Network Rail Property has appointed two non-executive directors to its board.
Former British Land chief investment officer Steve Smith and Neil Sachdev, an ex-board property director at Sainsbury’s, have a combined 73 years’ experience working in the UK’s real estate and regeneration sectors.
At Sainsbury’s, Sachdev oversaw the delivery of more than 5m sq ft of new retail space, creating over £2bn of value. He is currently a non-executive at NHS Property Services Limited.
The appointments follow an announcement in April that Network Rail had established a board for its specialist transport property business, Network Rail Property, to approve and advise on investments and disposals of Network Rail’s estate and property assets.
Under the new structure and governance agreement, Network Rail aims to help generate £1.8bn through asset disposals to put towards the Railway Upgrade Plan, a scheme to increase capacity and improve the railway.
The new property board will also focus on delivering land for housing.
David Biggs, managing director of Network Rail Property, said: “Our new non-executive directors will bring valuable commercial experience to our business.
“I look forward to working with them to continue to unlock land for homes, drive economic growth in towns and cities and reinvest money into the rail network to help fund the Railway Upgrade Plan.”
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