Executive Team

Rachael Shimmin, OBE
Chief Executive (CEO)

Rachael joined Anchor as Chief Executive Officer in January 2026.
 
Her distinguished career in public service leadership spans health, social care and local government transformation.
 
She was appointed as the CEO of Buckinghamshire County Council in 2016 and led Local Government in the county through its formation and evolution into a billion-pound turnover organisation, merging five predecessor bodies and with more than 4,000 staff.

Rachael has served on a wide range of regional and national bodies and boards and is also a qualified Executive Coach. She was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from Buckinghamshire New University in 2025 for her significant contribution in her professional field, which includes voluntary and community services, health, and education, both within Buckinghamshire and across the UK.

She was awarded the OBE for services to social care in 2014.

Amanda Holgate
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) 

Amanda joined Anchor in February 2023 and joined the Anchor Board in May 2023. She also served as Interim Chief Executive from June 2025 to January 2026.

Amanda has worked in the housing sector for more than ten years, first as Deputy Finance Director at Family Mosaic and then as Director, Finance Services at Peabody. Prior to joining Anchor she was CFO of Southern Housing Group. Amanda also has more than 20 years’ financial and commercial experience in a range of sectors including financial services, technology and retail asset management. 

From 2020 to 2025, Amanda was a Board Trustee and the Chair of Audit and Risk Committee at Centrepoint, a youth homelessness charity. She stepped down from this role in September 2025.

Amanda is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.

Dan Ryan
Executive Director Care Services

Dan joined Anchor in February 2026 to head up our Care Services Directorate.

Dan has over 20 years of executive leadership experience across the independent health and social care sector, spanning service transformation, quality improvement, governance, innovation and financial management. He began his career in the Civil Service at HM Treasury before moving to the Healthcare Commission, the predecessor to the CQC. Dan has since held senior roles across both charitable and private organisations, helping to drive improvements in care, performance and customer experience. His previous role was Deputy Chief Executive Officer & Director of Operations at MHA (Methodist Homes).

Alongside his role at Anchor, Dan also serves as a Trustee of the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust.

Julie Wittich
Executive Director, Operations

Julie joined Anchor in June 2025 from Accent, where she was Chief Operating Officer, and has more than 30 years of experience including 17 at senior and executive level. 

She has a background in housing and asset management and track record of driving transformational change and sustainable results for residents.

Notable achievements in previous roles include reducing repair backlogs, improving health and safety compliance, achieving significant cost savings, and improving customer satisfaction across large portfolios.

A motivational and collaborative leader, Julie has consistently built and nurtured high-performing teams, fostering an inclusive and dynamic workplace culture and strong collaborative relationships with customers and suppliers.

With a career which has touched all corners of housing services, Julie is driven by her belief that everybody deserves to have a place they can call home.

Oliver Boundy 
Executive Director, Development

Oliver joined Anchor in 2022 and is responsible for the development and sales programme across the full range of Anchor’s housing and care services.

He spent almost six years at Southern Housing Group, where he was Executive Director Development & Growth responsible for a significant development and sales programme and strategic partnerships with Homes England and the Greater London Authority.

He began his career working on the Edmonton Green Regeneration Project before joining the Development Team at Metropolitan where he held various positions over 10 years. In 2014, Oliver became Assistant Development Director at Origin Housing where he oversaw the expansion of the company’s development programme and supported the organisation into becoming a key partner in the Heart of Harrow Housing Zone.

Oliver is also a Non-Executive Director of 54 North Homes.

Sara Thomson
Interim Chief Risk Officer (CRO)

Sara joined Anchor in May 2025, and leads the corporate health & safety, risk & assurance and legal teams.

An experienced interim executive and consultant in the housing sector, she brings more than 25 years’ experience in senior and executive roles, covering transformation, risk and governance in social housing, banking, mutuals and consultancy.

Her expertise lies in defining and delivering corporate strategies - balancing stakeholder, commercial, and risk objectives to enable strategic purpose and outcomes. She has extensive experience of developing high-performing specialist teams in highly regulated environments and a deep passion for working with organisations with a strong social purpose.

Sara is a former Executive Director and Chief Risk Officer at Bromford Housing Group and is Non-Executive Director, Vice Chair and Senior Independent Director (SID) at NewArch Homes (Octopus Affordable Housing’s for-profit Registered Provider).