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This week’s Yorkshire appointments

Clarion, Sadie Brook, Zoe Roberts and Grace Allison

Leeds law firm Clarion is continuing to invest in developing young talent with the appointment of another three trainee solicitors.

Sadie Brook, Zoe Roberts and Grace Allison are the latest recruits to embark on a two year training contract with Clarion during which time they will gain experience in at least four departments.

Managing partner, Mark Burns said: “It’s important that businesses continue to invest in developing young talent and provide the vital hands-on experience they need as they embark on their professional careers.

“It’s always a pleasure to see the enthusiasm and fresh thinking they bring to the firm as well as the satisfaction of watching their development.”

PwC (Sheffield) Andy Ward

PwC’s senior partner in Sheffield, Andy Ward, has been appointed as the new assurance leader for the Yorkshire region.

Andy will now oversee the Yorkshire assurance practice. He will work closely with Graham Parsons, who has joined the practice from London to head up the assurance team across the six North offices.

Andy Ward said: “Our Yorkshire assurance team has had a great year with iconic client wins and a number of new partner and director promotions, so it is an exciting time to be taking up this role.

“Competition remains fierce and in a new governance era, we will see more tendering activity and more companies switch auditor.

But market disruption brings new business opportunities to work with current and new clients according to their changing needs. Our business model will respond to capitalise on these opportunities.“

Langleys, Melissa Strong

Melissa Strong has been appointed as a Senior Associate in the insurance division at Langleys Solicitors LLP, York.

Langleys’ managing partner and head of insurance law David Thompson said: “Melissa is highly experienced in various aspects of insurance law and will be a strong addition to our team of experts.”

Melissa said of her appointment: “I’m delighted to be joining Langleys, which has a long-established reputation in insurance law. I’m looking forward to bringing my experience and knowledge to bear with a diverse range of clients.”

Irwin Mitchell (Leeds) Gary Clarkson

The Leeds office of national law firm, Irwin Mitchell, has appointed former Haines Watts Partner and tax investigations specialist, Gary Clarkson, as it continues to bolster its Business Legal Services team.

Gary has worked as a Director at Deloitte and a Tax Investigations Manager at PricewaterhouseCoopers.

In his new role at Irwin Mitchell, he will be based in the firm’s Leeds office at Wellington Place.

Gary said: “HMRC continues to take an increasingly tougher stance on avoidance as well as evasion, and it is clear that there is demand amongst corporate as well as individuals for specialist advice.

“I’m delighted to be joining Irwin Mitchell and look forward to supporting the continued growth of the firm’s commercial team, whilst also helping to develop a market-leading tax investigations and disputes team.”

Andrew Walker, partner and head of Business Legal Service in the Leeds office, said: “We are delighted to announce Gary’s appointment. He is a very well-known expert in his field and adds another dimension to our growing business legal services team here in Leeds.”

Other recent appointments to Irwin Mitchell’s Leeds office include real estate solictior, David Cowgill and Jenny Arrowsmith, who earlier this month joined the employment team as an Associate.

CBRE (Leeds) Ross Jackson

The Leeds office of CBRE has appointed Ross Jackson as graduate surveyor within its Valuation team.

Having completed a Commercial Real Estate Masters degree at the University of Sheffield, Ross will join the expanding team which has recently worked on large portfolios for RBS and HSBC as well as advising on major assets including The Pinnacle, Leeds and Thorpe Park.

Forde Recruitment, Jonathan Wright

Experienced deal maker Jonathan Wright has become a non-executive director of Forde Recruitment, the leading Yorkshire employment group.

For 10 years he was chief executive of the Alexander Mann Group working with Dragon’s Den star James Caan to develop a broad base of recruitment businesses.

Managing director Paul Forde, who established the business in 1991, said: “This is an exciting and significant step forward for Forde. In discussions with Jonathan we quickly recognised that he would bring enormous amounts of experience in the recruitment and staffing sectors.

“As a non-executive director he will support our team to deliver exciting and strategic development plans for the company.”

Avant Homes, James Kaleda

Housebuilder Avant Homes has appointed James Kaleda to the role of group development training and delivery manager.

The company’s regional housebuilding brands comprise Bett Homes in Scotland and Ben Bailey in Yorkshire.

Avant Homes’ group HR director, Alan McGilivray said: “Attracting, developing and retaining the finest employees at all levels is hugely important to us as a business. James’ breadth of experience and track record of success in talent management and employee development will be great assets to us. We are very pleased to welcome him to the team.”

Conroy Brook, John Rodda

Yorkshire based developer Conroy Brook has recruited one of the house building industry’s most respected Construction Directors to help deliver a number of major projects as the firm enters an exciting phase of business growth.

John Rodda joins Conroy Brook from Persimmon Homes where he worked for seven years following his previous position at Ben Bailey Homes. As Construction Director, John has delivered some of the country’s largest and most complex housing projects, leading teams across the UK.

John comments; “The regional house building sector is picking up its pace and Conroy Brook is well placed at the forefront of Yorkshire development.”

Richard Conroy, chief executive of Conroy Brook, continued; “Construction Directors with strong track-records and reputations are highly sought after in the industry so we are delighted that John has decided to bring this wealth of experience to the Conroy Brook team. 7

“Our policy to recruit the best people in the business in line with our sustained growth has proven successful and we now have a highly capable team to take the business forward over the next 5 years.”

Clough & Company

West Yorkshire based chartered accountancy firm Clough & Company has expanded its team with six new appointments across a number of its divisions.

Sam Batch joins Clough Management Services as a management accountant, whilst the Audit division has made two new appointments with Wei Song joining as an audit senior and Thomas Conway joins as an audit assistant.

Bethany Naylor joins as a trainee chartered accountant after graduating from Manchester Metropolitan University, as does Rebecca Dixon.

Lottie Smith has been appointed as a client administrator supporting Chartford Financial Management’s team of independent financial advisors, after previously working at a Huddersfield based financial services company.

Lesley Kendrew, staff and audit partner at Clough & Company, explains: “Since the start of the year we’ve seen a dramatic increase in business across all of our divisions and these appointments will help us to maintain the standards of service that we are renowned for.

“Sam, Wei, Thomas and Lottie all bring a great deal of experience to their positions and both Bethany and Rebecca take a tenacious approach to their work, which is vital in this industry, and I’m sure they will enjoy long and successful careers.”

Eadon, Lockwood and Riddle, Lynsay Robinson and Diane Evans

Sheffield and Derbyshire based estate agents Eadon, Lockwood and Riddle have appointed two members of staff after opening a new branch on Oakbrook Road.

Senior lettings negotiator Lynsay Robinson and property manager Diane Evans have both joined the team at ELR’s new office, which specialises in property letting / management, as well as showcasing homes for sale.

Diane has over 20 years of experience working in the Sheffield property market, joining ELR after a previous appointment at Blundell’s.

Lynsay joins the branch on Oakbrook road after previously being part of ELR’s lettings office on Broomhill. She has 17 years of experience in property, having joined ELR earlier this year.

Chris Thomson, managing director at ELR, said: “We are delighted to welcome Diane as a new member of the team and to have Lynsay on board at our new office.

“We always employ our staff based on their experience and knowledge of the area and Diane and Lynsay bring a wealth of both.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .