Appointments: Education and transport expert joins law firm; Director hire for corporate finance team; and more

A COMMERCIAL lawyer with specialist expertise in the education and transport sectors has joined Ward Hadaway.

Frank Suttie has joined the law firm’s Leeds office as a partner with an extensive track record of advising a wide range of clients at a high level on a diverse range of matters – including the delivery company responsible for the 2014 Tour de France Grand Depart in Yorkshire.

In the education arena, Mr Suttie has widespread expertise in the schools sector, advising Academy Trusts and sponsors on regulatory and financing frameworks and corporate governance.

He is a consultant to the Department for Education, giving expert commercial overview on the Free School programme and advising in the development of a strategy for engaging with voluntary aided and foundation schools in Departmental sponsored capital investment programmes.

He advised on documentation allowing faith and other voluntary schools to participate in the Building Schools for the Future programme and provided a multi-disciplinary legal team that oversaw the transfer back to City of Bradford Council of its education services following a period of intervention.

He has also advised education service providers and is expert in local authority/private sector joint ventures.

In the wider skills sector, Mr Suttie has overseen the negotiation of devolved further education capital grants on behalf of a Local Enterprise Partnership and has been advising on issues surrounding the apprenticeship levy.

In the transport industry, his experience dates back to advice on the privatisation of the National Bus Company and then the Regional Railways North East division of British Railways.

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DOW Schofield Watts, the professional advisory and equity finance firm based in Leeds and Cheshire, has recruited David Smith as a corporate finance director.

Mr Smith qualified as a chartered accountant with KPMG and has 25 years’ experience of equity investing and lead advisory corporate finance, working in venture capital and private equity.

Most recently he was the investment director at the North West Fund for Digital & Creative and has extensive experience in investing and corporate finance, specialising particularly in software, IT services and media. He has worked in venture capital, stockbroking and corporate finance with companies including 3i and KPMG. He has supported many software, IT services, creative and media companies from early stage funding through to IPO or sale.

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MATT Davies has joined bus operator Stagecoach Yorkshire as managing director.

He has more than 20 years’ experience in the bus industry and most recently held the position of operations director at Stagecoach Manchester.
 
He started his career in 1995 as a management trainee with Lincolnshire RoadCar after completing a Transport Management degree at the University of Northumbria.

Mr Davies joined Arriva North West in 1998, becoming general manager in 2000. From 2006, he also held two operations director posts with First Yorkshire West and First Manchester before joining Stagecoach Manchester in 2012.

During his time at Stagecoach Manchester, the company’s operations have grown from 630 buses to 800 buses through acquisitions and expansion.

Stagecoach operates an extensive network of local bus services in South and West Yorkshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, which carry 46.5 million passengers every year.

Former Stagecoach Yorkshire managing director Paul Lynch, who held the position for 10 years, has been appointed as Stagecoach’s regional director North.