People on the Move: Skuuudle; Integra People; Merchant Taylors’ Senior Girls’ School; Cumbria LEP; Together

Trafford price and product intelligence analysts Skuuudle has added a new recruit to its expanding team with the appointment of economics lecturer Aisha Kolawole.

Aisha, who has a PhD in economics, joins the team as a junior business analyst and will be responsible for scrutinising millions of products and prices as well as historical market intelligence.

The role was created following a succession of recent business wins.

Managing director James Hilton said: “There is an ever-increasing demand for our price consultancy services.

“Aisha will be consulting with clients to help them maximise their returns from our data and help solve challenges they are facing in the ever-increasingly congested world of eCommerce.”

Aisha, who lives in Altrincham, said: “After more than two years as an associate lecturer at Oxford Brookes I was looking for a new challenge.

“I cannot wait to get my teeth stuck in to the data and help our clients become even more competitive in the world of online retailing.”

Skuuudle compares millions of products daily, delivering data to clients who use it to shape their own retail strategies.

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Following the introduction of a healthcare division in November 2016, national recruitment company Integra People have witnessed impressive sector growth, and has appointed Lucy Faulkner as clinical training & assessment manager, and Jeannie Edwards as registered nurse.

Joining the existing healthcare department within the Warrington and Bangor offices, the two new roles have been developed to complement each other, and help Integra People’s healthcare sector become a specialist training hub.

Ms Edwards is based in Integra People’s Bangor office and has joined the company to lead nurse recruitment, ensuring appropriate placement and bespoke, appropriate matching of candidates and clients.

Ms Faulkner is based in the Warrington head office after her long term role as a clinical lead, and is an expert at educating large groups of healthcare assistants and nurses, meeting the standards set by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

Integra People Healthcare will now offer in-house mandatory training and inductions, as well as specialist courses in areas such as tracheostomy and traumatic brain injuries.

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A former Natwest Markets and Citibank employee has been appointed head mistress of a leading independent girls school in Merseyside.

Claire Tao, 48, joins Merchant Taylors’ Senior Girls’ School, in Crosby, from the City of London School for Girls, where she worked as deputy head.

Claire started her career in investment banking in 1993 and holds an MSc in personnel management and industrial relations from the London School of Economics.

She worked as an assistant director of HR for NatWest Markets up until 1997 and then Citibank. In 2003, after having her children, she retrained as a biology teacher completing her PGCE qualification at Roehampton University.

As well as finance, Claire has 13 years’ extensive experience across a wide range of roles within independent schools beginning at Old Palace of John Whitgift School in Croydon and then Dulwich College Preparatory School, before joining the City of London School for Girls in 2007.

Claire Tao

She said: “It’s a real honour to be joining Merchant Taylors’ and to be taking the reins at such an exciting time.

“It’s a hugely successful school with a rich academic and cultural heritage and I’m looking forward to working with our stakeholders to drive business forward and build on the school’s outstanding achievements.”

Lynn Hill, director of finance and operations for Merchant Taylors’ Schools, said: “Someone with Claire’s business acumen, strategic focus and educational experience is incredibly rare to find in the teaching world.

“Being an educationalist with an industry background, she fully understands the fundamentals of how our business works, as well as being formally trained in leadership and people management. ”

Merchant Taylors’ Girls School is a leading north west independent day school for girls aged 11-18.

It is the top performing girls’ schools in Sefton for A-Level results, with one-in-five students achieving a score of AAB or higher and a consistent 100% pass rate.

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Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), the county’s strategic economic body, has appointed a new chief executive with experience of leading and delivering some of the largest and most complex investment programmes in the UK.

Jo Lappin was previously CEO of Northamptonshire Enterprise Partnership where she developed a strategic economic plan for the county that government described as ‘one of the best’.

She also oversaw significant performance improvements in business and innovation, employment and skills, and infrastructure.

While at there Ms Lappin also successfully delivered three government pilot projects, including Enterprise Advisors, which was later rolled out nationally.

She will take the helm of Cumbria LEP when Graham Haywood, the current CEO, departs as planned at the end of April, after a three-year tenure.

Ms Lappin said: “I love Cumbria, and I am ambitious for the county and want to ensure that we deliver on our full potential.

“I’ve worked for several decades in the north west of England and have been a passionate advocate back to government for the area.

“I am looking forward to working closely with all our partners. I want to create a really inclusive organisation, engaging a wide range of public and private sector partners in the business of the LEP and driving forward economic growth in the county.”

Ms Lappin’s previous roles include deputy regional director of Government Office for the North West where she boosted performance in her portfolio of North West European Programmes, Housing, Planning and Transport to the value of £850m.

She was also European Director, Government Office for the North West with responsibility for two of the largest socio-economic investment funds in the UK.

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An expert with more than two decades’ experience in the commercial property market has been appointed to a new role with specialist lender Together.

Robert Goodall joins as lending director for the specialist finance company and will be based at its headquarters in Cheadle, south Manchester.

An experienced chartered surveyor, he takes up his new role next month after running his own company for more than 12 years, advising on the purchase, asset management and disposal of commercial property across the UK.

He was involved in deals worth nearly £30m in the past 12 months as director of his company, Goodall Investments.

The 44-year-old said: “I’ve been self-employed for more than 12 years and have invested all of my time building up my own successful company, so I knew it would have to be a very special opportunity for me to change roles.

“When I came to Together I was really impressed with the size and the scale of the business as it is. However, seeing its ambitious plans, and where it could go over the next three to five years has confirmed I’ve made the right decision.

“I’ll be joining an already-strong team and having the chance to help to grow the business will be fantastic.”

Robert started his working career in 1993 as a surveyor for Darryl Lee & Co before becoming a director with EP2, later joining NAI Fuller Peiser, where he handled major property deals on behalf of high net worth clients.

He also has a vast experience of development finance, having acted as a consultant for Goldentree Financial Services, set up by bookmaker Fred Done and his brother Peter.

Marc Goldberg, commercial chief executive at Together, said: “Robert is somebody who has more than 20 years of experience as a chartered surveyor and not only deeply understands the property business but also has a wide-ranging knowledge of finance.

“He is a great addition to the team and will be able to work together with his strong network of clients, as well as Together’s existing customers and introducers, in making lending decisions and delivering our message of common sense lending across the UK.”

Last year Together lent a total of just under £1.2bn, and has a current loan book of more than £2.55bn.