This week’s Yorkshire appointments

hlw Keeble Hawson has appointed dealmaker Matt Ainsworth to the firm as a corporate partner.

Bringing almost two decades of expertise in mergers and acquisitions; Matt has represented a raft of well-known clients and specialises in all aspects of corporate finance and private equity transactions, joint ventures and company reorganisations.

Paul Trudgill, hlw Keeble Hawson managing partner, said: “I am delighted to welcome Matt to the firm.

“He is widely acknowledged and respected as one of Yorkshire’s top corporate lawyers and his appointment demonstrates our ambition to offer the best talent and service of the highest quality to our clients.

Matt Ainsworth said: “hlw Keeble Hawson’s reputation as a leading independent regionally focused firm is second to none and the opportunity to play an instrumental role in the next stage of its development was too good to miss.”

With offices in Sheffield, Leeds and Doncaster, hlw Keeble Hawson is one of the region’s biggest law firms.

Liz Rogers, RSM

RSM, the audit, tax and consulting firm, has strengthened its tax practice by appointing a new associate director in its Leeds office.

Liz Rogers joins RSM from BHP where she headed up the trusts and estates practice following 10 years working within the personal tax and trust team in a Big Four firm.

Liz is a chartered tax adviser and is also STEP qualified and sits on the Yorkshire committee for the professional association. She has experience advising private clients with a range of personal tax, trusts and estate issues.

In her new role, Liz will provide compliance and advisory support for a growing number of private clients to manage tax, wealth and succession planning, whilst working closely with the Yorkshire private client team to grow the practice and its offering.

Steve Brown, RSM tax partner in Leeds, said: “We are delighted to welcome Liz to the Leeds team.

“She joins at an exciting time as our private client tax practice continues to grow and drawing on Liz’ varied experience we will further strengthen our offering - allowing us to support more high net worth individuals on complex UK and international tax planning.”

Amanda Thomas, Avant Homes

Wakefield housebuilder Avant Homes has announced the appointment of a new field sales manager.

Amanda Thomas has worked at Avant Homes for the past ten years and has been instrumental in developing the housebuilder’s sales and training activity. Additional responsibilities have also included the organisation of staffing for 12 developments across Yorkshire.

Amanda will have a special responsibility for Avant Homes’ Rotherham development, Bella View, and Redwood in Crigglestone, Wakefield.

Steve Rider, sales director of Avant Homes Yorkshire, said: “Amanda has been an integral part of the sales team for the past decade and fully deserves her new role as field sales manager.

“I’m confident that in her new post, Amanda will be able to strengthen Avant Homes’ position in Yorkshire’s housebuilding market, and will be key to the company’s future successes as we launch new developments across the region.”

The housebuilder currently has 12 developments in its portfolio stretching from Godwin Vale in Stamford Bridge, York, to Melton View in Mexborough.

Avant Homes Yorkshire is an operating company of the Avant Homes group. The Avant Homes group employs 575 people and has four regional offices in Scotland, the north east of England, Yorkshire and the Midlands.

Greg Mannix, Redfern

Redfern, the Bradford-based travel management company which is part of CTM Group, has announced a new appointment on its senior management team.

Greg Mannix joins Redfern as head of sales and brings more than 15 years’ travel industry experience with him, most recently as head of corporate at Laterooms.com.

The new appointment comes as Redfern’s private sector clients continue to increase with names such as Hallmark Cards, Holland and Barrett and Bonmarché already choosing to use Redfern.

In late 2016, Redfern was acquired by global group, CTM.

Greg explained: “The decision to become part of the Redfern team was an easy one for me. The company leads the way with client booking automation and efficiency, whilst providing engaged top end customer service.

“The growing client base is testament to the success of the Redfern business model, while the recent acquisition by CTM will really enhance the offering.

“I’m looking forward to bringing my own knowledge and experience to Redfern and look forward to building successful partnerships with new and existing clients.”

Mark Bowers, chief executive at Redfern, added: “Our list of clients covers a diverse range of businesses across the UK and as our private sector roster increases it was the right time to appoint a head of sales.

“We’re very happy to welcome Greg to the team as we continue to invest in the very best people to help drive Redfern forward.”

Redfern books more than 12,000 rail tickets a day for more than 500 customers and provides end to end travel services to major government departments and the public sector as well as a raft of private sector firms.

Charlotte Dowd (pictured left), MK Public Relations

MK Public Relations, the Sheffield-based PR agency, has expanded its team with the appointment of a new account executive.

Charlotte Dowd joins the team having progressed into PR after twelve months’ experience in digital marketing - previously working for The SEO Works and The Rare Creative Group.

A University of Leeds graduate, Charlotte will work on a broad portfolio of business-to-business and business-to-consumer clients, spanning sectors including Education, Commercial Property, Retail and Legal.

The agency specialises in media relations, media training, crisis communication, stakeholder relations, event management, social media and copywriting.

Caroline Woffenden, managing director, said: “We are delighted to welcome Charlotte to the team.

“She brings with her a broad range of experience and skills in the digital marketing arena that will further strengthen MK’s offering as we embark on an exciting time of growth in the year ahead.”

Paul Gorton, Ring

Ring, the Leeds-based supplier of vehicle lighting, auto electric and car accessories supplier to the automotive aftermarket, has appointed Paul Gorton as the company’s first technical sales engineer.

A fully qualified auto-electrician, Paul has more than 40 years’ experience in the automotive sector, having previously worked as lead auto electrician in vehicle conversion and installation.

Paul is responsible for providing Ring’s van conversion clients with dedicated support, from initial purchase through to after sales and beyond.

Ian Hay, specialist divisions manager for Ring, commented: “We are pleased to welcome Paul to Ring, he is already proving to be an asset to the team and is building a great rapport with our customers.

“Paul’s role has allowed us to offer our van conversion clients technical support with their projects from start to finish, which is proving to be very popular. We are hoping to extend this service to include a wider range of vehicles soon.”

Dave Coulton, Castlehouse Construction

Leeds-based Castlehouse Construction has appointed Dave Coulton as new project manager and he will oversee the build of a new 30,000 sq ft Lidl store in Mirfield.

Dave joins from Wates Construction where he was senior site manager and led on a retail development in Leeds city centre as well as many new build projects across Yorkshire, Humberside and the North West.

Prior to that he was project manager at Yorkhouse Construction where he worked on flat developments in Leeds and Bradford as well as office developments in Leeds and a Hearing for Life Centre at Bradford Royal Infirmary.

Dave, who comes from a joinery background, also held site management roles with two construction firms, Turners and Birse.

Richard Lumley, Director of Castlehouse Construction, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Dave to the team.

“He brings with him a wealth of experience and local knowledge across retail, residential, office space and nursing home sectors.

“His appointment is a continuation of our expansion and ideally timed to fulfil a strong order book for the next financial year. His work on the Mirfield Lidl site will ensure a smooth delivery for the discount retailer.”

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