This week's North East appointments

Stuart Clarke, Nexus

Public transport body Nexus has appointed Stuart Clarke as Metro infrastructure director.

Former trainee Stuart began his career at Nexus, joining the company in 1997 as an apprentice electrician.

He has risen through a series of roles over 22 years, most recently as head of renewals looking after the £350m Metro ‘all change’ modernisation programme, as well as gaining a degree in engineering and a master’s degree in project management.

In his new role, Stuart will head up all the maintenance and modernisation work on the 77km Metro network.

Stuart commented: “It’s a great moment in my career and I’m very proud to have been appointed into the role.

“When I think back my time as an apprentice and all the hard work that I’ve put in over the years it is all now so worthwhile. This will hopefully show other apprentices at the start of their careers what it’s possible to achieve if they work hard enough.

“I am really looking forward to the challenge. I’ll be taking a pro-active approach so that we can make improvements and get more reliability from Metro’s vital infrastructure, because that means fewer disruptions for our passengers.”

Chief operating officer at Nexus, Martin Kearney, added: “I’m delighted to welcome Stuart into this very important role at Nexus.

“The management and maintenance of the Metro’s infrastructure is at the core of what we do, and I felt Stuart was the right person to take that forward.

“He has worked his way up through the business from the age of 18 when he joined us on an apprenticeship. It’s a great story and he’s a great role model for young people who want a career in the railway industry.”

Ryan Tinkler and Norman Thompson, UTS Group

Jarrow-based engineering specialist UTS Group, has appointed Ryan Tinkler as head of site services and intervention and Norman Thompson as group health and safety manager.

Ryan, who will be responsible for directly managing the on-site aspects of projects, is making a return to the company and brings with him knowledge of the oil and gas industries.

Commenting on his appointment, Ryan said: “After a few years working across the globe, it is fantastic to return to my hometown. I knew straight away that I would make contact with UTS, as it was my first choice for employment in the region.

The skills I have developed since I was last here means that I am well positioned to handle the speed at which projects proceed and to ensure we are adaptable to sudden changes and the evolving needs of clients.

“I am looking forward to helping the company develop new and innovative ways to ensure our clients, and by proxy, their customers receive the highest standard of value from our state-of-the-art equipment.”

Norman, who has over three decades of experience working with local government and global enterprises, will manage health and safety across the UTS Group, whilst driving forward new technologies, initiatives and tactics to provide the best level of care to its growing workforce.

Norman commented: “With over 35 years’ experience working in health and safety, there isn’t much I don’t know about the role. I have worked for many organisations and businesses and UTS Group is up there as one that I have been most excited to be in the employ of.

“The scope within my role is limitless due to the vast range of activities undertaken across the group and I am more than looking forward to driving forward new technologies, initiatives and tactics to make sure that the workforce across the entire group is looked after to the highest standard at all times and in all situations.”

Shaun Sadler, managing director of UTS Group, added: “We are delighted to welcome Norman to the UTS Group and Ryan returns as a much liked and valued colleague who is known for his excellent attention to detail and quality of work.

“Both Norman and Ryan are highly skilled in their individual roles and I look forward to seeing their innovative viewpoints.”

Steven Bowers, Sylvia Oldham and Victoria Hawley, Ascent Homes

Northumberland housebuilder Ascent Homes has appointed three new members of staff to its team.

Steven Bowers has joined the firm as head of design & technical, while Sylvia Oldham and Victoria Hawley have been appointed as sales executives.

Architect Steven joins the team from Wynyard Park and will be responsible for managing the technical side of projects as they come forward and co-ordinating information between external consultants.

Commenting on his appointment Steven said: “I’m thrilled to have landed the role with one of the leading housebuilders in the region. Ascent Homes has a fantastic reputation and is a North East based builder so when the role came up, it was a no brainer for me.

“They have developed some fantastic projects in previous years and the quality and specification is without a doubt, the best I’ve seen. We have some great up and coming projects and I can’t wait to add my expertise into the mix of what is already, an exceptional team”.

Speaking of her appointment, Sylvia said: “I’m truly over the moon to join Ascent Homes. I’ve worked for volume housebuilders most of my career and when I saw the ethos of Ascent, I knew I wanted to be a part of this fantastic company.

“They are dedicated to creating a product that customers love which includes a phenomenal specification, but not just that, they pride themselves on creating a positive impact on the communities they operate in which to me, shows how much they put the customer first.”

Duncan Bowman, Ascent Homes’ development director, added: “We are delighted to welcome Steven, Sylvia and Victoria to the ever-growing team.

“We have exciting plans to develop a wide range of homes throughout Northumberland and they will be a fantastic asset to Ascent”.

Hannah Strong, Silverbean and AGY47

Affiliate marketing agency Silverbean and ecommerce specialist AGY47 have appointed Hannah Strong as head of marketing.

Hannah has been with the agencies for over four years, joining Silverbean in 2016 as a senior paid marketing manager before being promoted to head of paid marketing in 2018.

Before joining Silverbean, Hannah previously held a marketing manager position with a local design agency, working in digital marketing and SEO copywriting before beginning her career in PPC.

Neil Robbins, CEO of Silverbean and AGY47, commented: “I am delighted Hannah is returning to us to take up this exciting challenge after recently starting a family.

“As we continue to scale our growth here in the UK, and further afield through our Australian office, I felt it was critical we took a different approach to our marketing than we have done so before.

“Our own marketing needs to be high performance and I am very confident Hannah will bring a new dimension to how we position ourselves and communicate with our target audiences and clients alike.”

Hannah added: “In both my Silverbean roles, I’ve always enjoyed the commercial responsibilities; marketing the PPC service and contributing to new business pitches.

“Since returning from maternity leave in April 2020, I was delighted to be offered the opportunity to create and implement both global and UK-focused marketing strategies for the agencies.

“I’m very excited to work alongside Neil to propel commercial performance from strength to strength in 2020 and beyond.”

Rhiannon Nightingale, RG Corporate Finance (RGCF)

RG Corporate Finance (RGCF) has appointed Rhiannon Nightingale as corporate finance senior manager.

Rhiannon, who attended the University of Bristol and then qualified as a chartered accountant with KPMG, relocated to the North East several years ago.

She joins RGCF from Newcastle-based Mayborn Group, a global branded baby and toddler product company, where she was strategic partnerships & acquisitions lead.

Rhiannon Nightingale said: “I am very proud to have joined such a dynamic and growing mid-market corporate finance team, which has established an excellent reputation in both the North East and further afield.

“I am keen to bring my inhouse M&A experience to RG Corporate Finance and to help support the firm’s clients’ strategic ambitions.”

Carl Swansbury, head of corporate finance and partner at RG Corporate Finance, added: “As the level of strategic advice we provide increases, it is important to strengthen our team with talented and experienced individuals who can provide expert support and advice to our clients.

“Rhiannon’s track record in mergers and acquisitions will be invaluable and her considerable skills will expand the breadth of expertise we possess as a team. We are delighted to have Rhiannon on board.”