KiwiBuild's head of delivery Helen O'Sullivan stepping down

Helen O'Sullivan. Photo credit: Supplied

Helen O'Sullivan is the latest in KiwiBuild management to step down. 

The head of delivery at KiwiBuild will leave the position at the end of August, a month before her short-term contract was due to finish at the end of September.

Housing Minister Megan Woods' office said O'Sullivan was on a fixed-term contract and acknowledged she is leaving the role a bit earlier than expected.

KiwiBuild has confirmed O'Sullivan is moving to a new chief executive role in Auckland. 

KiwiBuild deputy chief executive, place-based policy and programmes, Brad Ward, said O'Sullivan "continues to be strongly supportive of KiwiBuild and she goes with KiwiBuild's best wishes".

"Helen's contribution to KiwiBuild has been significant," he said. "She has provided strong leadership within the KiwiBuild team and made significant improvements to how it operates."

"With 240 homes completed, another 540 under construction, and accelerating sales Helen leaves the KiwiBuild unit in a good place."

He said Matt Appleby, from within in the KiwiBuild team, will be acting head of delivery.

O'Sullivan spent more than four years as chief executive of the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand. She was also the chief executive of Ockham Residential.

Her departure follows the resignation of former KiwiBuild chief executive Stephen Barclay in January, who spent just six months in the role.

Barclay's resignation from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development was tumultuous, in that it followed a string of complaints against him from employees, contractors and stakeholders.

National's housing spokesperson Judith Collins has labelled O'Sullivan's departure "a terrible look" after Barclay's departure. 

"How many more executives need to run for the lifeboats before the Government realises that KiwiBuild is headed for the bottom of the ocean?"

Newshub.

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