This week's Yorkshire appointments

Payntr, the West Yorkshire-based cricket shoe brand, has announced a number of senior appointments.

Founded by ex-professional Northamptonshire cricketer David Paynter, the business has hired Stephen Smith (MBA, MSc, BA) as managing director. Stephen has strong project management and leadership skills, having previously worked for Network Rail amongst others.

Charles Calvert has entered the business as commercial director and his expertise and financial acumen is based on a global career in financial services and more recently as a property developer.

David Paynter, founder said: “It’s great to have Charles and Stephen on board, between them they have a lot of experience in quite different fields so they bring complementary skills, as well as having great personalities.

“There’s no doubt they will have a really positive impact on the business in the next few years.”

Debbie Paynter, Dave’s sister, has also joined the team as general manager. She will be responsible for dealing with all logistics, marketing and customer services issues.

Payntr recently announced a deal with cricketing giant MS Dhoni via his brand SEVEN. The joint venture is expected to net a minimum of £30m over five years.

David Morris, Yorkshire Building Society Group

Yorkshire Building Society Group has announced the appointment of David Morris as chief commercial officer, subject to regulatory approval.

Mr Morris has more than 12 years’ experience in financial services and product management, most recently as head of product at Coventry Building Society.

He began his career at Citigroup and has also worked for private bank Arbuthnot Latham and the Commercial Bank of Qatar.

He is due to join Yorkshire Building Society in June, where he will lead the innovation, development and on-going management of the Society’s mortgages and savings products, its marketing activities and its commercial strategy.

Mike Regnier, chief executive of Yorkshire Building Society, said: “I am very pleased to announce David as our new Chief Commercial Officer. David’s strong track record of driving commercial performance in financial services, as well as his appreciation of the mutual sector, made him a compelling candidate for this key role.

“I am confident that David’s wealth of experience and expertise in this area will be invaluable in enabling us to achieve our key strategic objectives of helping our members to realise their financial goals while delivering good long-term value to our membership and maintaining the Group’s financial strength.”

Mr Morris said: “I’m delighted to be joining Yorkshire Building Society at such an exciting time. I’m looking forward to working with the team at Yorkshire to ensure we continue to offer members the right range of products to meet their needs, with the focus on long-term value that the mutual sector is famous for.”

Carol Beeley, Wild & Co Chartered Accountants

Wild & Co Chartered Accountants, the Harrogate-based accountancy firm, has announced the appointment of a new team member.

Carol Beeley has joined Wild & Co Chartered Accountants from the Financial Management in Schools Team at North Yorkshire County Council.

A Chartered Certified Accountant, she brings more than 20 years’ experience to the firm, adding to the combined four decades in practice of Liz and Graham Wild.

Liz said: “Carol is a fantastic addition to Wild & Co and we’re delighted to be able to offer her expertise to our clients. She has worked across a range of sectors, including financial services and education, which complements our experience with SMEs and in financial planning.”

Liz founded Wild & Co Chartered Accountants in 2009 and was joined by husband Graham in 2015.

Carol added: “It’s an exciting time for Wild & Co and I’m very happy to be part of the company’s expansion.

“Both Liz and Graham have the same philosophy as me: accountants should offer year-round support to their clients rather than just getting in touch when the tax bill is due. I’m looking forward to offering the best possible service to existing and new clients at Wild & Co.”

Kelly Wharin, MD Law LLP

MD Law LLP, the niche commercial practice, has continued its strategic growth with the appointment of lawyer Kelly Wharin.

The Sheffield law firm specializes in business recovery, insolvency, commercial litigation, dispute resolution, commercial work and debt recovery.

Kelly graduated from the University of Sheffield in 2003 and has over a decade of experience in litigation, largely as a member of the litigation and disputes resolution team at hlw.

MD Law is led by insolvency lawyer Matthew Dixon and has opened over 1,000 new files since its launch in 2015.

Matthew said: “We are delighted that Kelly has joined us. She has an impressive record of working with companies and individuals and dealing with a wide range of disputes and litigation.

“Kelly is regularly instructed by both corporate and individual clients in high value litigation and has experience in contractual disputes, shareholder and partnership claims, debt recovery and other areas including professional negligence, defamation and contentious probate.”

MD Law is based on Broomhall Road, Sheffield, and acts for and advises insolvency professionals, businesses and individuals across the country.

Stephen Foster, Squire Patton Boggs

Squire Patton Boggs has announced the appointment of Stephen Foster, who has joined the firm as development director in the Leeds Corporate Practice.

Mr. Foster, who was previously at international accountants Mazars, will work with the firm’s Corporate team in Leeds, with responsibility for developing new and existing client relationships.

Hannah Kendrick, head of the Leeds Corporate team, said: “We are very pleased to welcome Stephen to the firm. Stephen is highly regarded with well-established corporate relationships across Yorkshire. His insight and experience will help us continue to develop and build our connections with existing clients and targets.”

John Alderton, office managing partner of Squire Patton Boggs in Leeds, added: “Stephen’s appointment is a measure of how we are continually looking to innovate and approach the market in different ways.

“While Stephen will work closely with the partners in our renowned Corporate Practice, his appointment will also serve as a catalyst for growth across the office. He will be a tremendous asset to the firm.”

Carey Robinson and Rachael McClean, Williamsons Solicitors

Williamsons Solicitors has boosted its property and conveyancing departments with two new appointments.

Carey Robinson, who is the next president of Scarborough Law Society, has joined the firm in Driffield and Rachael McClean is based in the Hull office, after moving from Liverpool.

Carey Robinson specialises in commercial and residential law and has gained experience with other firms in the Hull-York region.

Rachael McClean specialises in all aspects of residential conveyancing including sales, purchases, remortgages and transfers of equity.

After gaining an LLB (Hons) degree from Liverpool John Moores University, she took a break from her law studies to help students with learning difficulties at the city’s Hugh Baird College and holds additional qualifications including mental health first aid and learning support.

Bill Waddington, director of Williamsons, said: “We are very pleased to welcome Carey and Rachael into our expanding property and conveyancing departments.

“They both bring with them great experience and expertise and will both boost the strength of the services we can offer”.

Mark Jones, Gordons

Yorkshire law firm Gordons has further strengthened its leadership group by promoting the head of its food and drink sector team to partner.

Mark Jones joined the firm straight from law school 11 years ago and has led its food and drink sector service for the past three years.

During his time as sector lead he has been instrumental in winning new business and establishing Groceries Supply Code of Practice (GSCOP) training courses for food retailers and suppliers.

Commenting on his promotion, Mark said: “Gordons is in a unique position to take advantage of how the market is developing and is rapidly becoming a leading firm in retail, grocery and supply chain.

“My knowledge and skill set fits perfectly with that vision. It is an exciting time to be a partner.”

Paul Ayre, Gordons managing partner, added: “Mark has consistently proven himself to be a top performer. He establishes strong relationships with clients due to his openness and legal excellence, and quickly becomes a trusted adviser.

“Mark is a deserved addition to our partnership. We are sure he will continue on the upward trajectory that he has set himself by leading our food and drink sector work.”

Gordons has offices in Leeds and Bradford and employs 196 people.

Laura Atkins, Investec Wealth & Investment

Investec Wealth & Investment, based in Sheffield, has expanded its financial planning team with the appointment of Laura Atkins as financial adviser.

Laura brings with her more than 13 years’ experience in the financial sector.

With a diploma in Financial Planning and having recently passed a Long Term Care Insurance exam, Laura is now working towards becoming a Chartered Adviser.

Her main duties at Investec Wealth & Investment will be to advise private and corporate clients on all aspects of financial planning, based on their specific needs.

Darren Findlay, financial planning director at Sheffield’s Investec Wealth & Investment, said: “Our financial planning department is going from strength to strength and Laura, with her extensive experience in this area will be a great asset.

“Here at the Sheffield office we pride ourselves on providing a personal service on a local level as part of a large international firm, which is something that our clients really value.”

Laura Atkins added: “I am delighted to join Investec Wealth & Investment’s Financial Planning team. As one of the most respected investment firms in the region, it is exciting to work with such a professional team and I look forward to working to further enhance their services to clients.”

Lisa Swales, Irwin Mitchell

Irwin Mitchell has announced the appointment of Lisa Swales as a senior associate in the firm’s medical negligence team in Leeds.

Birth injury specialist Lisa qualified as a lawyer in 2007 at Ison Harrison, having graduated from the University of Birmingham.

Upon qualifying, Lisa moved to Simpson Millar as a medical negligence solicitor in September 2007, working her way up to associate in 2012 and then partner in 2015.

Lisa said: “I’m excited to join such a dynamic and leading law firm which puts the care of its clients first.

“Medical negligence work is very specialist and requires a sensitive touch as you are assisting vulnerable people day in day out, who have been let down through no fault of their own. I am delighted to be a part of a team that is so highly respected in this field.”

Lisa specialises in helping patients who have suffered birth injuries, including cerebral palsy, erb’s palsy and acting for mothers injured during labour.

Rachelle Mahapatra, a partner and head of Irwin Mitchell’s medical negligence team in Leeds, said: “We are delighted to welcome Lisa to Irwin Mitchell.

“We are always looking to add to the significant quality we have within our medical negligence department, both nationally and in Leeds, and Lisa’s track record in achieving such strong results for her clients will complement our current team.”

Petena Carroll (right), Clarion

Petena Carroll is the latest family lawyer to join Clarion’s family law practice.

Petena takes up the role of senior associate.

Before qualifying as a solicitor, Petena worked as a police officer for ten years with West Yorkshire Police.

A family and matrimonial solicitor, Petena has over 12 years’ experience. Practicing in all areas of private matters, she has particular expertise in the financial aspects of separation of both married and unmarried couples.

Petena said: “Having had the opportunity to work for a variety of firms in the North of England, I am really excited to be joining such a forward thinking, inclusive team.

“The ethos of putting the client, who has placed his or her trust in us, very much at the heart of everything we do reflects my own approach. As family lawyers, we are often supporting people during a very traumatic time in their lives and keeping their needs at the forefront is vital.”

Justine Osmotherley, partner and head of the family law team at Clarion, commented: “With her valuable life experience working as a police officer, together with her strong track record as a family and matrimonial lawyer, Petena will bring some great skills to the team.”