Crest Nicholson (LON:CRST) announced Peter Truscott as its new chief executive, sending shares soaring on Tuesday.

The FTSE 250 house builder said that Truscott would assume the role following the end of his current contract with Galliford Try later in September this year.

Mr Truscott is set to replace Patrick Bergin at Crest Nicholson, who has agreed to step down.

The company said that Chris Tinker, who is currently Chairman of Major Projects and Strategic Partnerships and Board director, will become interim Chief Executive.

He is set to be also helped by Stephen Stone, Chairman in the meantime.

Stephen Stone, Chairman, commented on the announcement:

“We are delighted to welcome Peter to Crest Nicholson. We announced last year that we were shifting strategy from growth to cash generation with a strong emphasis on partnerships and other joint ventures, to de-risk the portfolio while delivering more homes.

Peter is highly experienced at delivering a broad range of housing needs to customers working with Local Authorities, Housing Associations as well as private homebuyers. This, together with his operational and public company experience, will bring strong additional expertise to our team.”

He also thanked outgoing chief executive Patrick Bergin for his work for the company of the years. He added:

“We are extremely grateful to Patrick Bergin for his dedication, time and commitment to Crest Nicholson over the last 13 years both as Group Finance Director and latterly as Chief Operating Officer and Group Chief Executive and wish him well for the future.”

The house builder posted its final results for the year back in January, reporting a 15% decline in profits as Brexit uncertainty weighed.

Crest Nicholson is listed on the London Stock Exchange. It was founded back in 1963 and is headquartered in Surrey in the UK.

Shares in the firm are currently trading +6.22% as of 13:20PM (GMT).