This week's North East appointments

Kelly Homer, Amy Falcus and Hayley Thompson, Clive Owen LLP

Accountancy firm Clive Owen LLP has taken on three new employees at its Durham office.

Kelly Homer was hired for the role of assistant manager and Amy Falcus and Hayley Thompson have joined as trainee chartered accountants.

Kelly’s appointment marks a return to Clive Owen, as she previously completed her training with the firm.

Hayley, who is part way through her ACA training, and Amy, who is Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) qualified, will both receive full study support as they work towards gaining the ACA qualification with the ICAEW.

Gary Ellis, partner at Clive Owen’s Durham office, said: “Many of our clients have been with us since we started in the city and our excellent reputation has led to many referrals and consistent growth over the last 21 years.

“We are all delighted to welcome Kelly back to the firm, and pleased that Hayley and Amy have chosen us to continue their training. They all have very bright futures ahead of them.”

Ian Worgan, Keepmoat Homes

Housebuilder Keepmoat Homes has appointed a new regional managing director for its North East operation, based in Hebburn.

Ian Worgan most recently worked as North East MD with Story Homes and before that, property group Taylor Wimpey.

Keepmoat Homes’ divisional chair of Yorkshire and the North East, Ian Hoad, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Ian to Keepmoat Homes.

“He brings with him both experience and passion for the home building industry, which will support the business’s ambition of delivering much needed new homes across the North East.”

Ian Worgan said of his appointment: “I’m thrilled to be joining Keepmoat Homes and am looking forward to working with the team and our partners to create new opportunities for our customers to get on the property ladder.”

Seven appointments, Flame Heating Group

Boldon-headquartered Flame Heating Group has announced a series of appointments across its North East branch network.

Lee Baker has joined the firm as branch manager of its Newcastle merchant; Jonathan Stobbs as technical support supervisor at Flame’s main branch in Gateshead; Ivar Hakansson and Kyle Housby as drivers at the Newcastle and South Shield outlets respectively; and James Hopkins and Paul Smith as accounts apprentices at the Boldon HQ.

Elsewhere, Flame Heating Group promoted product information manager Matt Lindley to contracts manager, a newly created role.

MD John Savage (pictured centre) said: “2018 was another successful year for the company and these latest, significant appointments are another signal of our intent that will support our continued growth ambitions for 2019 and beyond.

“We are now looking to hit the ground running in the new year, picking up where we left off in 2018.”

He added: “Further job creation and expansion is on the horizon and the senior management team and I are excited by what the future holds for Flame.”

Caroline Wood and Sarah Addison, Muckle LLP

Law firm Muckle LLP has announced the appointment of two trainee solicitors.

Sarah Addison and Caroline Wood (pictured L-R) are starting their two-year solicitor training within the firm’s dispute resolution team and banking & finance team.

Caroline studied law at Newcastle University, graduating in 2016 and then studying on the legal practice course at the University of Law in Manchester.

She said: “It’s quite a cliché, but I wanted to be a lawyer mainly because of the problem solving that comes with it.

“I have also enjoyed customer related elements of various part-time jobs I’ve had, so I am delighted to be starting my legal career in such a fantastic North East firm where the focus is all about meeting and building relationships with clients.”

Sarah Addison graduated with a degree in Spanish and French from Cambridge University, then returned home to complete a graduate diploma in law and legal practice course at Northumbria University.

Sarah commented: “I am absolutely delighted to return home to the region and to be able to join such a fantastic team at Muckle LLP. Everyone is so friendly and the company has such a fantastic culture that it truly deserves the Best Place to Work award it recently won!”

Both will go on to work in the firm’s other departments before completing their training and qualifying as solicitors.

Muckle managing partner Jason Wainwright (pictured) commented: “We’re delighted to welcome Sarah and Caroline to their respective teams here.

“They’re both settling in very well and, as talented, enthusiastic and committed individuals, they are already an important part of our team.”

Steven Robinson, Blu Sky

Blu Sky has promoted Steven Robinson to director of client experience.

Steven joined the company in 2016 as a lead accountant. Prior to Blu Sky, he worked as an accountant for another local firm.

He said of his promotion: “It’s brilliant that all of the hard work continues to pay off. Blu Sky has a high focus on developing our team and progressing people internally, and it is down to the dedication that we all have towards client experience that allows us to keep growing.

“This is the first step on a long road but it is also a good time to look back down the mountain and reflect on all of the great things we have achieved over the years.”

Steven added: “Finally I would like to thank Dave and Jon for giving me the opportunity back in March 2016 to join Blu Sky and for all of the support since!”

Blu Sky co-founder Dave Gibson commented: “Since joining Blu Sky, Steve has consistently demonstrated maturity, commercial expertise, and a capacity to generate trust and delight from our clients. I’m looking forward to working with Steve for many years to come.”