This week's North East appointments

Laura Partridge, Generator

Newcastle-based music and business support agency Generator has appointed Laura Partridge to its board of directors.

Laura is currently the digital programme lead at the North East Local Partnership where she has responsibility for the development of the North East’s first regional digital strategy.

Laura has lived in the North East for three years, having relocated here to join the team that delivered the 2018 Great Exhibition of the North.

Prior to that, Laura lived in Manchester for several years, most recently working as innovation and engagement manager for the N8 Research Partnership – the consortium of research-intensive universities across the Northern Powerhouse region.

Laura has a decade of experience in the higher education and research sector in roles that supported partnership building and collaboration between academic researchers, businesses and policy makers.

Hannah Matterson, CEO of Generator, commented, “I’m delighted to welcome Laura to the Generator board.

“Her work in the digital sector across the North East and experience in innovation and music elsewhere will really help us to ensure a strong and fruitful future for all of our programmes. She’s a class act, and myself and the whole team are looking forward to working with her.”

Leighton Pearson and Rachel Stephenson, Roberts Environmental

Roberts Environmental has appointed Leighton Pearson as operations technician and Rachel Stephenson as geo-environmental intern.

Leighton has joined the team following 22 years of service in the Royal Air Force as a vehicle mechanic. During this time he was also employed as a maintenance workshop manager where he developed an interest in environmental and sustainability issues that occur in the running of commercial and industrial environments.

As operations technician, Leighton is responsible for a range of tasks, including the management of the workshop, equipment and supplies, supporting consultants in their site work and logistical planning of operations.

Leighton Pearson commented: “I am very happy to be joining Roberts Environmental and I’m looking forward to getting to know the team. I was attracted to the variety of services they offer and the geographical spread of the projects which would allow a balance between site work and the logistical requirements of the business.

“Hopefully with my contribution we can continue to expand the geo-environmental capacity of the business to provide a comprehensive and efficient consultancy package.”

Recent graduate Rachel has joined the firm on an industry placement after finishing her 3rd year studying environmental engineering at the University of Nottingham.

Her role involves completing phase I environmental reports, due diligence reports, phase II site investigations and coal mining risk assessments.

Jeff Roberts, director added: “We are delighted to welcome both Leighton and Rachel to the team, it is fantastic that we have been able to expand in line with our business goals.

“The operations technician role is a major addition to the team which will provide support and allow our consultants to focus on the technical aspects of their own responsibilities.

“We would also like to thank the Career Transition Partnership (CTP), who are the MOD official provider of Armed Forces Resettlement to civilian roles, who assisted us in finding a candidate of the calibre of Leighton.”

Danielle Healy, Adam Gillespie, Arison Douglas and Gary Grant, Activ Technology

Tech firm Activ Technology has made a number of appointments to its team.

Danielle Healy joins as business development manager, Adam Gillespie comes onboard as business development executive, Arison Douglas has been appointed as technical administrator and Gary Grant joins as systems engineer.

Commenting on her appointment, Danielle said: “I am delighted to join the dynamic team at Activ Technology. Alongside Adam Gillespie, we form part of sales manager, Dean Cowen’s business development team.

“I have worked in the industry for 10 years and have built up a wealth of knowledge in unified communications, IT security, telecommunications and network services and I very much enjoy being part of the supportive team at Activ Technology.

“I am very customer focused and looking forward to building new connections as well as delivering an excellent service for existing and new customers.”

Managing director, Ian Gillespie, added: “We have been exceptionally busy during the pandemic, not only has our own team worked from home but we have also enabled many of our clients to make the same smooth transition.

“It has been a challenging, yet very professionally rewarding period for the business, as we have enabled our clients to put in place continuity plans that ensured minimum disruption to their day-to-day business operations.

“This growing demand for our services means we are in a position to make a significant number of new appointments. Adding strength to our already tight-knit team will enable us to continue to deliver customer excellence.”

Jonathan Rudge and Melissa Flynn, Vistry Partnerships

Regeneration specialist Vistry Partnerships has appointed Jonathan Rudge as head of land and Melissa Flynn as development manager.

Arriving from property consultancy Bradley Hall, Jonathan brings over 16 years’ experience of projects in the public and private residential housing sector.

Jonathan has been involved in regional and occasionally national initiatives for clients including Homes England, The Northumberland Estates – the property company of the Duke of Northumberland – local authorities and private developers as well as the NHS and Royal Mail.

Jonathan explained: “I’ve worked with Vistry for several years and it’s great to become part of such a proactive and dynamic team and have the opportunity to affect real change in the region’s housing market and be at the forefront of regeneration and development.

“This is one of the largest and top performing developers in the UK and I am looking forward to utilising Vistry’s significant financial strength to secure land which will deliver more exciting projects in the North East, to help tackle housing need and support local economies.”

Melissa Flynn, currently a member of Ward Hadaway’s planning team, will join the team at the end of November.

Sean Egan, Vistry Partnerships’ managing director in the region, added: “We have a strong development team with a proven track record of delivering a range of housing schemes across all tenures. Jonathan and Melissa will be valuable additions.

“Jonathan’s proactive approach, coupled with his significant experience and knowledge, will make us even better placed to secure even more deals to further unlock the potential of more land for development and regeneration in the North East.”

Mick Thompson, North

Newcastle-headquartered shipping insurer North has appointed Mick Thompson as independent non-executive director.

Former KPMG partner Mick, who retired in 2018 will bring a range of cross-sector experience to North. He has also been appointed to North’s Group Audit Committee.

This latest appointment is in addition to a number of other board level roles Mick performs, including as independent non-executive director of Newcastle Building Society, non-executive director of Atlas Cloud and Charles Clinkard Group, trustee of Greggs Foundation, Trustee of Tyne and Wear Building Preservation Trust and Trustee of Newcastle United Foundation.

Mick commented: “I’m honoured to be joining the board of North in its 160th year – a historic global business with firm roots in the North East.

“I’m looking forward to working closely with North’s directors to develop the Club’s strategy and achieve its goals.”

Paul Jennings, chief executive of North, added: “We’re very proud to welcome someone of Mick’s calibre to the board of North.

“He’s a highly respected member of the North East business community who is committed to the region and its economy – as demonstrated by his extensive work across sectors.

“North will benefit hugely from Mick’s financial sector and regulatory experience, as well as his strategic insight.”