People: Schofield Sweeney; 75Media; Paragon Toolmaking; and more

Schofield Sweeney has confirmed that this year’s cohort of trainee solicitors and solicitor apprentices have completed their training and have chosen to continue their legal careers with the firm – a 100% retention rate.

Neil Towse, HR director, said:“Their dedication, hard work, and talent have earned them qualification, and we are proud to retain them as valued members of our growing team.

“This milestone reflects our commitment to nurturing future legal professionals, and we look forward to their continued contributions to our clients and the firm’s success.”

Liam Murphy has qualified as a solicitor in the corporate team. He is also a mentor for the University of Huddersfield offering support and guidance to law students for their future careers.

Caprice Coulson joined in 2018 as the firm’s second solicitor apprentice. After working in their dispute resolution and commercial teams, she joins the latter as a newly qualified solicitor.

Karen Crutchley, commercial partner, said: “Having spent the last two-and-a-half years of her apprenticeship in the commercial department, Caprice has become an integral part of the team.

“I’m pleased she has chosen to qualify with us, with the strong sense of client service that she brings.”

Waqar Munir has recently qualified as a solicitor after training with the firm. He provides advice and expertise on a range of private wealth, succession and tax planning matters.

Rosie Bamforth is qualifying into the real estate team. She will provide advice and expertise on a range of commercial property matters.

Manjit Virdee, partner, said: “We’re happy that Rosie has joined the real estate team. During her training seat she excelled, and we are looking forward to her progression to becoming an excellent real estate solicitor.”

Kieran Berry has qualified into the firm’s private wealth and succession team. He will continue advising on a range of private wealth and transactional tax matters.

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UK roadside media owner, 75Media, has appointed four women to its National Team as it continues to expand.

Joining as national and international account directors, the new starters will be responsible for driving growth for clients, creating long-lasting partnerships and providing creative solutions for high-impact outdoor campaigns.

75Media, which has its headquarters in Leeds, recently became number two in the market for large format roadside billboards, and now has almost 1,200 advertising sites across the UK.

The three new national account directors are Lucy Bendall, Carla Zonfrillo and Lydia Collins.

Bendall brings with her two decades of experience, including running her own network-marketing business.

She most recently spent five years at Clear Channel, where she was part of the Bright Sparks talent programme.

Zonfrillo has 20 years’ experience across radio and out-of-home, spending the last few years working at Global Media, with both public and private sector clients.

Collins has 16 years’ media sales expertise with 12 years spent in the out-of-home industry, working at Exterion Media (now Global), Clear Channel, Worldcom OOH and Alight Media.

Holly Watson takes on the role of international account director, working with clients based outside of the country who want to advertise to a UK market.

She brings with her experience working at News UK in traditional and digital ad sales, before joining the world of out-of-home teams at Alight Media, Kinetic & Rapport, and now 75Media.

Watson said: “I absolutely loved the tools and innovation I saw shared across LinkedIn from the 75Media team.

“Its proprietary system BOB (Billboard Optioning & Booking system) was something I thought was an absolutely brilliant idea and I wasn’t wrong.

“So, when I saw the opportunity to work with the team in an international role, which has long been my ambition, I knew I couldn’t say no.”

Bendall said: “I saw an opportunity for me to be a part of something special. Such ambition for growth is exciting and to be at the forefront of this was a key reason I wanted to join.

“But the company’s values and mission also really appealed to me, and the fact I felt like my opinions and ideas will be listened to, enabling me to make a difference and be an integral part of things.”

Chris Ball, business director of the National Team, added: “It’s an absolute pleasure to welcome Lucy, Holly, Carla and Lydia to the team.

“As we continue to forge ahead with our plans for growth, the wealth of experience they all bring with them is ideal.

“They’re already proving themselves to be valuable assets to the national team, bringing on board brands such as Holy Moly, For Goodness Shakes, Typhoo Tea and Shein.”

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General manager of Hull-based Paragon Toolmaking, Kevin Batty, is to retire at the end of 2024 after clocking up a quarter of a century at the business.

He said he is “100% confident” that there is the knowledge and expertise within the business to ensure all continues to run smoothly for both customers and staff.

Batty said: “Obviously, it will feel strange not to be at the business when I retire as Paragon Toolmaking has been such a huge part of my life for so long, but I’ll leave feeling proud of what we have achieved over the years, and proud of the excellent team and business I’ll be leaving behind.

“I’ve always been really committed to training, and the constant development of our team, and when I look at that team now I see so many people who have progressed through the business, learning the art of precision tool-making and design.

“One of the things I am really proud of at Paragon is the culture we have established, where we have so many highly-experienced leaders in their field who are willing to help develop the next generation. That has helped us maintain our position as one of the leading UK toolmakers.”

Batty started his career as an apprentice toolmaker with Hull Gauge and Tool before joining Paragon Toolmaking as a tool design engineer in 1986, going on to lead the design department before taking a period away from the company. 

He returned as technical manager in 2015, moving into the role of general manager in 2019.

In recent years the business has benefited from significant new investment, which has seen machinery added to the factory floor.

Production manager John Wells will take on the role of general manager when Batty leaves in December.

Batty said: “I know the business is in safe hands with John and the rest of the team, as they know the industry, our business, and our customers so well.

“They are experienced and know the day-to-day demands, but they also deserve the opportunity to work on the development of the business too.”

Daniel Beaumont, owner of Paragon Toolmaking, said: “What Kevin doesn’t know about toolmaking probably isn’t worth knowing, and he has always made it a priority to pass on that knowledge to the rest of the team, which is something you want to see from a manager, as an owner.

“It is always great to work with people who are passionate about their job and Kevin certainly fits into this bracket.

“He has made an incredible contribution to the business which I thank him for, while of course wishing him a long and happy retirement when he does finally hang up his tools at the end of the year.”

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Leeds-based Reward Funding has appointed Tom Dundas to help establish a new treasury function within the business as it gears up for further significant growth.

With over 15 years’ experience in finance and treasury, he will be responsible for all aspects of Reward’s treasury management and forecasting, while also playing a vital role in further developing relationships with Reward’s expanding roster of institutional funding partners.

He joins the original alternative finance provider during a period of growth and market expansion.

Dundas said: “Being given the opportunity to establish a treasury function and help further develop the financial strategy for such an established and dynamic lender as Reward is an exciting challenge for me and a major milestone in my career.

“With the business on a rapid growth trajectory and recently announcing its new brand launch, I couldn’t have joined at a better time.”

David Harrop, group finance director, added: “As the business grows, we continue to widen our institutional funder base and access to capital.

“We feel now is the right time to bring in a treasury expert, and we are happy to welcome Tom to the team.

“He brings a wealth of experience and will be key to developing the function, enabling us to drive further growth within the alternative funding space.”

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