People: Unity Trust Bank; Prospect Homes; Layer Studio; Sedulo Corporate Finance; Blume; Alcedo Care Group
Unity Trust Bank has appointed Dawn Morris to the new role of Deposits Relationship Manager for the North & Scotland to help develop the bank’s growing customer portfolio.
As a specialist banker with more than 30 years’ experience, Dawn will work with new and existing day-to-day banking customers to better understand their individual needs and support them with their liquidity and investment requirements.
Dawn said: “I’d never considered working for an ethical bank before but when I learned how Unity uses finance to help improve the lives of local communities it touched a nerve. Unity’s ethos and values are a natural fit for me and I’m excited to join the team.”
John Copping, relationship director (North & Scotland) at Unity Trust Bank’s Manchester office, said: “Dawn has a wealth of experience in banking, including specialising in deposits and cash management, and her knowledge will be a real asset to the bank.
“We already have a dedicated team of relationship managers in place who support our lending customers in the region, but investing in the deposit side of our business will help us enhance the customer experience even more and ensure organisations are making the most of their capital.”
::
Michael Orgill
Michael Orgill has been appointed as managing director of Prospect Homes as Nigel Yates announces his retirement.
Michael will take charge of the Liverpool-based business that builds homes across Lancashire.
He said: “I’m so proud to take on this role and I’m really looking forward to being part of Prospect’s continued success.”
Michael, 40, said his immediate priorities will be to work closely with the sales team to look at how they can maintain sales rates and explore how the business can help customers into homeownership as well as ensuring their development pipeline moves forward: “We have four sites that we are aiming to commence work on over the next 12 months which will deliver 580 homes on top of our existing developments at Whalley and Burscough. We also need to continue growing our land bank and are actively looking for new land opportunities.”
Nigel will work behind the scenes with Michael until the end of the year to ensure the handover process is smooth.
::
Danny Crump
Layer Studio has launched a new Landscape+Urbanism specialism alongside the appointment of new Director of Urbanism, Danny Crump.
Operating from its Wilmslow and Newcastle studios, the new offer will promote a Landscape+Urbanism approach to larger scale urban strategies in towns and cities across the UK, while continuing to design places that allow people and nature to thrive.
Danny is well known for his work in towns and cities across the UK, including ‘Streets for All’ projects across Greater Manchester, Birmingham’s Snow Hill Public Realm Masterplan and Rochdale’s Transit Oriented Communities programme. Danny’s new position at Layer Studio will bring his 20 years’ experience to the studio and extend its urbanism capability far beyond its existing landscape design skills, to work at a strategic scale whilst delivering life-centric places.
Most recently, Danny has worked in collaboration with a number of North West local authorities to support inclusive and healthy communities delivering strategies that specifically focus on responding to local needs.
Matthew Warner, director of Layer Studio, said: “Taking a Landscape+Urbanism approach to projects means we can create authentic, nature-based places that are inclusive and vital, after all it’s the outdoor spaces in our towns and cities that most people experience. Starting with landscape means we create places that have a human focus and are catalysts for positive change for both people and the planet.
“Danny fits right into this ethos. We’ve known him for a long time, and obviously admired his work, so as we enter a new stage of growth at Layer Studio, we’re thrilled to welcome him on board.”
Danny said: “Layer is a radical collective driven by curiosity, rigour and purpose. What really attracted me to the business was the studio ethos the team has developed and nurtured. They’ve established a dynamic and creative environment where varied skill sets come together to problem solve.”
::
Bethan Wootton
Sedulo Corporate Finance has appointed Bethan Wootton as Senior Corporate Finance Associate.
The business is part of Sedulo Group, which has offices in London, Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds.
Bethan is the latest hire in a major period of recruitment for the group following the completion of several successful deals in 2023 and an expanding pipeline.
Joining from Deepbridge Capital, Bethan has significant experience in leading investments into growing businesses and supporting significant growth.
At Sedulo, Bethan will leverage her experience into the growing pipeline of mandates and support the team in delivering the objectives of businesses looking for investment or sale.
A Liverpool native, Bethan will predominantly work from the North West offices in both Liverpool and Manchester.
Corporate Finance Director, Will Stanton, said: “Bethan is a great addition to the Sedulo Corporate Finance team and I look forward to seeing her use her skills and expertise to help the businesses that we work with.”
::
Katie Lynch
Blume, a customer acquisition specialist and part of Manchester-based Fletchers Group, has appointed Katie Lynch as Head of Clinical Negligence Business Development.
Katie joins from Speed Medical where she has spent the past eight years, originally as a lawyer and team leader before heading up the business development function for clinical negligence. Prior to this, she worked as a lawyer with Fentons – part of Slater & Gordon Lawyers – and The Roland Partnership.
In the newly created role, Katie will be responsible for driving the growth of Blume’s panel of clinical negligence law firms by identifying and pursuing new business opportunities and strengthening existing relationships. She will also work closely with legal and operations teams across the Fletchers Group to contribute to and maximise the success and scope of legal panel appointments.
Zoe Holland, Group Chief Commercial Officer, said: “Bringing in someone of Katie’s calibre and track record is testament to Blume’s reputation in the sector, the scale of our ambition and the exciting opportunities ahead. By leveraging her vast industry knowledge and legal background, it will enable us to shape our services to better meet our clients’ needs and continually exceed their expectations. Welcome to Team Blume, Katie.”
Katie Lynch said: “Having spoken to Dez, Zoe and Peter Haden on numerous occasions, it just felt like the right time – for me and the business as it focuses on expanding its clinical negligence client base and capabilities.”
::
Louise Fullard, Peter Nickson, Beth Greaves
Independently-owned and family run Alcedo Care Group has appointed a trio of recruitment managers to support its expansion across Lancaster and South Lakeland.
The new recruitment team will be responsible for recruiting and retaining more than 350 new carers to deliver Alcedo’s portfolio of quality domiciliary care, nurse-led complex care, supported living and live-in care services to those looking to remain in the comfort of their own homes.
Beth Greaves takes the role of recruitment manager for the Lancaster branch, Peter Nickson for Kendal and South Lakes and Louise Fullard for Ulverston and Barrow. All three have made an immediate start, developing their recruitment strategies and starting to attract, shortlist and interview potential candidates.
Managing director, Andy Boardman, said: “There continues to be a huge surge in demand for quality home care services, with families and individuals opting to remain comfortable and cared for in the familiarity of their own homes.
“With our Kendal branch so well received and the team busy with clients across the area, we are looking at additional locations for expansion and will need to recruit for the new offices when they open. We are extremely particular about the carers that we choose to join our team and our new trio of recruitment managers will ensure we find and select those that share our vision and quality standards.”
Formerly from Morecambe, 30-year-old Beth now lives in Carnforth with her boyfriend. Prior to joining Alcedo, she was recruitment and labour planning supervisor for retailer Lakeland and she has also worked in various roles within the education sector.
Previously in recruitment in the facilities management sector, 23-year-old Peter lives in Bolton-Le-Sands with his girlfriend.
Louise also has previous experience in recruitment across the oil and gas, nuclear and health and social care sectors. Aged 27, she lives with her boyfriend in Barrow-in-Furness.
The group is on track to meet its target of owning and operating 30 branches across the North of England and Wales by the end of 2025.
