People: Freeths; Sedulo Group; Connective3; and more

National law firm, Freeths, has appointed managing associate Cassandra Clark to its leading care sector team, establishing the practice in Leeds. She joins from Mills and Reeve.

She is experienced in handling large restructuring and refinancing projects, with various transactions involving large-scale portfolios, individual acquisitions and disposals, and landlord and tenant work.

Her predominant focus lies within the real estate healthcare and investment sectors.

Led by partners Thomas Golding and Phil Baigent, Freeths’ care sector team comprises cross-disciplinary, market-leading lawyers and Clark’s appointment will look to strengthen and grow its UK offering across Leeds and the wider Yorkshire region.

Joint national head of care, Thomas Golding, said: “Cassandra’s wealth of knowledge will be invaluable as we launch our service line in a new region.

“Her practice is aligned with ours at Freeths as we continue to be at the forefront of legal developments within the care space and understand the challenges imposed by change in regulation, financial markets and attitude to funding.”

Clark added: ““I am excited to begin my new chapter with Freeths. This role offers the perfect blend of challenges and opportunities, and I am eager to work alongside such a talented team to help our clients get the results they need.”

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Business advisory firm, Sedulo Group, has appointed Matt Wilson as its new managing partner for its Leeds office.

Sedulo says the appointment is a crucial step in building the infrastructure to enable it to double in size over the next three years.

Wilson’s arrival is the latest managing partner appointment for Sedulo across its UK offices, following the arrivals of Kate Taylor from Haines Watts in Liverpool and Billy Green from beauty brand London Lash in Manchester.

The firm has set its sights on going beyond revenues of £30m, which would put it in the UK’s top 40 accountancy firms overall.

Wilson is an experienced finance leader with over 20 years spent in practice globally, having held positions at PwC, PKF, and Mazars.

He has also led finance teams across various industries, including manufacturing, distribution, and FMCG, having executed multiple transactions and securing external funding.

His key expertise includes financial performance evaluation, growth opportunity identification, acquisition modelling, cost-saving synergy projects, strategic corporate advisory, transactional support in mergers and acquisitions, and portfolio finance director services.

Wilson said: “I’m really looking forward to joining Sedulo Leeds, building on the momentum of recent appointments of Kate in Liverpool and Billy in Manchester.

“Sedulo’s greatest strength lies in its people and culture, which are rooted in the three core pillars: ‘get results together, give back together, and have fun together’.

“I’m thrilled to be a part of this journey as Sedulo continues to establish itself as a boutique alternative to the big firms, offering a unique blend of expertise and experience across all service lines.

“We aim to deliver world-class service locally, and we’re proud to be the go-to advisory team for our clients by delivering bespoke solutions and exceptional results.”

Sedulo founder, Paul Cheetham-Karcz, added:  “Matt has both practice and industry experience, essential for the progression of the Leeds office and its offering.

“Since we purchased Bartfields six years ago, we have almost trebled the revenue, and we aim to double again in the next three years.

“We have recently employed a mixture of staff with expertise from the Big Four, practice and industry, as we aim to offer something unique to the region.

“We are now one of the largest advisors in the country, with a strong presence in Leeds, meaning we are a genuine alternative to the Top 10 firms in our sector.

“It makes for an exciting time for Matt to be joining us, and for the firm as a whole.”

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Leeds-based performance marketing agency, Connective3 has appointed Vera Staiger as DACH PR lead to oversee and expand its digital PR services across the DACH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland) and neighbouring regions.

Over the last year, Connective3 has invested in its international PR capabilities to support its clients’ global goals by adding native speakers from Germany, France and Spain to its team to ensure they can deliver tailored campaigns across a wide range of territories.

Having previously worked as International PR strategist, Staiger will apply her market expertise to grow and retain Connective3’s client base across the DACH region.

She will also oversee the team and client strategies, ensuring they are driving organic performance.

She said: “I’m thrilled to step into this new role to support the growth of connective3’s international presence.

“We already work with brilliant clients across multiple sectors and territories and I’m excited to expand our portfolio in the DACH region even further by collaborating with new brands.

“We’ve got many exciting plans in place for the next 12 months and I can’t wait to see where we can take the department and agency.”

David White, chief growth officer at Connective3, added: “As an agency, we’re committed to providing development opportunities for our team.

“Vera has shown constant determination and passion since she joined us, and we’re excited to watch her grow and develop even further in her new role.

“Our PR department sits at a current headcount of 28 specialists, with the international team collaborating on digital strategies for brands including SumUp, ifolor and weloveholidays across the DACH region.

“Vera’s role will only help us grow our client roster even further which we’re unbelievably excited about.”

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Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust (YDMT) has confirmed that Michael Devlin has been appointed as its new CEO, replacing David Sharrod, who has been with the trust since its foundation in 1997.

Devlin, who has helped transform the development of projects and fundraising as a key part of the Executive Leadership Team for YDMT since 2018, said: “It’s an absolute privilege to be given the opportunity to lead this fantastic organisation.

“I am really excited about our future and looking forward to seeing what the next phase of YDMT’s story will bring.’

“This special area inspires us to be ambitious and we have always prided ourselves on being a ‘doing’ organisation that makes a practical difference.

“I hope to build on our 27 years of achievements as a charity, bringing people together to care for, enhance, restore and appreciate the unique qualities of the Yorkshire Dales and surrounding areas.”

Devlin has over 16 years’ experience in the charity sector having previously worked for The Prince’s Trust in a number of senior roles. He holds a degree in Business and Economics from Newcastle University.

Sharrod will stay at YDMT in the newly-created role of partnership director. Under his leadership the trust experienced unprecedented growth and delivered projects across the Yorkshire Dales and surrounding areas.

He said: “I could not be more pleased that Michael is picking up the reins. I hope he enjoys it as much as I have.”

Tom Pratt, chair of trustees for YDMT, added: “I’d like to take this opportunity to thank David for all of his hard work over the many years as CEO and the key role he has played in building the organisation into what it is today.

“I’m pleased to announce that Michael has agreed to take the role, and the board are fully working with him to invest further in the trust, building a strong team to support a growing organisation.”