People: Gateley; Business Growth Hub; Jigsaw Training & more

THE Manchester office of Gateley, the UK’s first publicly-quoted law firm, has announced two key promotions within its employment team.

The news comes as Gateley announces its firm-wide promotions, which has seen 22 promotions, including four new partners.

Employment lawyer Melanie Wilkinson is promoted to legal director and Samantha Myers, is promoted to senior associate within Gateley’s ‘Tier 1’ employment team in Manchester, as ranked by Legal 500, which is based at Ship Canal House on King Street.
 
Both have been at Gateley’s Manchester office since it opened in July 2010.

Wilkinson is a specialist in employment law, undertaking both contentious and non-contentious work for clients. She advises upon all types of claims and issues, including all areas of discrimination, transfers of undertakings and protected disclosures, and she provides employment law support to the Corporate team.

Gateley’s head of employment, Michael Ball said: “It’s an incredibly exciting time for the employment team at Gateley and these promotions are well deserved. As we continue to enhance our reputation in the North West, it becomes increasingly important that we retain the region’s top talent and with Melanie and Sam, we are doing that.”

In addition to its Manchester promotions, Gateley announced two promotions in Nottingham, three in London, nine in Birmingham, two in Leicester, and four in Leeds. Gateley also promoted four to partner.

Gateley works through a network of seven English offices based in Birmingham, Leeds, Leicester, London, Manchester, Nottingham and Reading. Earlier this month, Gateley announced its acquisition of tax-specialist Capitus, now Gateley Capitus. This is the first acquisition since the firm became the first UK-based law firm to float on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange.

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BUSINESS Growth Hub has appointed two new life science business advisors to the new Sectors Programme.

Life science specialists, Colin Callow and Lindsay Hallworth will be supporting SMEs in Greater Manchester to enter both the NHS and wider healthcare markets.

They’ll also work alongside Hub partner TRUSTECH to support SMEs to develop new products and services.

Callow’s previous roles include head of the NHS National Innovation Centre and programme director at the NHS Technology Adoption Centre. As a trained nurse, he also brings hands-on experience with patients to the role with ten years of experience in the medical devices sector.

Lindsay has more 20 years of experience working in the neuromodulation and cardiovascular fields for market leaders including Johnson & Johnson Medical and Medtronic.

She is an expert in working with government bodies including the Medicines & Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) on the certification of new treatments and has a wealth of experience of working with SMEs to overcome barriers to market.

Business Growth Hub is part of Manchester Growth Company.

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PRESTON-based training provider Jigsaw Training has expanded its senior management team with two new appointments, as its period of growth looks set to continue.
 
Nicola Parkinson has been appointed as development director, while Graham Murphy joins as the company’s new head of quality.
 
Parkinson, who is based at Jigsaw Training’s Preston headquarters, will be responsible for helping to achieve further growth for the business, working closely with employers, skills bodies and associations to support the sector and prepare for the impact of industry developments and challenges within apprenticeships.
 
Murphy, who has 13 years’ experience in the education sector and is also based in Preston, will work to maintain the highest standards of service delivery, helping to streamline internal processes and make sure the company is fully compliant with all the necessary regulations and guidance.
 
James Blackhurst, managing director of Jigsaw Training, said: “This sector is set to experience several periods of uncertainty for example the Apprenticeship Levy, which will come into force in April 2017, but we don’t yet know exactly how it will work in practice.”

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NAPTHENS solicitors has welcomed residential conveyancing executive Debbie Robinson to its Southport team as it continues its expansion in the area.

Her appointment follows the firm’s acquisition of local solicitors Richard Jacklin & Co of Hoghton Street, which has been re-branded to become part of Napthens.
  
Robinson, who lives in Southport, will advise clients on issues relating to the buying, selling and investment in residential property. 

She brings with her 18 years’ experience in residential conveyancing, including dealing with freehold and leasehold sales and purchases, re-mortgages, shared ownership and transfer of equity transactions. 

In addition, Napthens has swelled the Southport office ranks with the appointment of legal assistant, Robert MacGregor and reception staff, Adele Ruane and Victoria Molloy to the team. 

The firm’s growth in the area is being led by Simon Ainsworth, head of Napthens’ private client division.
 
Ainsworth said: “The acquisition of our Southport office is a key milestone in our plans to grow our presence in Sefton and West Lancashire. An essential part of this is building an experienced team who will provide the highest level of support and expertise to the many clients we have locally.”