First female partner for Haines Watts’ London office

HAINES WATTS has appointed its London office’s first female partner, with Esther Wood taking on the role.

Specialising in audit, Wood joined the firm in July 2011 after three years with Baker Tilly as senior audit manager.

She qualified in 2001 with Fraser Russell, which was later taken over by Baker Tilly, before going on to two four-year stints as audit manager, first with Sedley Richard Laurence Voulters, and later Ernst & Young.

In 2011, the FRC estimated female members accounted for 34% of institute members, with ACCA having the largest proportion at 44%. Despite those numbers, the ratio of female partners to male partners is typically 80:20, with three top 50 firms having all-male partnerships, according to Accountancy Age‘s Top50+50 survey.

“I’m delighted to have been recognised in this way, and I hope it can serve as an inspiration to other women in the industry that they too can reach partner level if they want to,” Wood said.

“I am very excited to be given this opportunity in such a fast growing and dynamic firm such as Haines Watts,” she added.