For anyone involved in the housing association sector over the past two decades there has arguably been no bigger figure than David Orr.

Seen as a firebrand when he took over as chief executive of the National Housing Federation (NHF) in 2005, Orr later played a leading role as registered providers coped with grant funding cuts of 40% under the Cameron government, urging them to think creatively about accessing new forms of finance and leveraging their balance sheets to plug the gap and continue to develop homes.