People on the move: Hill Dickinson; Blaze Marketing; HCSS Education; VST; Hallidays; Woodcocks Haworth and Nuttall Solicitors

HILL Dickinson has strengthened its insolvency team with two new appointments.

Kathryn Maclennan has joined the firm as legal director whilst Richard Da Roza has been appointed to the position of associate.
   
Maclennan is an experienced lawyer and her arrival at Hill Dickinson takes the size of the insolvency team to seven.

She has particular expertise in contentious bankruptcy and complex IVA cases and successfully represented the debtor in the landmark case of Green v Wright which is due to be heard in the Court of Appeal later this year.  

Maclennan has appeared on Radio 4’s Moneybox programme and has written articles for the trade body R3 (Association of Business Recovery Professionals) on issues arising in IVA cases.
 
She is a regular speaker at events for the Insolvency Practitioner’s Association and is a member of Insol Europe.
 
Da Roza qualified as a solicitor in May and will assist the team on contentious matters.

Partner Paul Spence said: “Kathryn has an extremely high profile in her specialist field of personal insolvency work and it is a real coup for the firm to have secured her. The team has seen significant growth despite continued challenging market conditions and Kathryn’s appointment is a signal that we intend to further increase our work in this area.”
 
Maclennan will be based at the firm’s Manchester office but will service clients nationally.

She said: “Having previously worked with Paul Spence becoming part of his wider team was an extremely attractive proposition. Hill Dickinson has an unrivalled reputation and I’m looking forward to getting involved and employing my experience to expand the network of the team.”

Spence added: “These appointments underline the firm’s ongoing commitment to investing in the best people to help support our growth programme.”

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MANCHESTER-based niche property marketing agency Blaze Marketing has appointed Benazeer Singh as the company’s new account manager.

The appointment coincides with the company’s third year anniversary and follows a number of recent client wins including Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council, Together Group, Marshall CDP and Himor.

Prior to joining Blaze, Singh a brand and product manager for Synergy Health, having worked in the healthcare sector for 13 years.
 
Benazeer also has experience working within an advertising agency.
Daniel Bourmad, director and co-founder of Blaze, said: “Since our launch in 2013, we’ve achieved a substantial market share and have grown significantly.

“Benazeer is a great addition to the Blaze family and will help us grow our already strong client base with a particular focus initially on the residential property sector.

“This is a critical next step in our journey to establish ourselves as the number one property marketing agency in the region.”

Kevin Whitter, creative director at Blaze added:”As we reach the end of our third year of trading, we are excited to welcome Benazeer to our team and delighted that our clients continue to stay with us for our design flare, creative thinking and in-depth understanding of the property sector.”

Singh said: “I look forward to working closely with the team at Blaze and supporting them as the agency continues to grow.

“Daniel and Kevin have jointly earned an enviable reputation for their marketing expertise and deep sector knowledge, and together they have attracted some of the property sector’s leading brands.”

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A MACCLESFIELD education finance company has hired two new senior consultants to provide valuable expertise as it continues to expand its operations with innovative products specially designed for schools and academies.

Jenny Goy and Phil Andrews have joined HCSS Education, part of the Access Group, to support with implementing and providing training for HCSS Accounting – a new accountancy software created specifically for the education sector.
 
Their skills and experience complements the existing consultant team who already have decades of education finance experience between them.

Andrews has more than 20 years’ finance experience in the education sector and has previously worked in the Education Financial Services business unit at Hampshire County Council, where he led a team that provided strategic financial support and guidance to over 230 schools across East Hampshire.

During the last two years, Andrews also worked on the Hampshire/Isle of Wight partnership, providing key financial support and guidance alongside the school improvement team as they worked to improve standards and the financial position of schools on the island.
 
A former school business manager at a Lancashire grammar school from 2012-2016, Goy supported the school through its academy conversion process, including migration to a new accounting system.
 
She was responsible for support services for the school (including finance, HR, payroll, ICT and administration) and hopes to bring this invaluable knowledge and experience of day-to-day life within a school to her new role.

Goy later took on the position of chief financial officer within the academy where she was involved with financial management, monthly financial reporting, producing annual accounts and statutory returns.

Both Goy and Andrews have had prior experience of working with HCSS Education. They were part of the industry focus group that helped to develop the new HCSS Accounting software.
 
Goy said: “I am really looking forward to bringing my experience as a school business manager to HCSS Education because I understand the challenges customers face with managing school budgets.”

Andrews said: “My past experience of dealing with HCSS Education’s customer services has always been good and they appealed to me as a company that I wanted to be associated with.”
 
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MANCHESTER-based VST Enterprises has announced the appointment of prominent US lawyer Timothy Wright III to its executive board of directors.

Wright, managing partner of operations at Quintairos, Prieto, Wood & Boyer, P.A in Chicago for more than five years, has practiced before the Illinois Commerce Commission and the United States Nuclear Regulatory Authority, and was William Clinton’s first director of domestic policy and has been a presidential appointee in three presidential administrations.

The appointment also marks the launch of the New York VST Enterprises office, which will open at the end of the month.

Wright III said: “I am excited to be a part of this team. What VST Enterprises has embarked upon is nothing short of revolutionary, and will have a major impact in the marketplace.”

VST Enterprises recently launched the second phases of its award-winning scanable symbol technology, VCode, and most recently added top sports marketer, Mike Farnan to its board of directors.

Designed and developed by co-directors, Louis-James Davis and Andy Giblin, the secure identifier has functionality in tracking and traceability, as well as fraud prevention, and also has broad applications across the retail, banking, tourism and charity sectors.

Louis-James Davis, chief executive of VST, said: “Once again, we’re thrilled to be making the announcement of yet another high-calibre appointment to our growing executive board of directors.

“Timothy’s undoubted experience and expertise in the energy sector and unrivalled public affairs knowledge adds several strings to our bow and signposts the start of a very exciting journey for the VST Enterprises team across the Atlantic.”

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MANCHESTER accountant Hallidays has welcomed new team manager Helen Johnson to enhance its growing team.

Her skills will be put to good use at Hallidays, as it has recently recruited over 10 trainees during the past 12 months, mostly from local colleges and universities.

Recently, Hallidays’ Katie Cheetham won an international award for her overall performance in her accountancy examinations.  

Johnson will play a pivotal role in supporting the trainees to develop their skills by providing work shadowing and coaching.  

Each will complete Hallidays DISC behavioural profiling and receive regular 1:1 performance reviews to build both their accountancy and interpersonal skills which are key to supporting local business owners to drive their businesses forward.

Johnson also has extensive experience of supporting local businesses to grow, having worked with a wide range of businesses, from sole traders to international companies throughout her 14 year career.

She said: “I’m really thrilled to be given the opportunity to join the team at Hallidays as there are excellent study and career opportunities.

“I’m particularly looking forward to helping to support and develop the trainee accountants as I find coaching very rewarding. I am also excited about building great relationships with our clients and using my knowledge and experience to support them to grow their businesses.”

Director Nichola Coles said: “With her friendly, proactive approach we are confident that Helen will be a great asset supporting both our team and our clients to grow.”

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LANCASHIRE law firm Woodcocks Haworth and Nuttall Solicitors has invested in the future after taking on a trainee solicitor.
 
Jake Neary, who is from Helmshore, has been offered a raining contract in the private client department at WHN’s Accrington office.
 
The 23-year-old joins the firm as a trainee solicitor after recently completing his legal practice course at Manchester Metropolitan University, where he also attained a first class degree in law.
 
As part of the training contract, Neary will shadow WHN’s Martin Heyes and gain experience in all aspects of wills, probate, court of protection issues and lasting powers of attorney, before qualifying as a solicitor in two years’ time. He will also undertake some residential conveyancing work.
 
Heyes, who is a partner at WHN, said: “We’ve seen a significant increase in the number of people seeking advice on wills and probate matters, so Jake joins at a time of growth while helping us meet this demand.
 
“Jake is a talented individual with a unique empathy when dealing with clients, so he’ll be a real asset to the firm.”
 
Neary added: “WHN has a reputation for delivering an expert service in this complex area of law, which involves helping people at emotionally difficult times in their lives.
 
“I’ve settled into life at WHN well so far and look forward to training to become a fully-fledged solicitor.”
 
Neary is also a keen cricketer and plays for Ramsbottom Cricket Club’s first team.

 

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