People: Immigration solicitor appointed; Promotion at private equity specialists; and more

A highly experienced immigration solicitor has joined Williamsons Solicitors in Hull, marking the creation a new department for the private client firm.

Frances Ledbury works for individuals and businesses in a full range of immigration issues and also has a speciality in applications for declarations of presumed death.

She said Brexit could lead to a raft of new enquiries, with the rights of EU nationals depending on the outcomes of the negotiations between the UK and EU.

Previously working at other law firms and most recently for Citizens Advice, she said while many tend to think of immigration in terms of asylum, the regional picture is much more varied, with very few people seeking asylum in Hull following the surge in the 1990s.

She said: “I help bring families together, where perhaps one is working in the UK and their spouse and children want to join them. There is a lot of immigration work around employment, particularly in the NHS and broader healthcare sector.

“The Home Office can be very cruel and often interpret policy entirely incorrectly. Windrush is a good example of this, but similar mistakes happen frequently and don’t get challenged by the vulnerable people it affects.

“It’s my job to fight the client’s corner during what can be an utterly bewildering, traumatic and drawn-out process. The ultimate aim for many is to be granted citizenship and I get to know my clients over a number of years during this journey. When we reach our goal, it is immensely satisfying.”

Ledbury has worked on a number of cases where declarations of presumed death are required due to there being no physical body. All have involved people who have gone missing abroad and are presumed dead due to the circumstances of their disappearance.

The declaration is essential in providing families with closure and access to probate.

Williamsons director, Bill Waddington, said: “Frances is a leader in her field with huge experience and adding immigration law to our services is a very exciting development for the firm.”

Ledbury finished her legal training in 2004 and initially set up her own immigration advice business, providing services to the University of Hull’s students, before going on to work for law firms in the city. She lives in Brough with her three children and partner.

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James Hall has been promoted to joint managing partner at Leeds-based Key Capital Partners (KCP).

He joined KCP four years ago and has led a number of transactions for the firm, including the acquisition of food intolerance testing business YorkTest, where he represents KCP on the board.

In his new role, he will be jointly responsible for managing the firm alongside current managing partner, Owen Trotter, taking particular responsibility for new investment activity.

With 20 years’ experience in private equity, Hall has held senior positions with a number of high profile private equity firms including Bridgepoint, Livingbridge and NorthEdge and has held numerous non-executive director positions in businesses across the north of England.

Trotter said: “It’s great to able to share the burden of managing the firm with such an experienced and successful investment professional. James and I have ambitious plans for the next phase of KCP’s growth and I look forward to working closely with him and my other Partners to put them into place.”

Hall said: “Over the past four and a half years, KCP has seen growth in investment activity and made a number of significant realisations as well as increasing our funds under management.

“During this time, we have made a number of significant hires into our team, both in Leeds and London, and continue to work with some exceptional management teams. I am really excited about the future at KCP and am looking forward to working alongside Owen in continuing to drive KCP forward and consolidate our position in the market.”

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Leeds-based business Boost Drinks has appointed Kirsty Birks as its first non-executive director, in a move that signals the soft drinks business intention to further grow within the market.

Birks, has worked alongside Boost managing director and founder Simon Gray for 12 years, working within the business as strategy director and more recently as an independent strategic adviser.

During her time advising Gray and the team, the Boost business has moved from one category into three, significantly increasing its distribution across the UK.

Birks was formerly a director at Leeds based brand strategy consultancy Propaganda for 13 years focused on working on brand and business strategy as well as holding the position of vice president at the Management Consultants Association for several years.

While at Propaganda, she provided strategic direction and counsel to Boost on many areas of the business including culture, brand development, structure and positioning. She has also been instrumental to the development of Boost’s long term strategic direction and growth plans.

Birks said: “I am delighted to have been appointed to this role. Having worked with Simon and Boost for several years, I know the Boost business and the soft drinks industry very well but having worked as a consultant to Boost and several other organisations in the past I also have the independence and broader strategic experience to give Simon Gray and the wider leadership team a different and broader perspective.

“We are undoubtedly working in uncertain times and the soft drinks industry, in particular the functional drinks segment of it, is not immune from challenges from a number of different areas, not least our environmental footprint and changing consumer needs and motivations.

“However, the opportunities for an ambitious, proven and nimble business like Boost to innovate, diversify and further grow its core business are significant.”

Gray said: “Kirsty and I have worked together for many years and since the very first programmes we worked on while she was at Propaganda, Kirsty has demonstrated a proven ability to provide me and my leadership team with solid and differentiated strategic thinking.

“Kirsty always brings a fresh perspective while being unafraid to challenge our thinking or some of the received wisdom in our industry. We work extremely well together but I also know that Kirsty will challenge me and the team to both build on our strengths and think and work differently when it’s required.”

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