Our Executives

Head, Aboriginal Housing

Cheryl Axleby-Keeffe

Cheryl is a proud Nurungga woman with extensive experience working within both federal and South Australian government sectors, the Aboriginal community sector, law and justice, human rights, women's issues, Aboriginal family violence, youth justice, child and youth; family services, Closing the Gap and was the SA co-Convenor for the Uluru Dialogues.

She held the role of Alternate Deputy Chair for South Australian-Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Commission Patpa Warra Yunti Regional Council. Cheryl held the role as CEO of Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement from 2012-2020 and was the National Co-Chair of National Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Legal Services from 2014-2020. She is the National Co-Chair for Change the Record, holding this role since 2016. Prior to her appointment as SA Housing Authority’s Head of Aboriginal Housing in 2022, she was the Relationship Manager (SA) at Aboriginal Community Housing Limited.

Cheryl is dedicated to improving the quality of life of Aboriginal peoples through holistic programs that put self-determination, truth telling and empowerment at the forefront. As Head of Aboriginal Housing, she believes this can be achieved successfully through embedding the priorities of the South Australian Aboriginal Housing Strategy 2021-2031: self-determination, place based, participation, co-design, inclusivity and transparency into SA Housing Authority’s everyday business.

Director, Office of the Chief Executive

Catherine Burgess

Catherine has a lifelong passion for housing equity and believes stable housing plays a foundational role in the quality of people’s lives. This dedication is the backbone of a career spanning 30 years in the social housing sector in South Australia.

Catherine began her career on the front-line, helping clients access homelessness services, social housing, and private rental assistance. She has since supervised service delivery teams, developed networks with external agencies and organisations to advocate on behalf of clients for housing-related support services, managed business improvement projects and progressed through various other roles in the SA Housing Authority.

Her experience and knowledge has been enhanced through further education in business studies, governance, and housing management and policy.

She is a strategic leader with over 20 years in management, driving service improvements, and state-wide community engagement and input into major housing strategies. Catherine has represented South Australia at national housing strategy meetings, including negotiating a new National Housing and Homelessness Agreement and has led our involvement at National Housing Conferences. She currently manages the Authority’s Office of the Chief Executive.

Catherine’s corporate knowledge and experience working in the community sector makes her an invaluable member of the executive team in developing strategies to improve housing opportunities and outcomes for South Australians facing barriers to secure housing.

Chief Financial Officer, Finance & Partnerships

Nick Symons

Nicholas is the Chief Financial Officer of the SA Housing Authority and leads our Finance and Partnership Division.

Nicholas’s leadership was instrumental in establishing the SA Housing Authority as a stand-alone entity and establishing a solid financial basis to provide longer-term financial sustainability and transform its strategic direction. He has more than 10 years of experience in the public sector, having started his career as a graduate at the South Australian Auditor General’s Department. Prior to his current role, Nicholas has held other senior management positions , including in Renewal SA.

With a key focus on value and efficiency, Nicholas strives to support and enable the SA Housing Authority and its  housing partners to achieve successful property and tenancy outcomes.  He brings a strong social conscience to his role and is passionate about identifying innovative way to both provide housing and removing barriers to housing outcomes.

He holds a Bachelor of Finance and a Bachelor of Commerce as well as professional accounting qualifications as a member of CPA Australia.

Executive Director,  People & Strategy

Shane Pritchard

Shane has more than 30 years of experience in various fields of business strategy, corporate services and risk management. He has been with the SA Housing Authority since January 2021.

He is the State Manager for Emergency Relief – the services our staff provide to keep people safe and secure during natural emergencies like bushfires and floods. He is responsible for strategic and business planning, analytics, technology, business improvement, human resources, health safety and wellbeing, facilities management, protective security, as well as media and communications.

Previously, Shane has held Regional (Asia Pacific) and Global Executive level roles in Investment Banks in Singapore, Moscow, London and Sydney. Prior to that, Shane worked in the Caucuses, Balkans and Sahel Regions for the United Nations and a humanitarian non-government organisation. He has led a team in post-war Iraq during the reconstruction and served as an Officer in regular and special forces units in the Australian Army.

Shane holds two Masters degrees – in Business, and in International Relations. He has a Bachelors degree in Political Science, and a Diploma in Risk Management.

Executive Director, Property Services

Mark Hayward

Mark joined the SA Housing Authority as the Executive Director, Property Services in January 2023. He has a personal interest in housing equality and a strong desire to create better housing outcomes for all South Australians.

He is responsible for the asset management of more than 33,000 public homes, including asset strategy, acquisition, divestment, development, and maintenance.

Having worked in both the community housing and private sectors, and with more than 15 years experience in asset management, strategic direction and planning, high-level negotiations and stakeholder management. He is highly regarded in all areas of the housing sector.

With his collaborative and engaging style of leadership, he brings extensive experience to the role. His pragmatic approach to problem solving, strives to maintain high levels of staff engagement and endeavours to support staff to achieve their best.
Prior to commencing with SA Housing Authority, Mark held senior leadership positions across the public, not-for-profit and private sectors.

Mark holds a Masters of Business Administration (Property Management), Bachelor of Education, and Graduate Diploma of Project Management. He is a registered Land Agent and a graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.