On the move: the latest East Midlands hires

Accountancy firm Mazars has appointed seasoned tax specialist, Gary Collins as tax partner. Collins will be responsible for the tax offering across the East Midlands at Mazars, and will be based out of both the firm’s Leicester and Nottingham offices.

Collins, who retired a year ago, was previously a partner at KPMG covering a number of senior roles – including heading the Midlands regional corporate tax offering and also latterly, a tax partner in its ‘Enterprise’ offer.

Alistair Wesson, East Midlands managing partner at Mazars, said: “We are delighted to have lured Gary out of retirement to join Mazars. He is one of the most respected tax specialists in the East Midlands and is a great addition to our growing team.”

“He brings a wealth of experience to the firm which will be invaluable in strengthening the East Midlands tax team and linking with the wider regional and national teams to enhance the corporate tax offer that Mazars takes to market.”

Collins said: “The role at Mazars is a very exciting prospect. It gives me the chance to develop a team in a fast-growing, well-respected firm, in an incredibly interesting marketplace. It’s such a great opportunity I simply couldn’t pass it up.”

James Hemphill

EY has appointed James Hemphill as a director within the firm’s People Advisory Services (PAS) team, as the professional services firm continues to expand in the Midlands.

Hemphill, who joins from Grant Thornton, will add to EY’s 48-strong PAS team in the Midlands, an integrated practice combining experience from Tax and Advisory. The Midlands PAS team has seen 20% growth in headcount over the past six months, following the earlier appointment of Joanne Kaveney-Davis as partner to lead the local practice.

Hemphill said: “I’m absolutely delighted to join EY and be part of what is an incredibly fast growing PAS team. I’m really keen to help David Paul and the team here in Birmingham to build on the valuable support they currently provide to businesses across the Midlands, with a specific focus on the small and mid-market, which continues to be the ‘engine of growth’ in the UK economy.”