Board of Trustees

Shelinder Bhurji is currently a multi unit franchisee of a celebration cake business that is based on a franchise model. Shelinder has been doing this for the last 11 years, since his first branch opened in Gravesend, Kent, the 7th branch in the whole franchise at the time. Shelinder now manages a portfolio of 6 sites, mainly in Kent, with some in Crawley and London.

Shelinder's background is quite different to what he does now. Having studied and gained a degree in Chemistry from the university of Birmingham, he then worked as a research chemist in the Midlands.

Deciding to pursue a career change, he looked into operating his own business, which is where he started his journey in the world of business, back in 2011. Fast forward 11 years and he has developed many skills that have served well in operating his businesses. His particular focus has always been on local community, whether it’s the towns where his businesses operate or local charities that he supports.

This is the reason he chose to support Rapport Housing & Care, he says, "quite simply, it is a community focused organisation that provides services for those who really need it. I hope to support this organisation with relevant experience built over the last 10 years in mainly supporting the team to achieving the mission of the organisation."

Paul is originally from the East Midlands and spent most of his early life in Germany and the Middle East, as his father was in the Royal Air Force.

Paul first started his professional life working for the Metropolitan Police before having a long career in financial services, having worked in banking, insurance, investment management as well as in both the public and third sector before moving into management consultancy.

For many years Paul was a school governor of a local Kent primary school, where he chaired various committees.

Paul lives with wife in West Malling, has two grown children and two grandchildren plus a Dalmatian, all of whom keep him busy.

Paul is a keen follower of most sports, especially football with Tottenham Hotspur, and is now attempting to play bowls at a reasonable standard.

Robin has been a trustee of Rapport Housing & Care since 2016. Married with two sons he lives in the St Johns area of Sevenoaks. With a background in banking and finance Robin became increasingly involved in housing, working for a period for the Homes and Communities Agency, the government agency responsible for social housing. He also became a trustee of Rapport Housing & Care as a result of the experiences of his own family members. He is now semi retired, enjoys the theatre and tries to play golf. Robin says: “Being a link trustee allows me to meet residents in my local area and gain a better understanding of our residents’ needs which I hope will help me as a trustee for the whole organisation.”

Tony Searles was born in Chiselhurst, educated at Swanley School and London School of Media & Printing worked in the paper industry for 25 years. He has lived in the Swanley area all his life and was elected as Mayor of Swanley in 1994.

Tony has also been a Sevenoaks District and Local Councilor on and off for the past twenty five years. He has served as a Non-Executive Director of a local NHS Mental Health Trust and is a Trustee of Alzheimer’s & Dementia Support Services.

Tony is married with four children and two grandchildren, enjoying the theatre, winter sports and spending time with his family. Tony says: “Being a Link Trustee enables me to interact with the staff and residents and provide help wherever while promoting the organisation”.

Having spent the first twenty years of his working life in wholesale and retail horticulture, Steve took the decision in 1990 to change career and enter the world of social housing.

In 1990 he joined Baptist Housing Association as an Assistant Regional Manager, providing housing management and maintenance services to older people living in sheltered schemes in London and the South East. In 1991, Baptist Housing Association merged with Church Housing Association to form English Churches Housing Group (now part of the Riverside Group). In his time with ECHG, he managed both sheltered and general needs properties, before moving into the policy side of the business.

In 2000, Steve moved to the Origin Group as their Policy and Regulation Manager, which incorporated the role of Company Secretary, where he serviced the different Boards of the Association.
After 4 years with them, he became Chief Executive of Bexley Churches Housing Association, where he spent eight very happy years.

Since leaving BECHA, Steve has done a variety of different jobs including being the Interim Chief Executive at Quo Vadis Trust, which is a supported housing organisation providing support to people with mental health problems.

Until retiring in December 2019, Steve was the Business Development Manager at Medway Voluntary Action, where he provides support to small local charities, as well as looking to see how the charity can diversify.