Mr McGill’s appointment takes immediate effect. As well as taking executive responsibility for the overall financial management of the group and its subsidiaries, he will be specifically responsible for financial matters relating to The PRS REIT plc (REIT), including leading a dedicated finance team that has been established to support the REIT’s ongoing growth.

Malcolm Briselden, the outgoing finance director of Sigma, remains in operational charge of Sigma’s finance team, working closely with Mike although he steps down from the board today. He is focusing on Sigma’s activities outside the REIT, including London.

Mr McGill has over 20 years of experience in senior financial roles at listed and private companies. He has worked across a range of sectors, including residential property, and has specific expertise in supporting and implementing growth strategies.

He was previously group CFO at Baxters Food Group Limited, the international food processing company, CFO at Lomond Capital, the residential asset management company specialising in the UK private rental sector, and group finance director at Murray International Holdings Limited, the property and metals group.

Mr McGill qualified as a chartered accountant with Coopers & Lybrand in 1991.

The company’s interim results announced that the pace of housing delivery increased with 1,947 new rental homes now completed.

The results also highlighted that as of March 27, around 3,000 homes were underway across 62 sites (completed and contracted) in England and despite the current suspension of construction activity by housebuilders, there is little cash flow or balance sheet impact.

The firm also revealed that the interim dividend in respect of the three months to 31 March 2020 will be considered in the fourth quarter of the REIT’s financial year when the outlook is likely to be clearer.

Graham Barnet, CEO of Sigma, commented: “I am very pleased to welcome Mike to the Board as Group Chief Financial Officer. He brings significant additional experience to Sigma that will be invaluable as the Company continues to develop. Mike will have financial oversight of all of our activities, with a particular focus on our delivery for the PRS REIT. Mike has been working with us previously and is therefore well known to the team.”

Sigma expects to announce full-year results to 31 December 2019 at the end of April.