People: The Women’s Organisation; Castle Green Homes; Palatine; Studio North; Azets; Cowgills
Sue Oshikanlu has been named as chair of Liverpool-based The Women’s Organisation, the largest developer and deliverer of training and support for women in the UK.
And she said she will be calling out inequalities and discrimination wherever she finds it.
Ms Oshikanlu is head of finance for Liverpool Domestic Abuse Service charity which provides advocacy and support to disadvantaged groups, including women who are suffering domestic violence and abuse. She has extensive experience in the running of publicly-funded services, including undertaking the management an accounting for public and charitable funds.
Her appointment comes with the stepping down of Gill Moglione after many years of outstanding service at the organisation. Sue said: “As a black woman I am really proud to lead this highly successful organisation – where the commitment to equality is demonstrated through the diversity at all parts of the organisation – board, staff and service users.
“I am deeply worried about the direction of travel in terms of the equalities agenda and investment in measures that help women and women from diverse communities and The Women’s Organisation will redouble its efforts to shine a light on inequitable investment policy and practice.”
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Emma Jenrick
With deals in place to deliver more than 800 affordable homes across eight sites, Castle Green Homes has welcomed a new recruit to support the growth of its partnerships business.
Emma Jenrick has joined Castle Green as partnerships manager, based at Preston Brook, working alongside partnerships director Eoin O’Donnell.
Her role includes completing land appraisals and developing relationships with housing associations partners. She said: “After seven years with my previous company, I was eager to take the next step in my career and was seeking a new challenge. Given Castle Green’s strong reputation within the industry, I felt this was a great opportunity for me to join a successful and expanding business.”
In the North West Castle Green Partnerships is set to deliver 589 homes, including a mix of affordable rent and shared ownership properties, in partnership with Torus, at sites in Crewe, Daresbury and Congleton and in Thornton, while in North Wales, a partnership with Adra is providing 269 affordable new homes in Meliden, Drury, Denbigh and Prestatyn.
Emma, 33, from Chester, has worked in the housebuilding and construction industry for more than a decade, including as an assistant buyer, quantity surveyor and commercial lead.
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Rachael Taplin
Palatine has bolstered its Manchester team with the appointment of Rachael Taplin as an investment manager for its Impact Fund.
Rachael joins from Grant Thornton, where she spent more than two-and a-half years in the corporate finance team, moving up from associate to manager during this time. Here, she advised on several key deals across the North West including Palatine’s Impact Fund exit from Veincentre in late 2022.
In her new role, she will be responsible for deal origination, execution, and working with management teams to deliver their strategy post-investment. She will be working closely with portfolio companies environmental services group Cura Terrae and Roydon Recycling, following the firm’s investment in the waste management and recycling specialist from Impact Fund II in June.
Rachael said: “I am excited to get started as I make this exciting move to the private equity side of the deals marketplace in Manchester. I am particularly excited to build and nurture strong relationships with management teams in the portfolio, as we aim to add value and deliver ambitious strategic acquisition strategies for those companies.”
Beth Houghton, Impact managing partner at Palatine, said: “Rachael is a great addition to the Manchester Impact team, she is focused, and passionate and I am sure she’ll be a great asset as we invest our second Impact Fund and deliver returns with purpose. Rachael’s expertise in corporate finance advisory will be particularly useful for portfolio companies in identifying and leading acquisitions for them and I am delighted she’s chosen to develop her career with us.”
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From left: Tanya Fox, Daisy Whalley, Lola Banks
Manchester-based strategic brand and design consultancy, Studio North, has enhanced its offer with a trio of new hires who will help to support the agency’s rapid growth.
Lola Banks joins Studio North as senior account manager, with Tanya Fox recruited as junior designer and Daisy Whalley coming on board as account executive.
Nick Wright, managing director, said: “Manchester is rapidly becoming the talent capital of the UK and we’re delighted to welcome Lola, Tanya and Daisy to the Studio North family. We’re proud to hire and nurture the next generation of talent and inspire fresh, emerging creative people into the industry.”
The recruitments will support a number of new account wins and organic growth projects at the consultancy.
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Susanna Cassey, Simon Monks, Jack Clitheroe
Accountancy firm Azets has appointed Susanna Cassey as regional managing director, and promoted Simon Monks and Jack Clitheroe to partner. In addition, 22 staff have been promoted to support the growth of the region including Alex Greenwood to Director and Martin Woodhall to associate director.
All will continue to work as part of Azets’ regional office network.
As a qualified Chartered Accountant with more than 20 years’ experience, Susanna Cassey works with a varied portfolio of SME clients and entrepreneurs across a range of industries, including many high tech/innovative businesses and those in the not-for-profit and education sectors, overseeing their audit and accounts compliance delivery as well as special advisory project work. In her new role, Susanna will will focus on driving the integration and growth of the business in the region, and form part of Azets’ leadership team.
Based in Manchester, Simon Monks specialises in advising corporates, lenders and other stakeholders in situations involving financial stress or distress, or where there is a funding requirement. He is an experienced restructuring and insolvency advisor, having worked at both boutique and large practice on a broad range of projects across different sectors.
Jack Clitheroe is a Chartered Accountant and a member of the ICAEW. Jack is a forensic accountant, assisting clients from a wide range of sectors on disputes, fraud investigations and compliance work. He is also regularly instructed as an expert witness for contentious business valuations, loss of profit claims or other commercial disputes.
Alex Greenwood is a Chartered Tax Adviser with a wealth of knowledge across a wide range of private client types and specialises in the taxation of professional partnerships and looking after the personal taxation affairs of the partners.
As a qualified Insolvency Practitioner and Chartered Accountant, Martin Woodhall specialises in formal insolvency and restructuring appointments in the SME market and has more than 18 years’ experience in advising corporates, lenders and other stakeholders across a variety of sectors that are impacted by financial stress or distress.
Susanna Cassey said: “We are at an exciting time in the growth of Azets, and I’m looking forward to leading the team so that, together, we can deliver our strategic goals and continue to build on the company’s ongoing success.”
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Stuart Stead, Nilesh Modhvadia
Accountancy and business advisory firm, Cowgills, has promoted Nilesh Modhvadia to partner in its audit and advisory team, taking the firm’s partner number to 23.
Nilesh joined Cowgills in 2018 as audit director, with previous audit and advisory roles held at RSM and at a top 50 Manchester-based specialist practice.
He said: “It’s a real privilege to be promoted to partner at Cowgills. When I joined the firm in 2018, I had ambitious plans, and with the help and support of Stuart and the rest of the partners I’m delighted, to now be in this position.”
Stuart Stead, partner at Cowgills, said: “Nilesh has proven that, with hard work and determination, you can reach partner level.
“He has developed into a fantastic business advisor. Nilesh and the other partners within the audit team are also developing the next generation of advisors at Cowgills. The latest cohort of Cowgills Academy students who joined us last year are some of the best trainees we’ve ever had, performing well ahead of their experience and are a credit to our team.”
Cowgills has three offices in Bolton, Manchester and Liverpool. The audit and advisory team has grown by 22% over the course of the past 12 months, with 12 new trainees joining the firm in September.
