People on the move: Harrison Drury; Axon Moore; Grant Thornton; Crumbria LEP; RSM; Brabners Corporate Finance; Matrix Networks

North West law firm Harrison Drury has appointed four trainees as part of its latest intake of legal talent.

Olivia Bailey, Charlotte Hurst, Rachel Taylor and Alex Walmsley have been offered training contracts with the firm.

The firm has also offered permanent positions to newly-qualified solicitors Jacob Walker, Rebecca Patience and James Dickinson, who were taken on as trainees in 2015 and have now completed their two years of training.

John Chesworth, executive chairman of Harrison Drury, said: “Our training programme is all about supporting the next generation of legal talent. We look for individuals, who are not only promising legal graduates but also have the capacity to deliver outstanding service and add to the firm’s culture.

“Our qualifying trainees have set the bar high, but I am sure Olivia, Charlotte, Rachel and Alex will do an outstanding job.”

Bailey, who recently graduated with first-class honours from University of Manchester, will train initially with the residential conveyancing team in the firm’s Garstang office.

Hurst, a graduate at University of Central Lancashire, joins the commercial property team in Preston.

Taylor, who also studied at University of Central Lancashire, will join the family team at Harrison Drury’s Kendal office.

Walmsley, who has worked as a paralegal at Harrison Drury since 2016, will train initially with the property litigation team in Preston.

The newly-qualified solicitors will all be based in Preston. Walker will join the commercial litigation team, Patience will remain in the family team and Dickinson will move to corporate.

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Financial recruitment firm Axon Moore have made three key appointments at its Manchester headquarters.

Steve Gillan, Mike Langford and Linzie Strickland have been promoted to manager while Mark Turley retains overall responsibility for the office.

In addition, Ali Atkinson will move to join the North West executive team. This will allow her to develop the senior interim market while also taking on a wider responsibility for the Axon Moore interim business.

Mark Turley said: “These are exciting times for the Manchester office. The new structure will enable us to build teams who are really focussed on their individual markets, which will ultimately benefit the clients and candidates we work with.”

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Business adviser Grant Thornton has appointed a new head of its capital allowances team in the North of England, based in its Spinningfields, Manchester office.

Nicola Bottley joins from global management, engineering and development consultancy Mott MacDonald, where she spent 17 years as a director.

Her dual qualifications in both surveying and tax are complemented by her 30 years’ experience working in multiple sectors of the construction industry.

Bottley said: “The opportunity to lead the Capital Allowances team in the North was a huge draw and I’m excited to be joining such a highly regarded national team. I look forward to working with Grant Thornton’s clients to ensure they’re maximising the relief available to them.”

Karen Campbell-Williams, partner and Grant Thornton’s North West head of property and construction, said: “We’re very pleased to welcome Nicola to the team. She brings with her a wealth of valuable experience and her addition reinforces our offer to clients.”

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Cumbria’s strategic economic body has appointed two sector skills managers.

Claire Dunn and Jon Power have joined the team at Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

Their roles will entail strengthening links between training providers, higher education and local employers in the county’s higher growth sectors.

Power has held a number of key strategic regional and local roles at the Skills Funding Agency and stakeholder relationship posts with the Learning & Skills Council and Cumbria Connexions.

Dunn brings 30 years of experience in the field of HR and learning and development, including workforce development and strategic advisory roles for a number of leading Cumbrian employers.

She has also been involved in leading the Cumbria CIPD skills agenda.

Both Power and Dunn will be developing and working with specific sector groups in the local economy to understand their skills requirements. Dunn is focusing on nuclear, manufacturing, visitor economy and professional services sectors, while Power is focusing on logistics, construction, rural economy and health and social care sectors.

Head of employment and skills at Cumbria LEP Craig Ivison said: “These are two key appointments as we continue to work more closely with employers in key sectors, business organisations and the county’s network of education and skills providers to ensure that we nurture a highly skilled workforce.”

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Audit, tax and consulting firm RSM has strengthened its tax practice by appointing Laura Luty as a new director in its Manchester office.

Luty is a tax professional with 17 years’ experience from roles in Big Four firms in the North West. She brings a wealth of expertise having advised entrepreneurs and high-net worth individuals.

In her new role, Luty will provide tax advisory support to a growing number of private clients, while working closely with the North West private client team to grow the practice and its offering.

Jill Jones, RSM’s regional managing partner in the North West, said: “We are committed to invest in key talent, and Laura’s strategic hire is testimony to this approach. In an ever-changing tax landscape for private clients, Laura brings varied experience that will further strengthen our offering – allowing us to help support more individuals on complex UK and international tax planning.”
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Specialist M&A adviser Brabners Corporate Finance has bolstered its Liverpool-based team with new hire Andrew Norman.

Norman is an ACA-qualified chartered accountant. He trained and went on to be an audit & accounts senior at accountancy firm Saffery Champness in Manchester. Norman joins Brabners as a corporate finance executive.

He has expertise in audit, advisory, tax and assurance and has worked with businesses with turnover ranging from £10m to £200m.

Norman said: “The move away from audit was a purposeful one for me and being able to join a CF practice operating in a law firm was appealing. Since joining, I’ve been able to work on two major completions, the sale of Tetrad and the BIMBO of Wearwell. Both were challenging.”

Paula McGrath head of corporate finance in Brabners added: “Andrew’s experience makes him a perfect fit in Brabners. He joins us at a busy time and has already contributed to two major deals and was instrumental in getting them over the line.

“Andrew’s breadth of sector knowledge is invaluable to the team and expands our insight into the industries that our clients work in.”

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Utility infrastructure provider Matrix Networks has appointed Wendy Andrews to its board of directors.

Andrews is a commercial and legal professional with more than two decades of experience in the construction industry.

Promoted to the role of commercial director, Andrews’ appointment marks the first time a woman has held a board-level position at the Warrington-based business, since it was founded by Chris Mann in 2006.

As commercial director Andrews will combine her previous client-side experience of the construction industry with the specialist knowledge of the utilities sector, which she has gained over the past six years working for Matrix Networks.

Matrix Networks’ managing director Rob Sparkes, said: “I know Wendy fits the role perfectly. She’s not only well qualified for the position, but she understands our customers and I know she’ll be an asset to our board and the future of our business.”

Andrews said: “Matrix Networks is a business which is focused on customer service. Working client-side for almost 20 years has given me a thorough understanding of the expectations of our customers.”