A Tribute to John Rodney Dykes

John Rodney Dykes, Rod or Rodders to his friends, sadly passed away on Saturday, September 7, 2024.

Rodney began his career as a trainee Public Health Officer (Environmental Health Officer) in his hometown of Bury, a town in Greater Manchester, England. He trained and qualified and was a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health for over 60 years. He worked at various North Manchester Authorities, though his career was nearly cut short when he was responsible for procuring new garbage trucks and the shining new fleet wouldn’t fit down the back alleys of the Lancashire town.

The late 1960s and early 1970s saw some of Rodney’s coworkers moving to housing departments in local councils whilst others like Rodney followed a path into the newish Voluntary Housing Sector. The impact Cathy Come Home, a 1966 BBC television play about homelessness, promoted the creation of non profits. Rodney joined Liverpool Improved Houses, later to become Deputy Chief Executive of what became Merseyside Improved Houses now, Riverside. During those years he worked with a number of esteemed colleagues including Barry Natton, Tom Dacey and Tom Murtha.

In the late 1970s, Rodney left MIH to join North British Housing Association, now Places for People, as Deputy Chief Executive; working with the likes of Eric Armintage, he was responsible for the growth of the association. Bill Payne and a young David Tolson who told me that he would often look out for him at the bus stop and give him a lift into work, no doubt offering a few career tips or cricketing insights along the way.

The 1980s saw Rodney branch out on his own and create Rodney Dykes & Associates and then Rodney Dykes Housing Services (RDHS), he said his mother had always told him he should have stayed at North Brit and had a “proper job.”

Unsurprisingly, RDHS became a very successful housing consultancy and Rodney thrived on trying to make a difference in the sector. He became known as the Red Adair of housing, fire fighting on behalf of the regulator then The Housing Corporation. Rodney was often at his best when an organisation was in crisis. There were dawn raids to change office door locks and secure precious company documents. Some of my recollections from that time include a West London association whose senior officers were arrested by the fraud squad, a Manchester association where a High Court injunction was required to remove staff from a “sit-in” at one of its hostels, and the minutes of an East London association’s meeting, where Rodney was acting Chief Executive, which read “ 6-15 pm at this point the meeting was suspended after a number of chairs were thrown and the police called to restore order.”

In one of Rodneys first consulting jobs he recovered over £1m (a lot of money back then) from the architects’ professional indemnity insurers, following defects in a number of sheltered blocks. He took great pride in presenting the Housing Minister George Young (now Sir George) with the cheque – but most importantly, the sheltered homes were improved and the older people were able to continue their lives in warm safe homes. They remained in touch, and Sir George often hosted Rodney on visits to the House of Commons; their paths crossed again when Rodney was Deputy Chief Executive of the Liverpool Housing Action Trust.

In all those “crisis management” roles Rodney would always have a keen eye on the interests of the innocent staff, it was never their fault if the committee or executive team were no good! But Rodney would always bring the staff team together to provide a calming and reassurance that he would work tirelessly to protect them and the tenants they worked for.

Rodney was also a master of executive recruitment. Many a Chief Executive owe their careers to Rodney; after his death, many housing professionals shared stories about the support and guidance he’d  given them during their careers.

Rodney was passionate about social housing and regeneration and a huge advocate of learning from others. He would often arrange reciprocal study tours to Denmark, The Netherlands and France, and was delighted to be actively involved in the creation of the Tri-Country Conference a bi-annual event arranged by the CIH, National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) and the Canadian Housing and Renewal Association (CHRA).

Karen Thoreson, a former President of NAHRO, commented to me that “Rodney’s commitment to excellence in housing, challenging norms and proving new, better processes and always demonstrating a humour that tickled your ribs, has kept him in my thoughts.”

The Tri-Country Conference also gave Rodney a chance to mix some of his other passions with work. Rodney loved music and was an accomplished musician. An impromptu singalong at one of the first conferences, lead to a rendition of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” by Rodney at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville at the next and the piece de la resistance conducting a brass band in Manchester Town Hall on the final evening of the conference he help to host in the city. A feat he also repeated at the retirement party for Barry Natton at Riverside a few years later.

Rodney’s contribution to the shared learning “across the pond” as he was would say, led to him receiving international recognition from both CHRA and NAHRO. He was extremely honoured or chuffed as he would say, to be the first UK recipient of the prestigious NAHRO John D Lange International Award in 2006.

When Rodney retired RDHS became ConsultCIH but Rodney being Rodney still kept his hand in including continuing to write for Inside Housing until illness took over. He remained a passionate supporter of social housing, the many tributes that have been placed by former colleagues and friends are a testament to this and his long and distinguished career.

Rodney was also very proud of his role as a columnist for Inside Housing and would use the opportunity to share thoughts and insights on the sector. Many will remember his articles, which also appeared in the daily addition which were produced during the CIH Housing conference.

Rodney’s other passions were Liverpool Football Club, he was a season ticket holder, and was sadly at Hillsborough, though thankfully not in the Leppings Lane end, and Cricket. He took great pride in organising a Housing Associations North vs South annual match which many of us enjoyed playing. He brought out of cricketing retirement people like Alan Kilburn CEO of Home Group, Matthew Gardiner and David Edmonds then Chief Executive of the Housing Corporation. The Annual trophy sponsored by legal firm Dawson and Co was hosted in Nottingham and Birmingham and reported at length in Inside Housing. Whenever Rodney started a new consulting job the organisation would be asked if they had any good cricketers looking to play for the “North”. An impromptu “net” would be arranged to confirm if they were good enough!

I should also mention Rodney’s faith, church and choirs were very much part of his life.

On a personal note, he guided my career in social housing, employing me as a young graduate, encouraging me to be a part of the CIH, I recall him volunteering me to be branch secretary but this ultimately led to me having the honour to be CIH President, at the time (2002) the youngest and first from the “private sector”. He remained a mentor and friend throughout my career.

I round off this tribute with a couple of comments from his friends oveseas — three former Presidents of NAHRO wrote to me with their personal thoughts.

Rick Gentry, former CEO of the San Diego Housing Authority, said:

“Rodders is gone?!? This hurts deeply, and personally.

I will let others reflect on the long productive career of Rodney Dykes and how important and significant his many contributions have been to the affordable housing community, not only in the UK, but also across the Atlantic in our North American communities as well. Please do not misunderstand: Rod was a valuable mentor to me also, but first and foremost he was my dear friend.

My wife and I first met Rod at a Tri-Country Conference in London in June 1994. The Tri-Country was an every-other year gathering of affordable housing professionals from Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. Our meeting sites alternated among the three countries and the series of gatherings lasted almost twenty years, during most of the 1990’s-2000’s. My wife, Deb, and I first bonded with Rodders during that meeting in June 1994 when the three of us were among the “Rowdy Lot in the Back of the Bus” during the mid-conference transfer of conference delegates from London to Warwickshire. After that, the three of us were family.

I cannot remember the number of times, over the years since, that Rod and I…often with Deb…and later Nell…would be together. It might be at official meetings in places like London, Brighton, Liverpool, Manchester, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, San Francisco, Washington, DC, or elsewhere.

During many of those meetings I noted that Rod and my wife were missing on Sunday mornings. While I was working, they would find a local Anglican or Episcopalian service to attend and return musically and spiritually refreshed.

We were also lucky to have many opportunities for purely personal and social visits, in Southport, Manchester, Chicago or San Diego. Rodders became my friend, and more than that he became my big brother.

I have a wonderful memory of Rod from a February 1997 trip to London when he arranged two tours of the Houses of Parliament for me. They were one-day-apart visits hosted by two Members of Parliament, a Tory and a Laborite, each almost a caricature of their respective parties at the time. Rodders was equally at home with each MP, though he did have an impish little smile on his face during much of the time with them both. He had friends in both worlds and indeed in every world he worked and lived. Everyone loved Rod.

I also have a treasured memory of Rodders from our last email message exchange just last month. Thank goodness for the internet, which allowed us to keep up with each other post career. In that email he called me “Brother.” That is my memory of Rodney Dykes that will prevail.

I know that Rod’s Anglican Faith was deep and profound, and that his Faith in addition to his family, as well as Nell…Thank Goodness for Nell…gave him great comfort and meaning.

To Nell and Rod’s family, please accept profound condolences from Deb and me.

To Rodders: Thank you for the Memories. We will love you always.”

Karen Thoreson, former President/CEO of Alliance for Innovation, shared:

I got to know Rodney Dykes best, through our Tri Country conferences which would rotate between the states, the UK and Canada. Typically attended by approximately sixty people, divided equally between the three countries, for me the most memorable was the UK conference in Manchester, England where Rodney served as a Master of Ceremonies of sort.

We had done some singing together during the prior US conference, so Rod proposed a musical contest between the three countries. As I remember, the Canadians did  a funny and festive parody with kazoos. Our US team engage my husband to play the guitar to accompany us in three part harmony with Woody Guthrie’s “This Land is Your Land”. We did a pretty good job! Then Rod, left the room and ushered in the winning thirty piece UK Brass Band from Manchester. OK, it was no contest!

Rodney’s commitment to excellence in housing, challenging norms and proving new, better processes, and always demonstrating a humor that tickled your ribs, has kept him in my thoughts even 25 years since we  we last met in person.

And Robert Armstrong, former CEO of the Omaha Housing Authority, wrote:

“[Rodney] was an outstanding individual who made all of us better human beings.”

Rodney – you had a great inning and you will never walk alone.