People on the move: EHL; Toscafund; Don’t Be Shy; UHY Hacker Young & more

SOCKPORT-based food ingredient supplier, EHL Ingredients, has welcomed Natalie Daley into its growing team as technical manager.

Daley will be responsible for product specifications, overseeing quality and food safety procedures and ensuring all food standards policies are met.

She will create, amend and adapt product specifications, both for existing ingredients and new herb and spice blends, as well as oversee all quality systems to ensure they meet regulatory standards. With a Bsc in Food and Nutrition from Manchester Metropolitan University, Daley brings with her three years’ industry experience.

The latest addition to the team is part of EHL Ingredients’ on-going business growth plan, aiming for sales of £7m by the end of 2016, and brings the staff total to 30 at the head office on Broadstone Industrial Estate in Reddish, Stockport.
 
In addition, EHL has also announced the promotion of Susan Baron who will now be working as EHL’s customer service manager, Sherill Simm has been promoted to account manager, and Andrew Pickering will now act as technical administrator.

Amanda Garnett has also been appointed as purchasing assistant.

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TOSCAFUND Asset Management’s tosca Debt Capital Fund business has strengthened its advisory board with the appointment of area director of Lloyds Commercial Banking Dave Allanson.
 
Allanson brings a wealth of experience and industry insight to the Manchester-headquartered debt fund and will play a pivotal role in helping them become the alternative lender of choice for growing SMEs in the North of England.
 
He has held a number of senior roles in Lloyds Banking Group across the North of England, looking after SME and mid-market clients in a range of sectors, to support their growth and expansion strategies.

Allanson has 20 years’ of relationship and transactional banking experience to the team, working with regional businesses on both corporate and leveraged debt structures.
 
He will support Tosca Debt Capital by drawing upon his credit expertise in relation to the underwriting, credit and risk management strategies, as well as offering general governance support and advice to the partners.
 
Gary Davison, partner at Toscafund, said: “I’m delighted that Dave has agreed to join our advisory board.
 
“His experience, proven track record and market insight will be invaluable as we continue to build the business, develop our product and raise further funds.”
 
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MANCHESTER-based digital marketing company Don’t Be Shy has appointed Heather Swales and director and head of planning.

Working alongside Caroline Pomfret, head of digital strategy, Swales’ key focus will be working with the agency’s existing client roster, further strengthening Don’t be Shy’s integrated and marketing automation offering through leading platforms HubSpot, Eloqua and Pardot.

Swales’ career spans both agency and client side roles, previously leading the digital planning team at global B2B agency Stein IAS, and more recently as Head of Marketing for cloud and web hosting business UKFast.

She said: “I love the forward-thinking culture of Don’t be Shy and I’m honoured to be joining such a dynamic business. The team have already won four new accounts this quarter and it’s an exciting time for a strategic digital agency that focuses completely on better results for its clients.”

Julian Sowerby, managing director, added: “it’s a real coup to bring Heather through our doors. She’s a smart, experienced marketer, with a rare digital skillset that’s hugely in demand from our marketplace”.

Don’t be Shy opened its doors in late 2015 and now fields offices in Manchester, London and Dubai.

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MANCHESTER accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young has promoted Usmaan Ashraf to assistant manager.

It is the second promotion that the Manchester office has announced this month, following the recent appointment of Kevin Blakemore to Partner.

Ashraf has been with the firm for six years, and qualified in 2012. He has developed a diverse audit portfolio and has worked with a range of clients, including those in the SME sector, international groups, charities, AIM listed companies, owner managed and private equity backed companies. His new role will see him join the managerial team within the audit department and build a portfolio of clients.

“I’m really pleased to have been recognised at this stage in my career” said Ashraf. “UHY Hacker Young is an incredibly busy firm, particularly in Manchester and the North West.

“I’m surrounded by very talented colleagues here in our office, and also as part of UHY’s growing international network. I’m looking forward to being more involved as part of the senior team.”

Michael Wasinski, managing partner, said: “Usmaan is another great example of UHY’s commitment to promoting talent from within. He has shown great potential since the day he started with us, and I’ve no doubt that he has a bright future ahead of him. I am delighted to extend my congratulations to him on this promotion.”

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CREATIVE and digital agency DS.Emotion has appointed Carl Hopkins as non-executive director to aid with strategy for its next phase of growth.

Following the launch of a third studio in Manchester just over two years ago and a sustained period of growth that saw revenues increase 30% in the last financial year, the agency is on track for a further 25% uplift in revenue for this financial year.

Hopkins brings more than 30 years’ experience in marketing, advertising, design and branding, as well as business ownership.  He started his career at direct marketing agency, JDA, rising through the ranks to eventually take over the business in 2000.

Growing the well-respected company from 48 to 75 staff, he took turnover from £9.6m to £19.4m.
 
More recently Hopkins has held positions on the Government’s Entrepreneurs’ Forum and Non-Executive roles with Carnyx, Propaganda and Fantastic Media.

Angus Armitage at DS.Emotion said:  “Carl’s experience in growing an agency will be invaluable in assisting us in our strategy for growth. He is a great cultural fit with our team and we are already feeling the benefits of his contributions.

“We are very excited about working with Carl going forward and achieving our ambitious growth plans. It is an exciting time for DS.Emotion as we are seeing our core specialisms of brand, ‘placemaking’ and destination marketing being bolstered by huge growth in demand for our digital offering.”

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WARRINGTON-based American Golf has expanded its marketing team to support the company’s efforts to “grow the game”.

Plans to widen the reach of its already extensive consumer facing activity in 2017 will be lead by Daniel Gathercole, who is promoted to the newly created position of director of marketing and communications.

Over the last three years, Gathercole has been instrumental in driving American Golf’s efforts to increase golf participation through initiatives such as the American Golf tournaments and its inaugural Golf Show which took place in Manchester this February.

He said: “Our marketing strategy has changed dramatically in the last few years. We have worked very hard to position American Golf at the heart of the game and I am really proud of the campaigns my team have delivered.”

American Golf’s Championships have reached thousands of golfers and have given the company a valuable, new platform to develop relationships with its consumers.  

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AN accomplished academic with a long history of leading research into dementia care has been given the role of the University of Salford’s first Professor of Dementia.

Professor Anthea Innes has also taken up the role as the Coles-Medlock director of the Salford Institute for Dementia, which brings together innovative research to find ways of helping people live with the condition.

Scottish-born Prof Innes studied at the University of Stirling before moving to work at the University of Bradford as a Research Project Officer with the Bradford Dementia Group, where she completed her PhD.

She also worked as a Research Fellow and then Senior Lecturer at the University of Stirling, before becoming a Professor at Bournemouth University in 2011, where she launched the Bournemouth University Dementia Institute (BUDI), of which she served as director until last year.

Prof Innes is also a renowned leader in rural dementia care research and has led numerous public engagement and dementia awareness projects including the (Don’t) Mention Dementia social art project, and the BUDI Orchestra – both of which have been recognised by the Academy of Social Science.

She was a member of the groups advising the Prime Minister on rural dementia care and dementia friendly technology, while she also introduced the first worldwide postgraduate online programme in Dementia Studies in Stirling.

In addition, Prof Innes is an extensively published author and has secured numerous high value grants for her research work.

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THE University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) has appointed Kenneth Lee as its new executive director of human resources. He will take up his new role on August 15.
 
Ken, from Wilpshire, Blackburn, joins the University from BBC North where he has been HR Director since September 2008, leading the corporation’s HR agenda during and after the £800m implementation of the new BBC North organisation.
 
Prior to this he worked in senior HR roles for HBOS, Halifax and British Aerospace.
   
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FORBES Solicitors has boosted its specialist Housing and Regeneration Team with the appointment of senior solicitor Jennifer Hankinson from the Progress Housing Group.

Hankinson specialises in housing and regeneration property law and has worked as an in-house lawyer for the registered provider for almost five years before joining Forbes’ Preston office.

Prior to her qualification as a solicitor she also worked in the private sector bringing a wider commercial expertise.

She is experienced in a wide variety of property work in the housing and regeneration sector and has particular expertise in sales of land, acquisitions, site acquisitions, s106 Agreements (and variations), licence for works, golden brick acquisitions, development agreements, easements, utility agreements (s104, s185, s38, s278), and leases (commercial and supported living).

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SOCIAL Communications, based in Sale, Greater Manchester, has hired three new staff to further bolster its creative and digital offering.

The award-winning PR, public affairs and creative agency, has appointed Frances Bibby as Social Media Manager, Luke Barnett as videographer and Seb Patrick in the role of digital copywriter and web developer, taking the total number of full time staff to 11.

All three bring with them a wealth of experience and will further enhance the digital and social media services within the Sale-based agency, which is just three years old.

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