Comings & Goings

James Barrack Jnr joins Knight Property Group’s leadership team

Knight Property Group has welcomed the appointment of James Barrack Jnr into the family-founded business as a director.

As the son of co-founder and chairman James Barrack and grandson of co-founder Hamish Barrack, Barrack Jnr represents the next generation of leadership at Knight Property Group.

An honours graduate in Real Estate from Oxford Brookes University, he joins the board following a period with JLL and niche specialist real estate consultancy, Alternative Real Estate Advisors (AREA), where his role focused on the operational side of the business, including analysing asset portfolios across the UK.

Based at Knight’s Edinburgh office, Barrack Jnr will lead business development within the company’s established Scottish market. He will report directly to MD Howard Crawshaw and also work closely with the existing leadership team to advance the company’s ambitious growth strategy, focusing on acquisitions and unlocking new opportunities for long-term sustainable development.

Crawshaw said: “His [Barrack Jnr’s] proven expertise, entrepreneurial mindset and strong track record in the property sector will be invaluable as we accelerate our growth and take Knight Property Group into its next era.

“This appointment also marks a proud milestone, with a third generation of the Barrack family stepping into a leadership role, carrying forward the trusted personable vision to the business that both Hamish and James Snr have championed before him.”

Barrack Jnr added: “Building on the strong foundations established by my grandfather, father and the wider Knight team, I look forward to bringing my experience to drive our expansion beyond Scotland and help deliver our long-term vision for growth, diversification and sustainability.”

McCarthy Stone announces leadership changes

McCarthy Stone, the retirement developer, has announced that John Tonkiss will be stepping down as CEO at the end of November. Matthew Pratt, previously CEO at property developer Redrow and former board member of Barratt Redrow has been appointed as his replacement, effective 1 January 2026.

After 12 years at McCarthy Stone, including seven as CEO, Tonkiss has decided to step down from his role. During his time at McCarthy Stone.

Tonkiss expanded McCarthy Stone’s offering of developments and services including successfully establishing rental as a form of tenure within the retirement sector, and established shared ownership for customers under the Older Persons Shared Ownership (OPSO) scheme with Homes England.

Pratt joins McCarthy Stone from Redrow, where he spent 22 years, five of which as CEO. He led the company through the landmark merger between Redrow and Barratt Developments to create the UK’s largest housebuilder.

Pratt joins a line of new Senior Executives joining McCarthy Stone in the last year.

The executives join Shane Paull, who has been with the business 25 years and was appointed chief operating officer in 2023 after holding the position of managing director for the Southern division of the business for 11 years.

Paul Lester, chairman of McCarthy Stone, said: “After 12 years at McCarthy Stone, we say farewell and a huge thanks to John for his contribution to the business and for taking it to where it is today. As CEO, John successfully transitioned McCarthy Stone from a public to private company, and navigated the business through Covid-19 and the challenging external environment that followed.

“He leaves the company on a sure footing with an excellent leadership team in place to take the business forward. In Matthew we have a CEO that has over 20 years of UK housing sector experience, and over five years as CEO of a FTSE 250. Having successfully merged Redrow to create the UK’s leading housebuilder, we know he has the skills and experience to take McCarthy Stone forward.”

Tonkiss commented: “I am immensely proud of what we have achieved in my 12 years with McCarthy Stone. We have weathered significant challenges for the sector and are emerging as a more customer-focused business. Most of all, I am proud of what we have done in leading the retirement sector, providing excellent services to over 22,000 customers, developing over 540 communities across the country, and creating the McCarthy Stone Charitable Foundation. We have always been driven by our values and purpose to offer people independence, support and community in later life, and I am proud of what we have achieved since moving from a listed to a private company. Now is the right time to pass the baton onto Matthew. He has the track record and experience to deliver on McCarthy Stone’s potential and take it to the next level.”

Pratt added: “I’m delighted to be joining McCarthy Stone at such a pivotal time for the industry. I look forward to building on the company’s outstanding reputation for customer service and for delivering the high-quality homes the country urgently needs. After nearly 23 years with Redrow, I see many parallels between the two businesses, particularly in serving the growing downsizer market — an area where McCarthy Stone continues to lead. I believe there is now an exciting opportunity to redefine this sector. Together with the team, I’m eager to grow the business and uphold the values that have made McCarthy Stone such a trusted and respected name in British housebuilding.”

Savills strengthens property management team

Savills has strengthened its property management team with the appointment of Terri Mattison, who joins as a director at the firm’s Finsbury Circus office in the City of London.

Mattison joins Knight Frank where she held the position of regional head of facilities management for Yorkshire and the Northeast, as well as national head of shopping centres. Prior to this, Terri spent seven years at CBRE where she was national head of facilities management operations.

At Savills, Terri will hold the position of demised services retail director, which will see her launch and grow the retail demised services offering across the national shopping centre portfolio. A key focus is to expand the service offering to retailers directly and integrate alongside the retail operations team within property management. Alongside this, Terri will focus on engaging with centre management teams to identify opportunities for business growth within Savills.

Terri Mattison, Director, Savills Retail Demised Services, comments: “I am excited to join Savills, especially given that this is a very interesting time for retail with the continued growth of technological innovations within the sector. I am looking forward to working with the rest of the facilities management team and Savills strong existing network of experts to grow this capability.”

Jordan Newall, Director, Savills Facilities Management, adds: “We are very pleased to welcome Terri to Savills. Her appointment highlights the strategic growth of our facilities management team, and with her depth of knowledge of the industry, along with her extensive experience in the retail sector, we look forward to seeing Terri play an instrumental role in growing the Retail Demised Services offering across the national shopping centre portfolio at Savills.”