People on the Move: Myerson Solicitors; Primas Law; DTM Legal; Anwyl Homes Lancs; Back to the Garden; AlphaBiolabs
Altrincham-based Myerson Solicitors has appointed experienced family lawyer Sarah Whitelegge as it continues to invest in its family law department.
Sarah joins from Chafes Hague Lambert Solicitors and comes with 10 years’ experience in family law.
Having regularly appeared in the family courts representing clients in relation to private children matters, financial order proceedings and domestic violence matters, Sarah has significant advocacy experience.
Sarah’s main area of expertise, however, is dealing with complex children matters and she has worked on a wide range of applications for child arrangement orders, prohibited steps orders, special guardianship orders, as well as working on divorce and separation cases.
She is also a committed member of Resolution and has achieved specialist accredited status in the areas of children law and domestic abuse.
Sarah said: “I’m delighted to join Myerson’s thriving family department and work alongside established solicitors such as Jane Tenquist and Nichola Bright.
“I am very excited about the future development of our family department at Myerson, at a time when the demand for high quality family law is growing.”
Jane Tenquist, partner and head of the family law team said: “Sarah is a wonderful addition to our family Law offering here at Myerson. Her experience will be of rich benefit to the team and I am excited to work alongside her to continue to successfully enhance the reputation of the firm.”
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Commercial, corporate and real estate specialist Primas Law is expanding its Manchester-based team as it sets out for a period of growth and expansion across the North West and London.
The fast-growing law firm, which has offices in Stockton Heath in Cheshire, Manchester and London, has made the two new appointments following a raft of new property and real estate client wins.
Newly-qualified solicitors Josh McConnell and Shauna Thompson join the company to support its growing real estate team.
Josh trained at Pearsons Solicitors and specialises in development matters, landlord and tenant issues. He brings wider construction industry experience to supplement his real estate knowledge.
The real estate team with partner and head of real estate, Simon Baxter
Shauna is a qualified solicitor advocate after converting from a neuroscience background and having completed her training at a registered social housing provider in Manchester.
“We’re really proud to be able to add Shauna and Josh to our rapidly-growing team in Manchester,” said Simon Baxter, partner at Primas Law and head of the company’s growing real estate division.
“They’re both incredibly bright and ambitious and come with strong pedigrees and experience, which gives us the extra capacity to take on and win more business and more cases for the clients we’re proud to support.”
Primas Law set up its Manchester-based office three years ago with just two staff members. The hires of Josh and Shauna sees that grow to 11 in early 2019, as the law firm has set out some bold ambitions for growth in the property sector, with a particular focus on registered providers of social housing.
“We’re earning some tremendous respect and recognition in the industry and that’s translating into a fantastic pipeline of business which makes us confident that 2019 will be a potential game-changer for Primas,” said Simon.
“These new hires are a symbol of our ambition to grow and to compete against the very best law firms in the country.”
As well as hiring Josh and Shauna, the Primas Law team has also retained additional bright young talent Rebecca Nichols. Rebecca trained at Primas Law and qualified as a solicitor in late 2018, after having demonstrated an exceptional work ethic and aptitude for real estate law.
Primas Law is a boutique law firm with offices in Manchester, Cheshire and London. It specialises in corporate, commercial and property law.
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Specialist commercial property lawyer Robin Sharp has joined law firm DTM Legal.
Robin is recommended by the Legal 500 and has more than 15 years’ experience advising developers, landowners, tenants, funders and investors in the commercial property industry.
He has most recently focused on advising clients within the UK retail, leisure, corporate landlord and occupier sectors. He has been involved with some of the UK’s largest retail and hotel brands in their new-build development programmes.
Robin said: “I’m delighted to be taking a new step in my career and to be joining a dynamic and client-oriented law firm which also has a great reputation for developing its staff.
“The team has already made me feel very welcome and I am eager to help the business grow over the coming years.”
Robin Sharp
Anna Duffy, head of the property team, welcomed Robin. She said: “Robin makes a fantastic addition to the team, supporting the department’s ongoing growth.
“Robin’s arrival will bolster our specialist property development department and he will add significant value through his technical expertise and innovative solutions.
“Robin has gained invaluable experience working in senior roles in-house at a number of well-known companies such as Betfred and Tote, and through secondment at Virgin Media, and experienced the importance of key client drivers, which enables him to understand the need for a commercial approach and adding value to a business.”
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Chorley-based Anwyl Homes Lancashire has further strengthened its management team with the appointment of Andrew Morgan as head of land.
Andy, from West Lancashire, takes responsibility for the identification and purchase of land to support the growth and ambitious expansion plans of the recently-formed Lancashire division.
He will work with those with land to sell, including individual land owners and agents, to bring suitable land forward for residential development.
Having worked for several different housebuilders during his career, Andy is hugely experienced and well qualified for his new role. Prior to joining Anwyl he was head of land for Elan Homes, working mainly in the Southern areas of the North West region.
Andy Morgan, right, with John Grimes
Professionally qualified with a full OND and HND in Construction, he was attracted to the team that has been formed at Anwyl Homes Lancashire, and the opportunity to be part of a solid, yet entrepreneurial, family business with a strong tradition in quality housebuilding.
He said: “Joining Anwyl provided a great opportunity for me to grow within an already well-established company. With my in-depth knowledge of the North West land market for new homes, I can support Anwyl and help the division grow in a steady and successful way. I am delighted to be part of the team.”
Managing director of Anwyl Homes Lancashire, John Grime, added: “With the appointment of Andy we have further strengthened our management team and added additional knowledge and expertise that will enable us to fulfil our growth and expansion plans for the division over the next 12 months.”
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Back to the Garden Childcare, in Broadheath, Altrincham, has appointed, from Manchester, as the nursery’s nutritionist.
In her new role Niki, who is a qualified naturopathic nutritionist, will provide expert nutritional advice for children and parents, ensuring all who attend the nursery are encouraged into healthy eating habits from a young age.
By working with the parents, sharing ideas and easy recipes for nutritious meals at home for the whole family, Niki hopes to educate on the importance of eating well from birth onwards, improving gut health, strengthening immunity and promoting brain health, which enhances productivity and concentration.
Niki Charnock
With the sugar epidemic continually making headlines in the UK, and the Government reporting that only 50% of children in the UK are getting enough fruit and vegetables daily, Niki is determined to alter eating habits in young people as early in their lives as possible, offering top tips to avoid sugar and sugary foods for dessert and when snacking.
Niki plans to introduce Wellness Wednesdays at the nursery, inviting parents and grandparents to stay to learn more about family nutrition.
From building strong foundations to quick and easy steps for a healthy gut and strong immune system, Niki will impart her knowledge through interactive workshops using relaxing treatments to help with both health and nutrition.
Niki said: “I am thrilled to be involved in Back to the Garden – the ethos of the nursery is in tune with my philosophy, and it is a pleasure to be part of such an innovative approach to childcare.
“I hope the expert advice I give, supported by easy-to-make recipes, will give parents the confidence to understand the food choices that they make for their families and the importance of eating healthily from a young age, so that they implement and model these good habits at home.”
Jeannie Pickering, co-founder of Back to the Garden Childcare, said: “Niki is highly regarded in this field and with her own clinic, in St Ann’s Square in Manchester, is well versed in nutrition, health, wellbeing and mindfulness, all of which we advocate within the nursery.
“Niki’s input at Back to the Garden will really assist the children and their parents adapt a healthier approach to all meal times, ensuring healthy habits become an integral part of family life now.”
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A former professional racing driver is among a raft of appointments at DNA, drug and alcohol testing firm AlphaBiolabs, to meet demand from an expanding customer base.
Carl Porter is one of six new account managers in the company’s DNA testing division.
He has joined AlphaBiolabs along with Sheena Quinn and Marie Yeates.
Internally, Nicola Edmundson, Ashley Hodgkinson and Nathan Lacey, who were previously customer service administrators, have been promoted to the role.
Account managers act as a dedicated point of contact for customers such as solicitors’ firms and social services.
Their role involves managing the client relationships, organising sample collections and taking care of other logistical requirements.
AlphaBiolabs has also recruited Carolyn Darbyshire as sales manager, while Nicole Watts has joined as an administrator to support the sales and collections teams in the burgeoning workplace drug and alcohol testing division.
The new arrivals take overall staff numbers to 55, an increase of more than 20% so far this financial year.
From left, back: Nathan Lacey, Carl Porter, Carolyn Darbyshire. Front: Ashley Hodgkinson, Nicole Watts
Rachel Davenport, commercial director at AlphaBiolabs, said: “A growing client base for our DNA and workplace drug and alcohol testing operations means we have had to expand our team to ensure we can fully support the needs of our customers.
“We are delighted to welcome five new members of staff and to announce the three promotions. They are all extremely competent and motivated individuals with the right skills to ensure they are successful in their new roles.”
AlphaBiolabs, which performs the DNA tests for ITV’s The Jeremy Kyle Show, has its headquarters and laboratory in Warrington.
It operates 10 walk-in centres around the country which provide access to the company’s testing services and convenient sites for sample collections.
