ESI is run by Tony Trott, chartered surveyor and housing consultant, and supported by specialist associates, covering – interim management, community consultation, financial modelling and planning.

Tony has thirty years experience working for diverse clients, including residential tenants and landlords in all sectors, national and local government departments and NGOs in several countries.  He has set up new organisations and managed property portfolios, social housing, building contracts, and national policy programmes.  He was involved in the development and running of law centres, housing advice services, housing and production co-operatives.  He was a co-founder of the Tenant Participation Advisory Service in England.

Tony worked with tenants’ groups on technical aspects of them taking over ownership of their estates, before local authorities started transferring their stock; and subsequently with tenants and landlords on investment, renewal and stock transfer options in a dozen local authority areas.  He has developed regeneration analysis and proposals for inner city areas.

Tony was a director at the Housing Corporation from 1989-94.  He set up and ran their Tenant Services Division, and was responsible for the development, implementation and grant support for the national strategies covering –

• tenant participation

• housing co-operatives

• tenant-led stock transfers

• ethnic minority housing associations

In addition to ongoing commissions in the UK, since 1993 Tony carried out commissions in Bulgaria and Albania developing projects covering –

• resident controlled management companies for flat owners

• self build programmes for impoverished owners and homeless people

• housing allocations systems for ex political prisoners

• setting up a legal advice service for those on low incomes

Tony is Chair of Somer Housing Group.  He has been used by the Housing Corporation as a statutory appointee.  He has sat on advisory groups for the Housing Corporation, the Chartered Institute of Housing [CIH], National Housing Federation and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation [JRF], and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors [RICS].   

Tony contributed to the RICS reports "Housing the Nation" [1992 + 2002], and wrote their guidance for members "The Valuation on Transfer of Local Authority Housing Stock" [1989].  

He has written and edited publications for the CIH on - community regeneration [1998]; accountability, governance and regulation in local housing companies [1996/7]; anti-poverty strategies [1998]; compulsory competitive tendering [1994/5]; common housing registers [1996/8].  He wrote the good practice guide “Managing Private Rented Housing” [1998] published by CIH/RICS.  

He is a co-author of the JRF report “Community Lettings” [1996], and the joint JRF/CIH publication on lettings policy and practice “Social Engineering or Consumer Choice” [2001]. He managed the programme for, and wrote the JRF report "Best Practice in Regeneration" [2002].   He wrote the Housing Corporation/ DETR guidance on warranties in stock transfers “Dealing With Uncertainty” [1999].