Accountancy people moves: August 2024

Each month, Accountancy Age delivers a comprehensive update on the key people moves and promotions that have taken place among the UK accountancy market’s top 100 firms.

In September 2024, we unveil the final wave of activity among some of the largest firms and accounting bodies in the UK across August. There were a number of big changes among the Big Four, including PwC’s announcement of Gareth Henty as the new head of pensions, and Ben Bird being appointed as the Media and Entertainment sector leader.

Among the mid-market, there was significant movement, including a swathe of partner promotions at Azets, which saw 212 promotions across its UK business, including 35 new partners and directors. Albert Goodman appointed Neil Johnston as Audit Partner to expand its Bristol office, and BDO named Tim Betts as the new head of Business Restructuring. Evelyn Partners also strengthened its forensic services practice by appointing Kate Lilleyman as an international disputes partner.

Mid-tier 

(Aug 5) Albert Goodman has bolstered its Bristol auditing team with the appointment of Neil Johnston as Audit Partner. Neil’s appointment marks a significant hire for Albert Goodman’s growing Bristol office, which will see him take on the role of expanding the firm’s audit offering within the city and further enhancing the provision of expert services to businesses and owners across the South West.

(Aug 5) Shaw Gibbs has announced the appointment of Naomi Stewart as the firm’s new head of tax. Naomi, who joined the Shaw Gibbs group in April, by way of the merger with Martin and Company, will oversee the tax services across all the offices within the expanding practice. A qualified Chartered Accountant and a Chartered Tax Adviser, Naomi has over 25 years of experience including corporate tax advisory with a Big 4 practice and 14 years with Azets (formerly Wilkins Kennedy).

(Aug 5) Azets has announced 212 promotions across its UK business, including 35 new partners and directors, and changes to the Azets UK leadership team. New Partners include Adrian Cousens (ABAS, based in Southampton), Alan Glen (Tax, Edinburgh), Andrew Fitton (Tax, Newcastle), Andrew Howells (Audit & Assurance, Cardiff), Chan Landa (ABAS, Coventry), Clair Williams (Tax, Newcastle), Claire Smailes (Tax, Newcastle), Lyndsey Camilleri (ABAS, Newbury), Miya King (Tax, Southampton), Richard Oddy (Restructuring, Leeds), and Vanessa Clark (Tax, Gloucester). Damien Russell has been appointed as Azets’ new UK Chief People Officer, replacing Helen Hall who has taken a new strategic role as Head of DI & ESG in a planned move. Partner Brian Laidlaw becomes Head of North East, and there are two promotions to Office Managing Partner for Lee Meredith (Audit & Assurance, Wolverhampton) and Claire Hinshaw (Audit & Assurance, Newcastle).

(Aug 5) BDO has appointed Tim Betts as its new head of Business Restructuring, effective from 1 October 2024. Betts will succeed Mark Shaw who was recently elected to become the UK firm’s new Managing Partner. In his new role, Tim will lead a nationwide team of 22 partners and circa 150 staff offering a full range of services including: Restructuring Advisory & Insolvency, Public Sector & Not for Profit, Cross Border & Contentious Insolvency, Corporate Simplification, Pensions Covenant Advisory, Personal Insolvency and Special Situations M&A.

(Aug 6) FRP Corporate Finance has bolstered its Special Situations M&A team after appointing Ben Hughes as a partner in its London office. Ben joins the firm from FTI Consulting, where he led its Special Situations M&A offering across the UK – delivering solutions for clients facing challenging, complex or business critical issues. Having started his career in restructuring, Ben transitioned into corporate finance in 2010 and subsequently worked on a broad range of both mainstream and Special Situations M&A mandates across a variety of sectors, including retail, leisure and healthcare.

(Aug 6) Evelyn Partners has announced that Kate Lilleyman has joined its forensic services practice as an international disputes partner. Kate is joining Evelyn Partners’ expanding team at an exciting time following the arrival last year of a disputes team from KPMG, headed by Nicholas Good. Kate has extensive experience as a forensic accountant, working on commercial litigation, arbitration and expert determination both in the UK and internationally.

(Aug 7) Johnston Carmichael has appointed a new Partner and Head of Consultancy to bolster its consulting offering to clients. Bringing more than 20 years of expertise, Zoë Hodge will lead the 20 strong consulting team alongside Partner Ewen Fleming, who leads the company’s London office and is Head of Financial Services. Based in the firm’s Edinburgh team, but working across Johnston Carmichael’s UK offices, including London, Zoë will lead the team to enhance its approach to consulting.

(Aug 9) Larking Gowen has announced a new appointment to its North Norfolk team. Joanna Burton joins the leading East Anglian firm as a Director, working from its Norfolk offices, bringing with her a wealth of commercial and industry experience. She first joined Larking Gowen as a trainee in 1998, where she qualified as a Chartered Accountant before deciding to pursue the next stage of her career, in industry. Working in a number of sectors including manufacturing and engineering, and most recently as Finance Director for a wholesale, retail and ecommerce business.

(Aug 8) Quantuma has appointed corporate finance expert, Scott Peters as a managing director. Scott will head up Quantuma’s Midlands corporate finance and national debt advisory practices. He will be based from Quantuma’s premises in Birmingham, and he will also spend time in the firm’s London office. A seasoned corporate finance practitioner, with a background in banking, Scott’s experience covers all aspects of corporate finance advice and transaction execution services.

(Aug 13) Azets has announced the appointment of Ruth Ireland to the role of partner in its national risk assurance practice. She has a wealth of experience advising clients and providing assurance on governance, risk and internal controls. She joined Azets after having spent 25 years with BDO LLP where she led the firm’s Risk Advisory Practice for 8 years. The firm also appointed George Roberts as a new corporate tax partner, based in the firm’s Glasgow office. Roberts, before joining EY, was the director of tax at Scottish engineering entrepreneur Jim McColl’s Clyde Blowers Capital private equity operation for a decade.

(Aug 19) Evelyn Partners has appointed two new business development managers to help support the continued growth of its IFA business. Ben Sims and Joe Sheehan join the team to cover Central London and key national accounts respectively. Ben joins Evelyn Partners from LGT Wealth Management where he spent nine years in the business development team working with financial advisers. Joe Sheehan is an experienced relationship and development manager with over 20 years asset management experience. Most recently he was regional investment director at BNY Investments where he worked with financial advisers and investment specialists in the Midlands and Wales. Ben and Joe join the growing UK IFA team at Evelyn Partners which now works with some 800 IFA firms across the country.

(Aug 20) Henderson Loggie has welcomed its latest cohort of 13 trainees, which includes seven graduates, two modern apprentices and four school leavers. The new trainees will join various departments, including audit, tax, accounting business services, and payroll, with this year’s intake enjoying an expanded range of specialisms such as grants and internal audit.  Their journey begins with an intensive two-week induction programme that covers essential topics including bookkeeping, an overview of audit, and the development of soft skills necessary for success in the workplace.

(Aug 21) Nottingham-based accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young has announced the launch of its Accounting and Business Services (ABS) team. The ABS team will be led by experienced partner Liz Searby, who has been supporting owner-managed businesses at UHY for more than 16 years. The ABS team comprises director Becki Roberts, five dedicated managers, experienced seniors and trainee accountants.

(Aug 22) Grant Thornton UK has bolstered its public services transport advisory offering with the appointment of Charlie Hamilton as partner.  Charlie joins the firm with over 15 years’ experience working in the transport sector. He brings with him vast experience from senior roles within industry, as a former Managing Director of multiple bus and coach companies, and as a trusted adviser to the sector. A Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport, Charlie is experienced in advising local and national governments, operators and investors from across the transport sector.

(Aug 22) Begbies Traynor has announced the appointment of Carl Lever to the role of director, who will work across the firm’s Leeds and Manchester offices. Carl joins the firm from Leonard Curtis where he gained 13 years’ experience and has built a specialism in advising Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulated businesses. In his new role as director at Begbies Traynor Group he will continue to focus on advising, helping and providing options to firms in the financial services sector, particularly those facing financial or regulatory challenges.

(Aug 23) Armstrong Watson is set to welcome more than 28 new trainees, with 21 embarking on the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) and four starting the Association of Tax Technicians (ATT) qualifications. This is an increase from 17 in 2023. The Department of Education recognised the firm’s apprenticeship programme as one of the best in the country, ranking 37th nationally, up from 46th in 2023 and 64th in 2022.

(Aug 27) PKF Smith Cooper has expanded its internal training and development team by appointing former Audit manager Qais Hussain. Having worked in audit for six years, Hussain is a qualified accountant with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and finance.  His career began at PKF Smith Cooper in 2018 and he went on to work for two other Midlands accounting firms.

(Aug 27) HURST has welcomed its latest five trainees – Hannah Davidson, Angus Hall, Ella Halsall, Danielle Morrison and Daniel Saysell. Their arrival follows a group of four trainees who joined the practice in April, comprising Finnlay Blanchon, Aidan Coyne, Fergus Elstone and Ahsan Waseem. All of the nine newcomers have joined the business services team to undertake their training towards becoming chartered accountants.

(Aug 28) PKF Francis Clark has welcomed a new intake of 63 accounting and tax trainees, as the firm continues to invest in growing its talent. Those joining the firm this month include 57 apprentices, bringing the total to start accounting or tax apprenticeships with PKF Francis Clark this year to 73, after a smaller cohort joined in January. In addition, six undergraduates are starting our new 12-month industrial placement scheme.

(Aug 29) UHY Hacker Young has announced the appointment of Nick Carr as partner in its corporate finance practice. Carr brings with brings with him over 25 years of experience advising entrepreneurs, owner managers, family owned businesses and private equity houses on a range of M&A and other corporate finance transactions. He has a wide range of experience advising on both acquisitions and disposals together with equity and debt fund raises. Nick has helped complete transactions across his career to date with a combined value in excess of £2bn

Big Four

(Aug 2) PwC has announced Gareth Henty as the firm’s new head of pensions. The move comes as PwC’s pensions practice has been through a period of growth and evolution, building on longstanding strength and depth as strategic corporate advisors, to providing whole of market solutions for trustees, scheme sponsors, insurers and administration teams. Gareth has been with PwC for 18 years and became a partner in 2016. Throughout his career he has advised trustees and scheme sponsors across the full range of pension issues, including all aspects of pensions strategy; funding and derisking; scheme governance and data solutions; and advisor and fiduciary management procurement.

(Aug 15) PwC UK has appointed Ben Bird as the new Media and Entertainment sector leader in its TMT practice. Ben, who joined PwC 18 months ago as Partner in its Operational Restructuring business, has over 16 years experience leading operational improvements to media firms. These include cost efficiencies and revenue enhancing projects for clients in both private businesses and private equity-backed companies. Before joining PwC, Ben was a Partner at consultancy firm Vendigital Ltd where he led its Consumer Practice.

(Aug 20) Jonathan Roe rejoins PwC’s Capital Projects & Infrastructure team. Roe brings over 20 years of experience working with infrastructure and capital-intensive organisations to improve performance, deliver programs and projects, get distressed projects back on track, and resolve high-stakes issues. He advises project owners, investors, financiers and contractors, and has worked across the UK and Middle East. At Ankura, Roe led the Infrastructure and Project Advisory practice. Before that, he spent eleven years at PwC, growing the ranks to director in the Capital Projects & Infrastructure team.

(Aug 23) Deloitte has appointed Grace Cartin as a new partner in its team in Belfast. She is promoted to the role having first joined Deloitte as a graduate. Since arriving at Deloitte, Cartin has accrued more than 12 years of experience with the Big Four firm. She has worked with a range of large private and multinational companies, providing audit and advisory services across a wide range of business sectors, with a focus on banking, energy, technology, manufacturing and pharmaceuticals – and even spent 18 months working in the US within Deloitte’s global audit innovation team.

Trade bodies

(Aug 7) Former General Manager of the Italian Banking Association Giovanni Sabatini has been appointed to serve as a Trustee of the IFRS Foundation. Sabatini brings a wealth of international finance experience, from both public and private sector appointments. Sabatini has more than 40 years’ experience in finance. He joins the Trustees after serving as General Manager of the Italian Banking Association for 15 years. He previously served at Consob, the public authority responsible for regulating the Italian financial markets, and as Director General of the banking and financial system at the Italian Ministry of Finance.

(Aug 8) ICAEW has announced Paul Brooks as the new chair of its regulatory board. Paul has been appointed as lay chair of the ICAEW Regulatory Board (IRB) with effect from the beginning of August for a three-year term. Paul has previously chaired ICAEW’s Conduct Committee and has held positions on other ICAEW regulatory and disciplinary committees. He has a background in private equity investment and venture capital and has worked extensively with chartered accountants throughout his career.