Friday: Business Moves

A round-up of the week’s top appointments. 

THE Old Bear Brewery in Keighley has appointed Penny Hutton as office manager.

Ms Hutton was previously manager of the e-learning curriculum support centre at Park Lane College, with responsibility for the day-to-day running of the department.

She also helped the learning advisors and administrative staff support online and distance learning students.

The former Ilkley Grammar School pupil will now be the first point of contact at the brewery, and will deal with the day-to-day sales as well as the ordering of ingredients.

Old Bear has recently been appointed as the official beer supplier to this year’s Yorkshire Day celebrations which take place in Guisborough, on August 1.

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LEXIA Solutions Group, the Leeds-based asbestos and environmental solutions specialist, has announced the appointment of Chris Pygall as strategic development director.

This new board director role has been created to support the growth of Lexia Group through acquisition and the subsequent smooth integration of services. Pygall will also be responsible for two of the Lexia companies, Novas and Bagnall UK, in addition to HR and transport.

Established in 2004, the Lexia Solutions Group includes Rhodar, the leading asbestos abatement company; Thermac, a specialist equipment manufacturer; Novas, a property reinstatement company; Bagnall UK, a demolition and land remediation specialist; and Life Environmental Services, an environment compliance and risk management solution specialist. The group has seen a 100 per cent growth in the last three years and plans to increase growth further, both organically and through acquisition.

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NORTHERN Ballet Theatre (NBT) has appointed three new members to its board of directors: 

Alan Harrison, director of Information Technology at Yorkshire Water; Denise Jagger, a partner at international law firm Eversheds; and Leeds councillor John Procter.
 
Mark Skipper, Chief Executive of NBT said: “I would like to welcome Alan, Denise and John to NBT’s Board of Directors. They are experts in their respective professional fields and have a passion for the arts and we are delighted that they have chosen to share this with us. I look forward to working with them as we look ahead to our 40th anniversary in 2009 and the opening of our new building on Quarry Hill in central Leeds in 2010.”
 
Alan Harrison  is responsible for IT services within Yorkshire Water and is also managing director of Loop Customer Management, which specialises in cost effective customer relationship management.

Prior to joining Yorkshire Water Alan held positions in the nuclear industry with UKAEA and BNFL; was a consultant with Coopers and Lybrand and worked with BICC Cables.
 
Denise Jagger was a corporate finance lawyer in the City before embarking on a career in industry with Asda. She was company secretary and general counsel at Asda during its rapid growth period culminating in its acquisition by Wal-Mart.

Since joining Eversheds in 2004, Ms Jagger has worked on corporate strategy, developing services to suit client needs and helping clients develop their in-house legal functions.

Councillor John Procter is Conservative Chief Whip and Executive Member for Leisure for Leeds City Council.

He is a Conservative party councillor for the Wetherby ward.

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GRADUATES Yorkshire – the dedicated recruitment website for matching graduate talent with employers in the region – has announced that Martin Hathaway is joining the board as a non-executive director.

Mr Hathaway, the former chief executive of Yorkshire & Humberside Chambers of Commerce, is the founding director of YourRail, the first company to successfully supply train operators with a full system for purchasing, retailing, fulfilling and validating train tickets via mobile phones in the UK

Mr Hathaway has spent the last 15 years working in business support in a number of management roles having previously worked in the City of London as a futures broker.

He said: “Graduates Yorkshire provides a real alternative to recruitment agencies because we work closely with Yorkshire’s 10 university careers service. As an independent social enterprise the prospects for Graduates Yorkshire is very encouraging given the service we deliver to employers in the region.”