This week's North East appointments

Anna Malley, Penny Day, Lisa van Heereveld, Sophie Peel and Libby Pearse, Sunderland Software City

Innovation agency Sunderland Software City has expanded its team by appointing Anna Malley, Penny Day, Lisa van Heereveld, Sophie Peel and Libby Pearse.

Anna, who has been appointed as project manager, currently leads on the new North East Social Tech Fund.

Penny Day, who has been appointed as innovation officer, provides innovation support to a variety of North East organisations operating in regional priority sectors, including the coordination of a new digital manufacturing programme and residentials for cultural organisations.

Lisa has been appointed as marketing and PR coordinator, while Libby Pearse has taken on the role of business administration assistant.

Sophie Peel has been appointed as business support specialist to provide maternity cover and is leading on Software City’s fully funded business support programme.

David Dunn, CEO at Sunderland Software City, said: “With the appointments of Sophie, Anna, Lisa, Libby and Penny we are able to further support the digital ecosystem and, in particular, those technical and non-technical organisations that are most in need of innovation.”

Ian Benoliel, Flame Heating Group

Flame Heating Group has appointed Ian Benoliel as group operations director.

Ian began his career with an internal sales role with BSS Industrial, later becoming assistant manager and manager of the BSS branch in Stockton.

Following this, Ian worked at Plumbing Trade Supplies (PTS) for 17 years, rising to the role of regional director. In this role he was involved in leading a range of business development initiatives.

Ian commented: “My role is to support the next phase of growth and provide a strong link between the senior management team and the branch directors, as well as building long lasting relationships with our customers.

“I want to encourage Flame’s entrepreneurial and innovative spirit but at the same time further strengthen the business by constantly evaluating and adopting latest industry best practice and building upon our customer satisfaction levels.”

The appointment of Ian reunites him with managing director John Savage, who in his previous role as regional director for PTS appointed Ian as branch manager 12 years ago.

Commenting on Ian’s appointment, John Savage added: “Ian is highly respected within the region’s heating and plumbing profession and I’m delighted to have secured his services to bring about operational excellence and business improvement.”

“He was able to help me as I progressed my career and he’s now doing so again, this time by using his knowledge and expertise to help take Flame Heating Group to the next level.”

Robby Bailey, Howie White Resourcing

Recruitment firm Howie White Resourcing has appointed Robby Bailey as recruitment consultant.

Joining from Wynyard Golf Club, the move to Howie White Resourcing marks a career move into recruitment for Robby.

Robby explained: “Once I realised that recruitment was the career I wanted I was straight away drawn to Howie White, mostly due to the way that they work, in terms of having a key focus on understanding businesses and people as well as doing things the right way and accepting that results will come without compromising on quality.

“One of the biggest appeals of the recruitment industry for me is being able to go out and be client facing.”

David Taylor, Howie White Resourcing associate director, added: “I am delighted to welcome Robby to the team.

“A key focus of the business is building for the future and with the appointment of Robby, we are ensuring that 2020 and beyond are going to be exciting times for Howie White Resourcing.”

Andrew Rapmund, John Harvey and Tom Borsoi, Summers-Inman

Construction and property consultancy Summers-Inman has made three new senior appointments.

The firm has appointed Andrew Rapmund as associate director, while John Harvey joins as senior project manager and Tom Borsoi comes onboard as senior chartered quantity surveyor.

Andrew will lead the project management team in the Northern region, bringing with him a range of experience within the construction and property consultancy sector.

Former Summers-Inman employee John has returned after a spell of six years away from the firm, and has a background in project management.

Tom has joined the firm after relocating from London, and will work with Andy on the Aura schools programme, as well as schemes for higher-education client Durham University and several feasibility studies for some new projects.

Mark Dutton, director at Summers-Inman, commented: “We are delighted to welcome three-highly-experienced members of staff to the Newcastle office.

“Andrew, John and Tom are fantastic assets to further strengthen an already impressive team. Their appointments come as a result of our confidence in a strong pipeline of work.”

Abbey Eastwood, Kara Hodgson and Charlie Lynn, Sweeney Miller Law

Law firm Sweeney Miller Law has appointed Abbey Eastwood, Kara Hodgson and Charlie Lynn as trainee solicitors.

Kara graduated from the University of Sunderland with a first-class law degree in 2017 and joined Sweeney Miller Law as a conveyancing assistant while studying her LPC.

Charlie joined the company part-time whilst studying for his Masters and LPC qualifications at Northumbria University before joining Sweeney Miller full-time in May 2019.

Abbey worked for the firm for a number of years as a work experience student during her undergraduate history degree before completing a graduate diploma in law with distinction, after which she joined the firm as a paralegal in the commercial department.

Abbey commented: “After 18 months as a Paralegal with Sweeney Miller, it’s an exciting opportunity to have been promoted to Trainee Solicitor. I’m eager to progress my career with the firm and in particular developing my understanding of commercial law.”

Partner Surbhi Vedhara added: “We are delighted that Abbey, Kara and Charlie have all been promoted to become trainee solicitors as part of their next phase of development within the firm.

“All three of them have shown great potential and the continued growth of the firm has allowed us to award them with much-coveted training contracts in recognition of their hard work and achievements.

“We are confident that our new trainees with continue to thrive and we look forward to supporting them through this period.”