People: JMW Solicitors; FW Capital; Attain; Alcedo Care; CFE Lighting

Ben Wilson

Full service law firm JMW Solicitors LLP has appointed a new partner to its commercial litigation team to work on contentious probate matters.

Ben Wilson joins the team from Forbes where he was a partner and head of contentious trusts and probate. He specialises in all areas of contentious trusts and probate on a national and international basis, dealing with high value and complex claims.

Notable cases for Ben previously have included successfully acting for a spouse in a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975 against her deceased husband’s estate.

The estate was valued at £18m and Ben achieved a substantial seven figure settlement for her.

Ben also acts for a number of claimants and defendants on various challenges to the validity of wills on the basis of lack of capacity, want of knowledge and approval and fraud.  Ben is currently ranked in Legal 500 2021 as a Next Generation Partner in Contentious Trusts and Probate. They state that “Ben Wilson is a specialist. He is experienced and effective in securing quality outcomes for clients in a cost-effective way”.

Ben joins fellow partner, Alison Parry, and associates Ian Johnston and Claire Brierley who specialise in contentious probate in the commercial litigation team at JMW, which is led by partner Marc Yaffe.

The team has recently seen a 400% increase in enquiries from people wanting to challenge historic wills, often several years after the estate has been settled and, in some cases, as much as a decade ago. It believes the spike is down to increasing financial hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic and the resulting impact on jobs and livelihoods.

Senior partner, Joy Kingsley, said: “We are pleased to welcome Ben to JMW to help grow and develop further our specialist contentious probate offering. The team are very busy at the moment and Ben’s excellent experience in this area will enable them to be able to help more potential clients wanting to challenge Wills.”

Ben said: “I am excited to join JMW and the commercial litigation team. I feel this is a unique and exciting opportunity to work with Alison and the team to grow JMW’s contentious probate offering to be the largest and leading team in the country.”

JMW is based in Manchester, with operations in Liverpool and London.

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FW Capital has appointed an investment executive to strengthen its North West team.

Jamie Grimshaw joins from Natwest Bank where he worked for 21 years, predominantly as a relationship manager in the commercial banking team.

He is a CeMap-qualified Chartered Banker as well as being a director of the networking group, Professionals of Wigan.

Jamie will be responsible for helping small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in Lancashire and Cumbria access loans of between £100,000 and £750,000 from NPIF-FW Capital Debt Finance – part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF).

FW Capital also offers NPIF loans backed by the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loans Scheme (CBILS), which provides facilities to SMEs which are experiencing lost or deferred revenues, leading to disruptions to their cashflow because of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Jamie Grimshaw

Gary Guest, FW Capital’s fund director in the North West and Cumbria, said: “As an experienced lender it is great to welcome Jamie to the team, he has extensive experience of supporting SMEs in the North West.

“Jamie is joining us at a crucial time. CBILS applications need to be in by the end of January and it is important that we reach out to all the businesses that need this type of funding and have the expertise on the team to process as many of these loans as possible.”

Jamie Grimshaw said: “FW Capital is highly respected in the alternative finance market and their personal approach makes access to finance a straightforward experience for businesses.

“I’m passionate about supporting SMEs. They form the backbone of our economy and many have managed to dig deep and keep going, despite extremely difficult trading conditions. By helping businesses through these next few months, they can continue to plan for growth and help the economy to recover next year.”

To date FW Capital has invested £180m into businesses across the North and helped to create, or safeguard, more than 7,600 jobs.

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Attain, which was acquired by global software specialist ICX4 in August, has seen a rapid increase in demand for its services as businesses gear themselves up for ecommerce to cope with the impact of COVID-19.

The expansion sees the team almost doubling in size, with appointments including Natasha Capper as head of customer acquisition, John Grimshaw as business development manager, account manager Becca Boone, Alex Graham as sales support manager, and Salim Guechoud, who completes the round of new appointments by taking on the role as technical manager.

The Wigan-based team will also be opening a second office in Trafford, and a focus on launching free webinars in 2021 will signal Attain’s intention to be the go-to agency for small businesses needing digital marketing support.

Natasha said: “We are delighted be joining the business at this crucial time. The market is going through accelerated digital transformational change, and we have a unique opportunity to use our technical knowhow to help shape the next generation of business.”

Commercial manager, Jackie Salt, said: “Customer service has always been a top priority at Attain and, therefore, have committed to investing in our team to continue to give our trademark high level of personalised service to our new and long-term customers.

“Businesses have been hit hard by the lockdowns and have had to adjust quickly to survive. And we have been here to help them do that – from setting up e-shops to reassuring clients’ customers through targeted email campaigns and finding new audiences with digital marketing.

“The new key roles are the underpinning of the structure of the whole company and will support our ambitious plans for expansion in 2021.”

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Following the recent launch of its Live-in care Division, Alcedo Care Group has bolstered its team with the appointment of Rebecca Ogujor, from Manchester, as head of Live-in Care.

Rebecca’s overriding objective is to successfully establish the new division, breaking into the marketplace and offering a range of high-quality care packages.

With vast experience, having previously held a managerial position across the Lancashire region for another live-in care provider and being a care home manager for a large charity and operations manager at sheltered housing, Rebecca’s knowledge of the sector is superb.

She said: “I was attracted to Alcedo Care Group as it is a family-run business and the values of owners Andy and Jo Boardman reflect my own values regarding how quality care should be delivered.

Rebecca Ogujor

“The company has just launched the Live-in care division so it’s an exciting time to join, plus there is plenty of growth in the pipeline which, in turn, will create great career opportunities for myself and my team.”

Andy Boardman, managing director of Alcedo Care Group, said: “Rebecca is absolutely the right choice for this role. Her expertise is second to none and her determination and drive will ensure the success of this new division.”

Rebecca is currently working from home and will spend time at each of the company’s five offices across the North West, ensuring she meets with all office managers and their teams.

Established in 2017, Alcedo Care has offices in Southport, Blackpool, Wigan, Preston and Lancaster.

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Nelson-based LED lighting manufacturer CFE Lighting has taken on its first apprentice as it looks to accelerate growth and build on its strongest ever trading performance over the past 12 months.

Sixteen-year-old Jack Davies has started an 18-month-long LEAN Engineering apprenticeship with the company, with the aim of becoming a qualified engineer and securing a permanent role within the rapidly-growing business.

Over the course of his apprenticeship, Jack, who lives in Nelson, will be working across a variety of different areas within the company, which specialises in bespoke LED luminaires and lighting solutions for commercial, industrial, and public sectors.

His role will see him work with the manufacturing team to learn how to assemble a vast range of light fittings and controls, as well as being involved with both the sales and customer services teams.

His arrival follows the appointments of two senior level hires last month, with Amanda Speight joining the company as national business development manager, and David Clews taking up the split role of general manager and North West area sales manager.

Jack Davies

They join as the business looks to build on double digit growth over the past 12 months, with CFE Lighting achieving its highest ever turnover of £1.1m over the 19/20 financial year.

General manager and North West area sales manager, David Clews, said: “Jack joins at an incredibly exciting time as we look to build on stellar growth over the last 12 months and add to our already impressive portfolio of products and services.

“He’ll be learning from some of the best in the industry and the whole team is looking forward to working closely with him to equip him with all the skills and knowledge he needs to become a professional engineer with a bright future ahead of him.”

Jack Davies said: “Despite being a relatively new name in the industry, the company has built a strong reputation for quality, with everything made in the UK, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to develop my engineering knowledge and skills with them.”

CFE Lighting was established in 2015 by Chris Baldwin, who is managing director of Baldwin Engineering Holdings Group. It operates globally and has a customer base that includes a range of blue-chip companies.

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