This week's Yorkshire appointments

Veronica Howatson and Jane Walls, Specialist Glass Products

Specialist Glass Products (SGP) has recently welcomed two new recruits to its expanding team based in Huddersfield.

Veronica Howatson and Jane Walls join as support to the office and accounts department, signalling further growth for the glass manufacturer, having recently doubled its production capacity with the installation of a new state-of-the-art glass furnace.

The addition of this machinery means that SGP is one of the only UK glass manufacturers with the facility to produce laminated glass at large scale, resulting in high demand for their services.

Andrew Taylor, managing director at Specialist Glass, said: “We’re really pleased to welcome Veronica and Jane onboard at this crucial time as we continue to expand.

“Our new recruits will play a vital role in ensuring orders are processed thoroughly and in a timely fashion to keep up with our current demand, and have already proved to be an asset to our team.”

Cushman & Wakefield

Global real estate advisory firm Cushman & Wakefield has announced 71 promotions across its EMEA business, including five at its Leeds office.

Tom Pollard has been promoted to associate whilst Edward Barker has been promoted to senior quantity surveyor.

Aimee Howard, part of the Valuation and Advisory team, is now a senior surveyor. In the Practice Management team, Naomi Young has been promoted to senior business analyst and Dave Potter has been promoted to senior property data manager.

Keith Hardman, head of Cushman & Wakefield’s Leeds office, said: “Encouraging and enabling colleagues to develop and progress at Cushman & Wakefield ensures we continue to lead the industry and offer the best service to our clients.

“Congratulations to all those promoted who have made an excellent contribution to the Leeds office and wider business, I wish them further success in the future.”

Georgina Parkin, Truth Legal

A regional firm of ethical lawyers has promoted solicitor Georgina Parkin to become its new managing director.

She will spearhead the growth of Truth Legal in Harrogate as it embarks on the next stage of its expansion plans. Georgina will work closely with the company’s founder and former managing director Andrew Gray, whose role will now focus on the business development and marketing of the law firm.

This includes the development of the company’s podcast series, which has made over 40 broadcasts since going live two years ago, and its website, which has grown into one of the UK legal sector’s most visited with over 37,000 page visits a month to its blogs alone.

Having grown into a team of nearly 20 staff since opening its doors seven years ago, Truth Legal is now setting its sights on launching a specialist immigration law department.

Georgina said: “I look forward to working with the home-grown legal talent that exists across Truth Legal to take forward our diverse expertise into new areas.

“My career began here as a trainee solicitor, and it has been a great experience to contribute to its future success, and at the same time to see similar growth in my career.”

Amanda Simmonds, STEP

Private client lawyer Amanda Simmonds has been elected as a director of the Board of STEP with effect from January 1 2020.

It is the first time that any one from the Yorkshire region has held this role.

Amanda is a senior associate solicitor with Yorkshire law firm Lupton Fawcett where she heads the firm’s Business Families team.

STEP is the worldwide body for professionals helping families plan for their futures and is regarded as the gold standard for anyone undertaking private client advice. Its members are lawyers, accountants, financial advisors and other professionals.

Amanda said: “I’ve been a member of STEP for many years and am very pleased to take on my new role of director. I look forward to contributing to the future shape and development of this highly respected, global and multi-disciplinary professional body.”

Belinda Youngs, Cooplands

Scarborough-headquartered bakery business Cooplands has appointed Belinda Youngs as CEO, as it continues to drive growth with new sites across Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and the North East.

Belinda Youngs brings more than two decades of experience in the grocery retail sector, both UK and international, to the role.

She has previously held positions at Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Sobeys Inc., the second largest food retailer in Canada.

Alongside Belinda, the business has also appointed David Salkeld as non-executive Chair. David brings invaluable experience from roles in the food industry, at businesses including Upfield, the Ainsley Harriott Food Company and Wensleydale Dairy Products.

Founded in 1885, the fourth-generation business has been led by managing director Paul Coopland since 1985.

Over 30 years, Paul and his team has grown the business from five shops to 160 across the north with a combination of organic growth and acquisitions. It is now the UK’s third largest bakery chain.

Paul Coopland said: “These are exciting times for the business as we continue to scale up and expand across the North of England.

“Belinda’s combination of big brand retail experience and entrepreneurial mindset, having founded and run her own businesses, made her the ideal candidate to help take the Cooplands into the next chapter of its growth story.”

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