council water company to secure Government approval in New Zealand. IAWAI goes live in July 2026. Kevin is also on the Advisory Board for Marlborough Waters.
Kevin has expertise in social housing, regeneration, and planning. This includes setting up Arm’s Length Management Operations (ALMOs) for Council Housing in Newcastle and Cornwall and running the largest social housing operation in New Zealand outside of the Government agency, Kainga Ora. Kevin also has experience of digital transformation, shared services and turning round failing public sector organisations. Kevin has served on the boards of the Housing Corporation and Northumbria University.