On the move: the latest East Midlands hires

Law firm Lime Solicitors has announced two promotions across its personal injury and medical negligence teams in the Midlands.
Effective November 2023, catastrophic injury expert Vicky Blodwell has been promoted to partner in Birmingham, while medical negligence expert Michelle Harper has been promoted to legal director in Leicester.
Blodwell works as part of Lime Solicitors’ personal injury team, helping clients who have experienced serious injury, including spinal cord injury and brain injury. She also oversees the client on-boarding team servicing all the Lime Solicitors work stream areas, together with assisting with key projects within Shakespeare Martineau’s managed legal services (MLS) team.
Harper specialises in medical negligence claims against a variety of healthcare providers including NHS trusts, GPs, private consultants, dentists and care homes, with a keen interest in women’s health including gynaecological injuries, injuries arising from child birth and still births.
She said: “I’m delighted to be promoted to partner. I have such a varied role, which has enabled me to develop a diverse range of skills. I am looking forward to continuing to support growth and development of both teams, supporting those who have suffered serious injury, as well as continuing to drive performance improvement and client experience.”
Tony Hannington, partner and head of Lime Solicitors, said: “We are extremely proud to have promoted both Vicky and Michelle, who are hugely valuable and knowledgeable members of the Lime Solicitors team.
“Their contribution has been exceptional and they are both shining examples of how our people can build or continue successful careers with us. I am looking forward to seeing them flourish in their new roles and supporting us as we continue with our aim of becoming the recommended firm for consumers in need of expert legal advice and support.”
Cambridge & Counties Bank has appointed two additional non-executive directors (NEDs) to its board.
Elizabeth Lockwood has joined as a NED and chair of the Risk & Compliance Committee. She has over 25 years of experience as a risk management specialist, and previously held a variety of senior and executive roles at NatWest including as deputy chief risk officer for NatWest Holdings.
Lockwood also holds non-executive roles at Melton Building Society and its subsidiary Nexa Finance. She sits as an external expert member of the Audit & Risk Committee at Samaritans and is a qualified coach and therapeutic counsellor.
Michele Ibbs has joined as an NED and is the shareholder representative for Cambridgeshire Local Government Pension Fund, one of the bank’s two shareholders. Currently chair of the board at Connexus Homes, Ibbs’ non-executive career includes previous roles with The Marsden Building Society, where she was senior independent director. The Ombudsman Service and Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Ibbs’ executive career spans both private and public sectors; including board and senior executive roles within higher education, food and drink, luxury consumer goods, manufacturing, and retailing.
Patrick Newberry, chairman at Cambridge & Counties Bank, said: “Cambridge & Counties Bank has historically hired the very best talent in the market and in Michele and Elizabeth we continue to focus on the experience and expertise needed to remain competitive in our chosen specialist lending sectors. We are delighted they have both joined the team.”