Agency faces triple threats of market uncertainty, fire safety and net zero if it wants to deliver homes The resignation of Homes England chief executive Nick Walkley last week came as a surprise to both his staff and the industry. Widely seen as having transformed an under-performing Homes and Communities Agency with the creation of Homes England in February 2018, Walkley will leave the agency at the end of this month with his reputation at a high watermark. Overseeing the administration of Help to Buy and the £12.5bn affordable housing programme, alongside a raft of other initiatives and deals, Homes England enables the construction of more than 40,000 homes a year. While the agency’s chief investment officer, Gordon More, will take temporary charge, Walkley’s departure leaves the body without a permanent leader at a crucial moment as the country emerges from the pandemic, with the housing market facing huge challenges. His eventual successor will have big shoes to fill.