Persimmon chief executive David Jenkinson has announced he will step down from the role after 15 months in charge.

David, who has been with the housebuilding firm for 23 years, will stay in the role until required, giving the company enough time to recruit a new group leader.

Chairman of Persimmon, Roger Devlin thanked David for playing a critical role in the development of a new Persimmon.

"As Chief Executive he quickly set about designing and implementing a programme of change and started the process of resetting the culture of the business," Roger explained. "Under his leadership Persimmon has invested in a range of customer care and quality initiatives, prioritised customers over volume, became the first UK housebuilder to implement a retention policy and will achieve an HBF 4-star rating. Throughout this period of significant change, the operational performance of the business has remained strong.

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"Dave has the full support of the board and will continue to do so until he leaves. I am grateful that Dave has signalled his intention to step down at an early stage to give us the time to carry out a thorough search process and to continue the evolution of the business."

David Jenkinson added: "I'm very pleased with the progress that we've made over the last year in reshaping Persimmon's approach and culture while at the same time maintaining our operational momentum. Persimmon is an outstanding business with a strong balance sheet and a great team of talented and dedicated people who mean a great deal to me. I will remain fully committed to both the CEO role and to our programme of change until my last day in the job." 

(CM/MH)