{"id":48055,"date":"2026-10-22T11:17:53","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T10:17:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebusinessdesk.com\/south-west\/?p=48055"},"modified":"2026-10-22T11:21:25","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T10:21:25","slug":"on-the-move-clarke-willmott-marrons-rocketmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thebusinessdesk.com\/south-west\/news\/48055-on-the-move-clarke-willmott-marrons-rocketmakers","title":{"rendered":"On the Move: Clarke Willmott; Marrons; Rocketmakers; Nationwide"},"content":{"rendered":"
Corporate lawyer Antonia Power has joined law firm Clarke Willmott as a partner in its Taunton office.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Experienced in advising management teams, public sector organisations, individuals and businesses in the UK and internationally, Power’s expertise covers acquisitions, disposals, corporate restructurings, investments, shareholder arrangements and local authority devolution matters.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
She joins Clarke Willmott with extensive experience gained in private practice and senior in-house roles with high-growth businesses across the fintech, procurement and energy sectors.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Kirill Bingham, partner and head of the corporate team at Clarke Willmott in Taunton, said her appointment reflected the continued expansion and growing activity levels.<\/div>\n
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\u201cAntonia brings a wealth of experience and will be a fantastic addition to our growing corporate team.\u201d<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Power added: \u201cClarke Willmott\u2019s Taunton corporate team has a strong reputation for delivering commercially focused advice and has ambitious plans for further growth.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
“I\u2019m delighted to be joining at an exciting time for the firm and the team. I look forward to drawing on both my private-practice and industry experience to help businesses, management teams and stakeholders achieve their strategic objectives.\u201d<\/div>\n
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:::<\/div>\n
\n

\"\"Multi-disciplinary development consultancy Marrons has appointed Sean Taylor as planning partner, strengthening its planning capability across the South West.<\/p>\n

With more than 28 years\u2019 experience as a chartered town planner across private practice and local government, Taylor has worked across major infrastructure, electricity networks and renewable energy developments, with expertise in planning and consenting.<\/p>\n

He joins from Dalcour Maclaren, where he was technical director in the environment and planning team and Cardiff office lead. He has also held senior roles at AECOM and Green GEN Cymru.<\/p>\n

His recent work has focused on major infrastructure and energy projects, including development consent order (DCO) and development of national significance (DNS) schemes, electricity transmission and distribution infrastructure, grid connections, battery energy storage systems, and renewable energy projects.<\/p>\n

Taylor, who is based in Bristol, has led and advised on projects ranging from major grid infrastructure and substations to solar, energy from waste and onshore wind developments. This includes a 132kV connection linking energy parks in Mid Wales to the national electricity network in England \u2013 incorporating a new substation, underground cabling and associated infrastructure.<\/p>\n

He has also maintained a close focus on the evolving infrastructure consenting regime in Wales, including the implications of the Infrastructure (Wales) Act. His work brings together planning, environmental, land and stakeholder strategies at an early stage to reduce risk and support the delivery of major projects.<\/p>\n

At Marrons, Sean will focus on growing the consultancy\u2019s planning presence with a focus on DCO and ICO SIP and NSIP projects, while providing strategic planning and consenting advice to clients nationally.<\/p>\n

Alongside infrastructure and energy, he will build on Marrons\u2019 established strengths across residential, strategic land and wider development.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cI\u2019m pleased to be joining Marrons at an exciting point in its growth. I was particularly attracted by the opportunity to help develop its presence across the country, alongside bringing my experience of major infrastructure and consenting projects to the business.<\/p>\n

\u201cI enjoy getting involved early on in a project, understanding what a client is trying to achieve and finding a practical route through complex planning and consenting issues. I\u2019m looking forward to bringing that approach to Marrons and working with clients and colleagues to help move projects from planning through to delivery.\u201d<\/p>\n

:::<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"\"Bath-based software development agency Rocketmakers has appointed Adam Clarke as senior software and AI engineer, the agency’s first hire dedicated wholly to AI.<\/p>\n

Clarke brings more than 15 years of experience in data engineering and machine learning, including nine years accelerating architecture and innovation at The Filter, the Bath AI company co-founded by musician Peter Gabriel.<\/p>\n

He graduated from UWE Bristol with a BSc in Games Technology in 2011. From 2012 to 2021 he was at The Filter, where he led architecture and innovation for a business whose data science, analysis and machine learning technologies help viewers find and watch more video content.<\/p>\n

There he delivered a string of first-of-a-kind machine learning and recommendation services for clients including leading advertisers and global streaming platforms. He has also worked on numerous applied AI research and innovation projects, including authoring white papers on the design of vision engines.<\/p>\n

In the newly created role, Clarke will build and deliver Rocketmakers’ AI strategy, covering both how the team works and the AI services it builds for clients.<\/p>\n

That starts with a standardised approach to AI across the business and in client deliverables. From there, he will follow and test new tools and frameworks as they emerge, adapt the most promising ones, and evaluate which are strong enough to offer to clients. He will also run fortnightly AI innovation sessions for the team and analyse how AI is being used across the business, so that decisions about where to invest are driven by data.<\/p>\n

Matt Harris, CIO of Rocketmakers, said: \u201cAI now comes up in almost every conversation we have with our clients, and more and more projects begin with an AI prototype of some sort.<\/p>\n

\u201cExperimentation in isolation doesn\u2019t help us grow as a business. Adam’s role gives us one clear, tested approach across our own delivery and the AI services we build for clients. It means we will be able to identify the best use cases sooner, roll them out faster, and make sure our clients benefit directly from it.\u201d<\/p>\n

:::<\/p>\n

\"\"Nationwide has bolstered its support for businesses in Bristol, as well as across the South West and in South Wales with the appointment of Chris Fido as senior director of its new Bristol-based regional Business Banking team.<\/p>\n

He joins with extensive experience across both corporate banking and corporate finance advisory roles.<\/p>\n

His appointment is an important step in growing Nationwide\u2019s regional Business Banking presence, building on the established Virgin Money proposition. Further appointments are planned as the Bristol-based regional team continues to grow.<\/p>\n

The team will focus on supporting businesses in Bristol and across the wider region, working closely with Nationwide\u2019s Business Banking network to provide tailored support throughout the South West and South Wales.<\/p>\n

Fido said: “This feels like the perfect time to be joining Nationwide. The South West and South Wales are home to some of the UK’s most ambitious and innovative businesses, and I know the market exceptionally well. Nationwide has a genuine commitment to supporting businesses and communities, and I believe we have a compelling proposition to help companies invest, grow and succeed. I’m excited to play a role in building our presence in Bristol and beyond.”<\/p>\n

Gareth Jones, head of strategic finance Midlands & South West at Nationwide, said: “Chris is an exceptional first appointment for our Bristol team and a clear statement of our ambition in the region. His combination of corporate banking expertise, corporate finance experience and deep local market knowledge makes him ideally placed to support growing businesses across the South West and South Wales.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we continue to invest in Bristol, we are building a team capable of making a real difference to the region’s business community. Chris is highly respected across the market and will play a key role in helping us establish a strong presence, support more businesses and deliver on our growth ambitions.”<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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