Property Appointments: Bilfinger GVA; CALA Homes; Lodders

REAL estate adviser Bilfinger GVA has appointed hotels specialist Philip Gibson as an Associate within the Retail, Hotels and Leisure team in the Midlands.

Moving from Lambert Smith Hampton in Bristol, Mr Gibson has extensive experience negotiating sales, acquisitions and lettings for some of the largest national operators, including Little Chef, Holiday Inn and the administrators of the Real Hotel Company in addition to acting for a variety of independent operators of hotels, golf courses and caravan parks.

The appointment is part of Bilfinger GVA’s drive to meet the demand for property services in Birmingham’s burgeoning hotels and hospitality sector.

Mr Gibson said: “Hotels, alongside retail and leisure, are facing increasing levels of demand in Birmingham and the wider area and it’s a great time to be involved in the city. With the impending arrival of HS2, the relocation of HSBC, and the continued growth of events venues like the ICC and NEC, Birmingham will be the place to be in the coming years.”

Ian Stringer, Regional Senior Director in the Midlands, said: “We’ve worked with Philip in a number of guises in the past and were keen that he joined us here in the Midlands. The region is going through a key period of growth, with the hotel and leisure industry one of the main beneficiaries.

“As part of our focus on the full cradle to grave advice on major mixed use developments, we are looking to expand our involvement in the growth of the hotel and leisure sector in Birmingham and the wider region, and Philip’s appointment is in part a key response to that objective.”

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CALA Homes has taken on its latest batch of graduates as part of its annual recruitment programme.

The programme, now in its second year, has seen the housebuilder recruit ten new graduates in total.

They will be working across various national operations including its Land, Commercial, Technical, Construction and Sales functions.

One of the new recruits, Anna Patterson, will be working with the Technical team at CALA Homes Midlands’ regional head office based in Solihull.

The 12-month programme is intended to provide candidates with comprehensive induction and training which will equip them with the necessary skills to embark on a career in the housebuilding sector.  

Commenting on the new graduate recruitment programme, Steve Hird, Regional Managing Director for CALA Homes Midlands said: “CALA is undergoing a period of tremendous growth, particularly in the Midlands region, as we focus on our goal of delivering over 2000 new homes a year by 2020.

“This has led to many new employment opportunities across the business, with almost 100 new people joining the company over the last 12 months. As part of this recruitment drive, last year we launched our first Graduate Recruitment Programme to encourage fresh new talent into the business and help us create the homes of tomorrow. The programme was a fantastic success with the graduates continuing to enjoy fulfilling careers within CALA.   

“This year, we’ve made the programme even better and have a new team of exceptional, results driven graduates who will help us achieve our ambitious growth plans.”

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MIDLANDS law firm Lodders has appointed partner Steven Baker is the new head of its Residential Property team.
 
Mr Baker joined Lodders in 2005 and has been a partner since 2007.  Most recently he has focussed on residential and commercial property advice, acting for a wide range of clients on sales, purchases, property funding, landlord and tenant matters, and related business advice.
 
Before joining Lodders, he built his legal career as a commercial and corporate lawyer, and worked for a number of city firms including in London at DJ Freeman & Co, and in Auckland, New Zealand with Rudd Watts & Stone.
 
Lodders Residential Property team operates from both its Stratford and Cheltenham offices, and advises private individuals on home or investment property sales, purchases, mortgages, gifts of property, tenancies and leasehold enfranchisement, and acts for companies, partnerships, farmers, charities and trustees.
 
The team includes partner Alison Wacey, associate and licensed conveyancer Rachel Philips, one of Lodders’ most recent hires, Sophia Khan, who joined last month, Graduate Legal Executive Holly Kennett, Chartered Legal Executive Lisa Podmore, and residential property specialist Karen Bridges.
 
Commenting on his new role, Mr Baker said: “This is a significant time for me to pick up the reins as head of Lodders Residential Property team, as we see a climb in instructions from individuals buying or selling high value or complex properties.”

Mr Baker (centre) is pictured with team members Alison Wacey, Karen Bridges, Rachel Phillips, Lisa Podmore and Sophia Khan.