This week’s Yorkshire appointments: Featuring Northern, Rolawn and Avant Homes West Yorkshire

This week’s round-up of Yorkshire appointments includes Northern, Rolawn and Avant Homes West Yorkshire. Read on to find out more…

Kerry Peters, Northern

Kerry Peters has been appointed regional director for Northern in Yorkshire, Humberside and the East Midlands. She takes up her new post at the end of the summer, when the current regional director, Tony Baxter, leaves to become operations director at Chiltern Railways.

Kerry, who was born in Lancashire and lives in Sherburn in Elmet in North Yorkshire, is currently the regional director for Northern in the North East. She joined the rail industry as a catering stewardess for British Rail in 1994, eventually leading the team responsible for training the on-board crew on the new Pendolino fleet.

In 2005, she moved to Virgin Cross Country as their customer service manager and later became business manager with responsibility for the train operator’s services in Edinburgh, Leeds, Manchester and Newcastle. Joining Northern in 2017 as head of trains and stations for the North East, Peters was promoted to regional director in 2020.

Kerry commented: “I look forward to joining the team in Leeds and working with them to ensure Northern continues to deliver for people across the region. As a Yorkshire adoptee, it’s great to be ‘coming home’ and helping contribute to the success of the region through its rail connectivity.

“I still have a few months in the North East and will be working hard to ensure a smooth transition to my successor - who will be inheriting a great team from Carlisle on the west to Whitby in the east.”

Tricia Williams, chief operating officer for Northern, added: “This role is responsible for a huge section of our network and Kerry’s experience in the North East, coupled with her local knowledge, made her the ideal candidate to lead the team going forward.”

Chris Barker, Rolawn

Rolawn, a York based supplier of turf and topsoil, has appointed Chris Barker to the role of sales manager, providing dedicated support for builders’ merchants. Chris will work with independent builders’ merchants, as well as builders’ merchant buying groups, to help ensure they get maximum value from their relationship with Rolawn.

Among other things, the role involves working closely with customers on individual trading plans and developing collaborative and impactful marketing strategies, to secure business continuity. Chris will be responsible for developing business to optimise all products, with a particular focus on the Hallstone brand which is dedicated to the trade market.

Chris commented: “I am looking forward to helping customers to achieve more from our partnership, giving them the tools to retain and grow their customer base and building on Rolawn’s name and reputation.”

Jonathan Hill, sales director for Rolawn, added: “Chris is a welcome addition to our sales force. Chris’s background in account management aligns perfectly with our channel-focused approach to sales and account management and I look forward to watching him develop this key target market.”

Chris has over 30 years’ experience in sales, with the skills and experience to look after key accounts for large appliance manufacturers. Iin 2018, Chris became national account manager for Sensio Lighting, refining his key account management skills further.

Freddie Woodworth, Avant Homes West Yorkshire

Wakefield based Avant Homes West Yorkshire has strengthened its senior team with the appointment of a construction director to further enable the housebuilder’s regional expansion. Freddie Woodworth, who joins from residential developer Vistry Partnerships, has more than 20 years’ experience in the construction and housebuilding industry.

In his new role, he is responsible for Avant Homes West Yorkshire’s delivery of its new homes build programme. This includes leading site managers, dealing with existing sites and planning new sites, and supporting the region’s land, technical, commercial and sales teams during various stages of construction.

Freddie commented: “Avant Homes has a clear national and regional expansion strategy which I will help deliver. I’m excited to be able to lead a team dedicated to providing high quality new homes in great locations.

“Our construction team is focused on continually enhancing our product and the way we build for the benefit of buyers. I am looking forward to mentoring the team to help them succeed whilst also driving the business forward with them.”

Avant Homes regional chairman, Scott Varley, added: “With our expansion plans well underway it’s a great time for us to welcome Freddie to further enable our growth. He is an excellent addition to our senior management team and will play a pivotal role in Avant Homes West Yorkshire’s continued evolution and success.”

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