Appointments: Pension leader becomes partner at GT; New Ceo at TeleData & more

ACCOUNTANTS and business advisers Grant Thornton has promoted its Manchester-based head of pensions, Fiona Baldwin to equity partner.

Baldwin, who is based in Manchester has been with the firm since 2007, leads a team of 80 across the UK and 44 in the North West.

She joined Grant Thornton in 2007 as part of the merger with Robson Rhodes, prior to which she worked for an accountant firm both in the UK and in Toronto, Canada. She has an extensive portfolio of pension schemes with assets ranging from £1m to £39bn, including multi-employer schemes and schemes with complex alternative investments. 

Commenting on her promotion, she said: “I am proud to be a part of such a fantastic business. The challenge for me now is to help grow the firm and make it even better for the next generation that comes along. It’s certainly a busy yet exciting time to be in the pensions industry at the moment with auto-enrolment coming into play and the proposed changes from the government on pensions in general.”

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AMBITIOUS Manchester company TeleData UK, a co-location and data centre service provider has appointed Shaun Wilcock as its new chief executive.
 
Wilcock, with 10 years’ experience leading technology businesses within both the IT and Security markets, takes up his post with immediate effect.  He is a former head of technology for Reliance, an integrated security provider.
 
TeleData has invested more than £3m into the business over the last 18 months.  Much of this investment has been made into critical data centre infrastructure and has seen the facility grow into one of the most technically resilient and highly connected data centres in the country.

Wilcock states: “I am thrilled to be joining TeleData at such a pivotal moment in the company’s history. It is my ambition to leverage the recent investment to accelerate growth and develop new service offerings. A key component of meeting this ambition is to define a type of business environment and culture that offers a unique proposition to new and existing customers. I look forward to working with the entire TeleData team as we embark on this exciting journey of transformation.”

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MITCHELL Charlesworth, the regional accountancy firm, has appointed Phillip Ward as marketing and business development manager.

Ward will be responsible for marketing activities across the firm’s offices in Liverpool, Manchester, Warrington, Widnes and Chester.

He has more than 13 years’ experience in the accountancy and asset based lending industries. He joins Mitchell Charlesworth following a 10-year stint at RSM Tenon, which was recently acquired by Baker Tilly.

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ELLESMERE Port-based children’s charity the Youth Federation has appointed former sports company boss Jim Bisset as its chairman of trustees.

Bisset ran Umbro International in the 1990s and then launched rugby brand KooGa, is a  former Chairman of the Macclesfield Learning Zone and Chairman of the Board of Governors at Macclesfield High School, is currently the Chairman of East Cheshire Housing Consortium, a Macclesfield-based federation providing housing and care for vulnerable adults.

Youth Federation works  with nearly 5,000 young people annually and provides support to a network of youth organisations reaching more than 50,000 young people each year throughout Cheshire, Halton, Wirral and Warrington.

Mr Bisset said: “I had no hesitation in accepting the position. I am incredibly passionate about the need to give all young people the best possible start in life and the programmes being delivered by the Youth Federation are completely aligned with this vitally important objective.”

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BRAEMAR Estates, the specialist property manager,  has appointed Diana Turner as business development manager, at its office in Hale south Manchester.

Diana will be responsible for growing and developing the firm’s block management business across the north. She will report into Richard Andrews, who was appointed to the new role of head of business development earlier this month.

Chris March, chief executive of Braemar Estates said: “Diana’s impressive business development credentials make her an excellent addition to our growing team. Her understanding and experience of the property management industry in the north of England will be invaluable as we continue to build our presence in the region.”

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