People on the move: Vardags; Capital & Centric; ECI Partners; 5Plus Architects

THE Manchester office of Vardags, the specialist in high net worth family law firm, has appointed Legal 500 lawyer Emma Gill to head up its expanding client base. 



Vardags, which also has offices in London and Winchester, was founded by Britain’s top divorce lawyer Ayesha Vardag in 2005 and acts in some of the world’s most complex and high profile divorce cases, involving billionaires, celebrities, sporting stars and royalty often with landmark rulings. 



The firm established its Manchester office in Ship Canal House in November 2015 in a move to meet the growing demand in the region for top class family law services. 



Mancunian Emma Gill, 36, brings with her a wealth of expertise in divorce and matrimonial finance, specialising in complex cases dealing with issues around share valuations, option schemes, trusts, foreign properties and pension funds.

She also has extensive experience of children cases, often advising on child contact and residence arrangements and relocation of children within the United Kingdom and overseas. 



Gill graduated from the University of Manchester in 2001 and has spent the last 12 years at a respected local firm where she went from trainee to partner in just seven and a half years.



She said: “I am absolutely thrilled to be joining Vardags to head up the firm’s Manchester office.

“Vardags offers a cutting edge legal service that is renowned across the world for pushing boundaries and delivering the best results for clients.

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I’ll be joined by a stellar team of superb lawyers, all of whom are Manchester natives like myself, and I look forward to driving Vardags forward as the best family law firm in the region.”



Ayesha Vardag, the firm’s president, said: “Manchester is at the heart of the UK’s economic growth and its residents deserve the best legal expertise on their doorstops. Emma embodies pure talent, immense empathy and a complete focus on winning – everything that Vardags stands for.”

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FORMER Urban Splash development director and Sheffield Housing Company project director, Tom Fenton has joined Manchester-based regeneration specialist Capital & Centric.


Fenton has joined to lead on the evolution of NOWHAUS and the residential ambitions of Capital & Centric.

He brings with him the experience of delivering more than1,000 new homes during 13 years of design led development at Urban Splash and more recently, three years regeneration and place making experience from Sheffield Housing Company in some of Sheffield’s most deprived neighbourhoods.

Adam Higgins, co-founder of Capital & Centric, said: “Capital & Centric is currently working on a portfolio of nearly 2,000 PRS and private sale residential units, so bringing in someone of Tom’s experience gives us a great platform to deliver these.”

Fenton added: “I’m excited to be joining Capital and Centric at such an important time in its evolution and to have the opportunity to work in such a creative environment that has already delivered so much in a relatively short space of time.”

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ECI Partners (‘ECI’), the growth focused mid-market private equity firm, has appointed John Hayhurst as head of its Northern office.

Hayhurst has been with the firm for 13 years. During that time, he has been involved in many of ECI’s most successful investments in the region.

He will replace Tim Raffle, who is retiring after 26 years with the firm. Raffle was instrumental in establishing ECI’s Northern office in 1997 and has led the Manchester-based team since then.

He has also chaired ECI’s Investment committee for the past 15 years.

ECI has developed a strong track record in the North West and has built one of the strongest investment teams in the region.

Current investments in the area include the Knowsley-based Clarke Energy, Chesterfield-based Imagesound and Macclesfield-based MPM Products.

Previous investments include Manchester-based NCC Group, Crewe-based Bargain Booze (now listed as Conviviality), Manchester-based Laterooms.com, Trafford-based Think Money Group, Bolton-based Ascribe and Wilmslow-based Citation.

Other changes at the firm will see Chris Watt join ECI’s Investment Committee.

Watt, who has been with ECI for 17 years, has been a partner at the firm since 2003 and head of ECI’s Consumer sector team for the past decade. Some of his notable investments include Nuaire, Hoseasons, Enviros, CarTrawler, Reed & Mackay and Great Rail Journeys.

Steve Tudge, managing partner and now Chairman of ECI’s Investment Committee, commented: “John has been a partner in our Manchester office for the past decade and during that period has been integral to the success of many of our high profile investments in the region.

“We also wish Tim all the best for his retirement and thank him for his significant contribution to ECI’s success over the years.

“We are also delighted to welcome Chris to the Investment Committee. His contribution to ECI’s success and his strong leadership of our Consumer sector team make this promotion richly deserved.”
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5PLUS Architects has appointed Tony Skipper as a director with a remit to further develop the practice’s public sector work.

Skipper established and led the Manchester office of John McAslan and Partners for 15 years and has an outstanding track record of delivering significant, award-winning further education and university projects.

He joins from Ellis Williams where he was director of higher education and research.

5plus founding director Jon Matthews said: “This is an important time for the practice and it is great to have Tony on board to support our growth, develop strategic opportunities and help consolidate new sectors of the business.

“We want to work with people of the highest calibre to deliver current and future projects of outstanding quality.”

5plus has studios based at The Hive in Manchester and Shoreditch in London. It was shortlisted for ‘Fastest Growing Practice’ in the Architect Journal’s AJ100 Awards.

Skipper will be based in Manchester but work across both offices.