People: Northern Gritstone; Scanlans; Roche Legal; and more

Northern Gritstone, an investment business dedicated to supporting university spin-outs and start-ups in the north of England, has appointed Andy Naylor as an investment director.

He is the third investment director to join Northern Gritstone in the last six months.

Naylor will work alongside chief investment officer, Marion Bernard, to help the business identify further funding opportunities in innovative northern companies.

Naylor brings more than 17 years’ experience of growing technology businesses as an investor, advisor and CEO.

He joins Northern Gritstone after five years as CEO of Nottingham Technology Ventures Ltd, where he was responsible for managing the University of Nottingham’s spin-out portfolio and associated investment funds.

Northern Gritstone, which is chaired by Lord Jim O’Neill, was launched in July 2021 by the Universities of Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield to invest in science and technology-enabled spin-outs in the north of England, while delivering its philosophy of “profit with purpose.”

Naylor will work as part of the investment team across Northern Gritstone’s offices in Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield.

His appointment follows those of investment directors Gareth Llewellyn and Mark Wyatt, and investment manager, Alison Maughan, who all joined the company in 2022.

Northern Gritstone CEO, Duncan Johnson, said: “To attract someone with Andy’s stature and experience in developing early-stage businesses is another sign of Northern Gritstone’s ambition.

“I look forward to working with Andy as we build on our momentum from 2022 and invest in more ground-breaking university spin-outs in the north of England.”

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Scanlans has recruited a property manager to take care of its North Yorkshire portfolio, following a raft of contract wins.

Darran Ezard has joined Scanlans’ Leeds office and is managing apartment blocks and other residential developments in Harrogate and further afield in locations including Boroughbridge, Ripon, York and Whitby.

He has moved from Residential Management Group to join Scanlans, a property management and surveying practice which operates nationwide from offices in Manchester and Birmingham in addition to Leeds.

He has extensive experience of managing blocks and estates as well as accounting experience.

Michael Willans, head of property management for Scanlans in Yorkshire, said: “Darran is an excellent addition to our growing team and we are really pleased to welcome him to the firm.

“He has a track record of successfully managing a wide variety of large and small developments in the Yorkshire area, and is adept at working with contractors, tenants and owners as well as management bodies and their directors.

“Having him on board extends our capabilities at a time when we are seeing good growth in contracts as we continue to strengthen our presence in the Yorkshire regional market.

“Harrogate in particular is proving to be an area of rapid expansion for us, with around a dozen new, sought-after sites coming under our management in the first quarter of this year alone.”

Recent additions to Scanlans’ Harrogate management portfolio include Queens Close, Grayson House, Oak Lodge, Cavendish Place, Beech Grove, Trafalgar Court and Byron Court.

Alongside property management, Scanlans provides building surveying and LPA Receivership services and fire risk assessments from its Leeds operation, which is based at the Thorpe Park business and retail park.

Ezard said: “It’s an exciting time to join Scanlans as we build our presence in the North Yorkshire market and across the region.

“I look forward to utilising my property management and accounting experience to help us further develop our market share, working with a strong team of colleagues and with tenants, leaseholders, freeholders and management companies to look after their interests.”

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Experienced solicitor Lynsey Bashforth has joined Yorkshire-based Roche Legal to continue her legal work, including helping the West and North Yorkshire Police Federations.

She will be working with the firm’s new and existing clients alongside launching a new series of clinics and presentations for police officers in 2023 and has been helping federation members arrange their wills for a decade.

Bashforth believes it is vital to address the estimated 30 million people in the UK who do not have a will.

Rachel Roche, owner and founder of Roche Legal in York, said: “We are thrilled Lynsey’s experience and professionalism will be enhancing our outstanding team at Roche Legal and she will be an important part of our exciting plans moving forward.”

Bashforth added: “I became a solicitor in 2006 and was originally based in Pontefract where I set my own law practice up in 2013.

“Rachel and I met at the sole practitioners’ group, supported each other, and built a great friendship. We always thought at some point I would be working alongside her, and our shared experiences will be important moving forward at Roche Legal.

“Organising your affairs is not morbid, it is about protecting your family. The whole process when you lose someone is always going to be difficult, but if you are following their will, you can have confidence that you are putting in place their wishes.”

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Vine Hotels, which owns and manages 13 properties across the UK, has added four senior members to its management teams this month.

Appointments in Yorkshire include Ruslana Yarmolyuk will take over as general manager for Sheffield’s Mercure Kenwood Hall Hotel and Spa.

She brings with her over a decade in hotel management and successful terms as a general manager for properties within the Mercure hotels portfolio, then as dual site manager for Mercure Sheffield Parkway and Mercure York Fairfield Manor.

Seb Rizk joins DoubleTree by Hilton Sheffield Park as operations manager. He has experience within the Hilton group having held positions at Doubletree by Hilton Hull and Hampton by Hilton Sheffield City Centre.

He is tasked with increasing the regional customer base and putting the hotel on the map as a go-to destination for business and leisure within the local Sheffield market.

Garin Davies, CEO of Vine Hotels, said: “We have made a commitment to ensure that we not only bring the best people to our company, but that we seek out and develop those who show a desire to progress from within.

“Ruslana and Seb are excellent additions to our team, bringing a wealth of experience working with similar brands.”