People: Law firm boosts commercial property team with ex-Gordons solicitor; Chamber role for Addleshaw’s legal director; and more

LAURA SANDERSON has become the latest recruit to join the commercial property team at Sheffield’s Wake Smith.

She joins from Gordons in Leeds where she worked for almost two and a half years, and brings experience in retail and landlord and tenant work, advising on a variety of issues from acquisitions and disposals to lease work. Her clients included sole traders to retail giants Morrisons and B&M.

As a commercial property specialist, Ms Sanderson will work with Wake Smith’s clients on a range of matters from acquisitions and disposals to commercial leases.

She graduated from Sheffield Hallam University with a law degree in 2009 and completed her LPC at the University of Sheffield in 2010. She then held a trainee role at Bell & Buxton and qualified in 2012 before working in the commercial property and corporate teams.

Ms Sanderson then joined Gordons in Leeds in 2014 and worked as an assistant solicitor in the commercial property team until November 2016.

Paul Gibbon, commercial property director at Wake Smith, said: “Laura joins us at a key time in the development of the commercial property team.

“Wake Smith’s involvement in commercial property deals across the region and further afield has been one of the key drivers for the company and our team is extremely busy.

“We welcome Laura on board and with her experience and passion for her job, she will no doubt make a valuable addition to the team.”

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Sara Gilmore, a legal director at Addleshaw GoddardWEST & North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce has elected a new chair of its transport group.

Sara Gilmore, a legal director at Addleshaw Goddard, has ten years’ experience in specialising in transport matters, and succeeds Nigel Foster of Fore Consulting.  

Transport continues to be cited by businesses in the region as a major concern, and the group is expected to be kept busy during 2017. Ms Gilmore will be assisted by the group’s new vice-chair, Adrian Kemp of WSP/Parsons Brinckerhoff.  Both were elected at a recent Chamber meeting.

Ms Gilmore said: “The Chamber transport forum is fundamental in collating the requirements of the business community and assimilating these with public sector aims and constraints.  I want to use my role to help push the Chamber’s transport agenda. I can draw on a wealth of wider experience from others within my firm, although I already have a broad base of influence, acting for stakeholders like Network Rail, the Department for Transport and Keolis UK, but also in the wider business community.”

It is expected that, in the coming year, the group will focus on issues including lobbying for investment in infrastructure (HS2, Northern Powerhouse Rail, trans-Pennine electrification and road upgrades) but also monitoring projects that have begun.

Ms Gilmore qualified at Addleshaw Goddard in 2006. She specialises in transport sector deals but has considerable experience of PPP and PFI projects. She acts as project manager on major transactions, co-ordinating numerous work streams and chairing key multi-disciplinary meetings.

Adrian Kemp is a director at WSP/Parsons Brinckerhoff, responsible for strategic growth.  He has 25 years’ experience in the public and private sector; his current role enables him to interpret current market conditions for the benefit of the Chamber’s members.

The pair have both paid tribute to Ms Gilmore’s predecessor, Nigel Foster on his “exemplary leadership” of the group.

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Nicole Ballantyne JumpstartR&D tax credit expert Jumpstart has appointed a qualified engineer as Yorkshire’s client engagement manager, emphasising the importance of the service for manufacturers.

Nicole Ballantyne is a chartered mechanical engineer and has almost 20 years’ experience in multinational engineering and manufacturing companies.  She has first-hand experience of working on new product and service development as well as quality and process improvement.

During many years at Crown Packaging she developed and used her passion for innovation, working in the sales development and processes departments to help the business mitigate production downtime.

Ms Ballantyne then followed that with work at C02Sense and Pera Consulting.

Acutely aware of the time pressures facing manufacturers, she is ambitious to raise awareness in the sector about R&D tax credits and ensure that as many as are eligible take up the opportunity to recoup investment cash to help grow their businesses.

“It feels like I have come full circle at Jumpstart and I am now back in a position where I can help businesses, including manufacturing, creative and technology maximise their investment in innovation by utilising the generous UK tax incentives available,” she said.

“Many business people are still unaware of them yet they can help them continue to innovate and grow.  Others think the process is more trouble than it is worth.   Jumpstart has a very simple, transparent process for identifying eligible business and projects and then processing their claim expeditiously.
 
“With my large network in the Yorkshire & Humber region I am confident I can personally help businesses or signpost them to someone who can.”

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Helen Parry Magna ColoursBARNSLEY inks manufacturer Magna Colours has appointed Helen Parry as managing director.

Existing managing director Tom Abbey will now be taking the role of executive chairman, allowing him to focus on business strategy and direction.

Having occupied various leadership roles over the past 15 years, Ms Parry is well placed to lead and support the existing management structure in an exciting phase of growth.

She spent eight years at Vivimed (formerly James Robinson), where she helped in exponentially growing their range of speciality dyes, resulting in them being awarded the Queen’s Award for Innovation, something that MagnaColours has also had the honour of receiving.

More recently, Ms Parry held the position of managing director at Sawgrass Europe, a subsidiary of Sawgrass Technologies, where she was instrumental in delivering growth results over her three years with the company.

She said: “It’s rare to come across an opportunity with such a fit for your experience and personality. I’m very excited to join the Magna team as it continues to grow and I look forward to helping them to realise ambitions to increase the presence of their innovative inks, worldwide. This is an important time for the business and the textile printing industry as a whole. I’ll look forward to working alongside Tom and the team to ensure MagnaColours continue to lead the way.”
 

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