Wates Family Holdings

Anna Mann is the Group Communications and Marketing Director at Wates, a UK family-owned development, building and property maintenance company, having joined in late 2023 as a member of the Group Executive Committee. She previously spent 12 years as Communications Director at Skanska and nine years leading internal communications at engineering consultancy Halcrow, where she founded the Halcrow Foundation in 2005. She has worked in communications and marketing within the construction and engineering industry for over 20 years.

Brian Long is a Health, Safety, and Operational Risk executive with over 25 years of global experience. He spent 18 years at Lendlease, then moved to AECOM, later led Safety, Health, and Wellbeing at Woolworths Group in Australia, and joined Mirvac in December 2021 before returning to the UK in mid-2024. He is a PhD candidate at Loughborough University supervised by Patrick Waterson and Thomas Jun.

Charles Wates joined the Wates Board in 2011. A chartered surveyor with more than 20 years of experience in commercial property, he founded and formerly led Needspace, the company's managed workspace division. He sits on the Remuneration and Sustainability committees, chairs the Next Generation Committee, and belongs to the British Council of Offices and British Property Federation.

Chelsea Walters is a lawyer who joined Wates in 2011 from CMS, after starting her career at Clifford Chance, with over 20 years of experience advising on complex transactions in the banking, corporate, and built environment sectors. She built and leads the in-house legal team of nine, setting legal strategy and overseeing legal services across the Group. She sits on the Executive Committee and attends the Group Board and other formal Group committees.

Chris Cornall is Group Technology and Data Director at Wates, having previously held business improvement and transformation roles at Barclays Wealth and Laing O'Rourke. He joined as Group IT Director in 2013 and now leads the Group's IT and Data and Analytics teams. He sits on the Executive Committee and has more than 20 years of experience in digital transformation.

Cressida Curtis joined Wates in January 2024 to lead the Group's environmental and social value delivery and sits on its Executive Committee. She previously led sustainability and corporate affairs at British Land PLC and at Quintain, and spent three years advising UK and international companies on environmental leadership and social value at Brunswick.

David Morgan is Executive Managing Director of WPS, having joined Wates in January 2014 after senior leadership roles in support services. He is a graduate of Warwick University and previously served as Group Managing Director of G4S' Care and Justice business and as Business Development Director of BT Global Services' Public Sector division. At WPS he oversees maintenance of over 500,000 social housing properties in England and Wales and works in partnership with housing associations and local authorities.

Eoghan O’Lionaird became Chief Executive of Wates in February 2023 and serves on its Group Board, Executive Committee and Sustainability Committee. He previously led the FTSE-listed marine services company James Fisher and Sons plc and held executive roles at Spectris plc, Danaher Corporation, Philips and Mitsui Kinzoku. He holds bachelor's and master's degrees in engineering and an MBA from IMD in Lausanne.

Gareth Rhys Williams CB has been appointed a Non-Executive Director on the Wates Group Board, joining the Wates Enterprise Board in July 2026. He is Chair of National Highways and previously served as the UK Government Chief Commercial Officer, leading changes to public-sector commercial capability. He has held Chief Executive roles at PHS Group, Charter International, Capital Safety Group and Vitec Group, with experience spanning infrastructure, commercial strategy and organisational transformation.

James Saunders is Chief People Officer at Wates, joining in May 2025. He began his HR career at Nationwide, later holding senior HR roles at Vodafone from 2011, and served as Chief People Officer at Intu and then at Highbourne Group, a private equity-backed carve-out of building supply businesses from Travis Perkins.

Jonathan (Jonny) Wates joined the Wates Group Board in 2008. He was previously founder and Chairman of Myriad CEG, and served as Group Head of Strategy and Sales Director of Wates Homes Ltd. He chairs the Board Sustainability Committee and holds trustee and advisory roles focused on sustainability and climate, including with Forum for the Future, the Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations, and the World Benchmarking Alliance.

Nick Jones is Chief Strategy Officer at Wates, appointed in October 2025. He joined the business in March 2006 as Head of Group Business Reporting and later served as Finance Director of the Housing Maintenance Business and the Construction Group, leading three major acquisitions and serving as a Trustee for the Wates Pension Scheme. He holds a degree in Construction Management and qualified as a chartered accountant with KPMG, specialising in property and construction in the UK and Australia.

Pat Fitzgerald is a chartered quantity surveyor with more than 30 years of commercial and operational management experience in construction. He joined Wates from Mace, where he served as Commercial Director for the Private Sector, and previously worked at Lendlease, contributing to projects including the London 2012 Olympic Games programme, Cambridge's Grand Arcade Shopping Centre and the Battersea Power Station redevelopment. As Chief Commercial Officer he leads commercial strategy across Wates and oversees its commercial, legal and building safety teams.

Philip Wainwright joined Wates as Chief Financial Officer in December 2018 and serves on the Group Board and Executive Committee, and was appointed Interim Chief Executive in July 2022. He previously held the role of Group Finance Director at Willmott Dixon and has more than 20 years of experience in the construction industry across financial and operational roles at firms including Byrne Group, Laing O'Rourke, Biwater Plc, National Grid and ED&F Man. He holds a degree in mechanical engineering, started his career as a graduate engineer at Balfour Beatty, and qualified as a chartered accountant with Ernst & Young.

Pip Prongué is Executive Managing Director for Wates Residential, where she focuses on delivering homes through partnerships with local authorities, housing associations, and institutional investors. She has extensive experience in real estate, including joint ventures, large-scale mixed-use regeneration, and strategic partnerships. Before joining Wates in January 2025, she was Managing Director for London and the South East at Bouygues UK.

Rachel Addison is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales with nearly 30 years of finance and operational management experience. She has held executive board and senior management roles at Future plc, TI Media Limited, Reach Regionals, Northcliffe Media Limited and Boots the Chemist. She joined the Board as a non-executive director and Chair of the Audit Committee in July 2023 and also serves as a non-executive director at Watkin Jones plc, Gamma Communications plc and Hollywood Bowl Group plc.

Rob Clifford joined the Wates Executive Board as Executive Managing Director for SES in January 2025, with a background spanning around three decades in construction, design, and engineering. He previously served as Managing Director for WICS (2020–2023), then part of the Wates Construction Group, before becoming Managing Director of SES Engineering Services in 2023. During the COVID-19 pandemic he oversaw a five-week expansion of the Royal London Hospital in support of the NHS.

Rosie Toogood is Chief Supply Chain and Quality Officer for Wates Group, having joined in February 2024 and serving on the Group's Executive Committee. She has more than 30 years of experience leading supply chain, procurement and quality teams, including six years as CEO of Legal & General's Modular Homes business and 25 years in executive roles at Rolls-Royce's aerospace division. She trained as a chartered accountant with Ernst & Young and holds an MBA in Strategy and Procurement.

Steff Battle is Executive Managing Director of Wates Construction, appointed in late 2023. He joined Wates in 1995, spending his first 18 years in regional roles including five years as Regional Director, and later led the pre-construction function for Wates Construction Group, including SES Engineering Services, for over six years. He leads the company's highest-revenue division and advocates for gender inclusion in construction, including sponsoring and judging the Women in Construction Awards.

Timothy (Tim) Wates joined Wates in 1993 and became Chairman in May 2023, with his career at the firm centered on housing and finance and on the relationship between the private and public sectors. He has served as Chairman of the Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership and sat on the Advisory Board of Cambridge Judge Business School, and he lectures on leadership and family business at London Business School and Cambridge University. He is a trustee of several Wates family charities and leads the Wates Family Enterprise Trust's philanthropic and thought leadership work on housing.