People: Switalskis; connective3; CBRE; and more
Law firm Switalskis has boosted its child care team with two appointments and two promotions from within the team.
Its child care team supports children, parents, family members and carers of children in legal proceedings.
It welcomes solicitor Gabrielle Richardson and CILEX Katie Wiggett and promotes Sana Mahmood and Ellie Messenger to become graduate apprentices. The new appointments take the child care team headcount up to 21 people.
Richardson joins as a newly qualified solicitor, based in the Leeds office.
She will work with parents who require representation in care proceedings. Her ambition is to further develop her career in childcare law and to become a children’s panel member.
Wiggett will be part of Switalskis’ South Yorkshire child care team, based in the firm’s Sheffield office.
She is experienced in childcare and family proceedings and is well established and respected amongst her peers in the Sheffield courts.
A CILEX-qualified lawyer, she specialised in child care during her qualification, providing her with extensive knowledge and experience in this area of law.
Mahmood and Messenger, who become graduate apprentices, have been promoted from Switalskis’ care paralegal team.
Mahmood joined the care team as a paralegal in 2022. Alongside her professional career, she has actively engaged in community and national based projects.
This includes involvement in the Cerebra Pro Bono Research Programme which helps benefit the lives of disabled children and their families.
She has also presented a paper to the Prime Minister’s special advisor about the impact of COVID-19 on black and minority ethnic communities.
Messenger said: “The graduate apprenticeship is a diverse learning experience. It will allow me to gain hands-on experience alongside completing my Solicitors Qualifying Examinations.
“It will also expose me to the work that is carried out within different departments across the firm. In turn, this will let me develop a well-rounded skill set and a broader understanding of the legal profession.”
Director Ruth Coneron, who leads the child care team, said: “This area of law requires very specific people qualities combining clarity, empathy, expertise and tenacity – qualities which all four people exude in abundance.
“Bringing in Gabrielle and Katie and promoting Ellie and Sana further strengthens our expert team.
“They will enable us to continue offering clients realistic and competent advice, helping them to achieve positive outcomes for children.
“Ellie and Sana are hardworking, ambitious young people who are keen to progress their training in our care team.
“They are both strong team players who are thriving within our busy department. They work hard for our clients to ensure they get the best advice and representation.”
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Leeds headquartered connective3 has kicked off its fifth year of trading with a number of senior appointments.
The digital performance agency was launched in October 2019 and has grown to a team of 100 within four years, with further growth set for 2024.
On the Paid Media side of the business, the agency has taken on Hazel Owens as head of PPC and Willliam Brittain as head of Paid Social.
They are joined by Jordan Brown in the role of media client strategist, who joins from his previous role as head of Digital at Safestyle.
On the organic side the agency has welcomed Ben Barker as group head of Organic. Formerly head of Performance Marketing at CAVU, he brings with him a wealth of experience within the search space.
Tim Grice, CEO, said: “Since we established the business at the end of 2019 we have had a goal to add A-Team talent to every area of the business.
“Continued growth has allowed us to bring in new stars to the business that not only bring a wealth of experience but also share our vision of delivering world class performance and growth.
“I’m beyond excited to see them integrate into the business and help us achieve our ambitious growth plans over the coming years.”
Finally, Andrew Moody will join the senior management team and take on the role of operations director.
Grice added: “Andy joined the business three years ago and immediately made an impact to not only our clients but the way we work internally.
“His understanding of our offering and his ability to shape teams makes him the perfect person to take our operations forward and shape ways of working in the agency.”
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CBRE has appointed Jonathan Lowe as head of science and technology for the North.
The strategic, new role will further strengthen CBRE’s offer for occupiers, operators and investors in this sector.
Formerly head of life sciences at Avison Young, Lowe brings a diverse range of expertise advising developers, investors, occupiers and universities across multiple asset classes including offices, industrial and EV.
Additionally, he has public sector experience, having been seconded to central government departments Ministry of Justice and Department of Education/MHCLG.
He will work across CBRE’s Northern region, providing enhanced sector specialism to align with the growing Science and Technology sectors.
While further developing the offering to existing clients such as Bruntwood Sci-Tech and GMPF, he will develop out the occupational work by advising Life Science occupiers and advising Science and Technology companies.
Joe Rigby, CBRE’s head of office agency – North, said: “Jonathan joins the business at a pivotal time for the Science and Technology sector, during which we are acting for a diverse range of dynamic occupiers and investors.
“With vast sector-specific experience, Jonathan can offer a unique insight and ensure a full-service offering for clients.”
John Ogden, managing director of CBRE’s Northern region, said: “All three of the cities where we have our northern offices – Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester are hot spots for Science/Life Science and Tech and CBRE is better placed than anyone to provide advice due to coverage, resource and capability.
“By having the very best talent in the northern region, we can offer an unrivalled service to our client base.
“The Science and Technology sector is gaining huge momentum and we are aligning our business with the growth sectors to ensure we continue to lead the way in the north and UK.”
Lowe added: “Science and technology are critical components and key economic drivers for the majority of northern regions, as well as across the UK.
“I am proud to be joining CBRE at this exciting time, to become a trusted adviser within these high growth sectors.
“I look forward to leveraging deep data driven insights through global sector expertise to add real value to existing and future clients.”
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Accountancy firm, Shorts, has promoted Alicia Williams to the position of Genus director.
Since joining Shorts in 2016 as an accounts senior, she has earned promotions to client financial controller and finance system/app integrator in 2017 and then client FD and digital improvement lead in 2022.
Her progression to director is a reflection of the active role she has played in the development of the firm’s Genus Management Information offering during that time.
Partner Malcolm Pope said: “Alicia is not only recognised as a leader within Shorts, but also the wider UK accounting community, following an appearance at a Xero Talks Event in London (and subsequent Podcast) and her involvement in the recording of numerous videos for reporting software provider Fathom.
“She has long been Shorts’ ‘go-to’ in terms of helping our clients improve efficiencies and opportunities through the introduction of software solutions, but she has also more recently been heavily involved in the development of what comes next for Shorts in all things AI/Data Analytics.
“Alicia’s promotion is very much deserved and she has worked hard to achieve it.”
Williams said: “I am incredibly proud to have been promoted to Genus director at Shorts and excited to be taking the next step in my professional journey.
“Shorts has fostered a culture of learning and development, and my promotion showcases the firm’s genuine commitment to supporting its employees’ career growth through structured paths.”
