PKF Francis Clark expands Plymouth team

DSM
Authored by DSM
Posted: Wednesday, April 5, 2017 - 08:09

A raft of senior appointments has been announced as chartered accountants and business advisers PKF Francis Clark boosts its Plymouth office team.

The investment in new roles comes as the firm – with annual revenue of £38 million, a team of more than 600 people and 60 partners across eight offices – sees continued growth in key areas, particularly tax.

This follows Francis Clark becoming a member of PKF International, the global network linking independent business advisers and accountancy firms, as well as merging with Dorset and New Forest firm Princecroft Willis last year.

Client demand for advice of an increasingly complex nature has led to the firm enlarging its specialist departments, offering a comprehensive service to both clients and referrers.

The latest appointments, taking effect from April 1, include partners and directors, as the Plymouth office team expands, with the firm’s ongoing growth showing no signs of abating.

Experienced tax specialist, Holly Bedford, has been appointed as Tax Partner and will help lead a tax team at PKF Francis Clark’s North Quay House base in the city.

Mergers and acquisitions expert Holly joined from London-based independent firm HMT where she advised corporate clients on disposals, acquisitions, restructures and refinancing in the £5m to £50m transaction range.

She has worked for several of the UK and world’s top accountancy firms, including Arthur Andersen in Reading and Chicago, and also EY in London and Edinburgh.

Devon educated Holly, who went on to study at the University of Bristol, has more than 20 years’ experience in tax. She also has vast experience advising on international tax, corporate debt and foreign exchange issues of large corporate clients.

She said: “I’m delighted to be ‘coming back home’ to join such a well-respected firm as PKF Francis Clark.”

Experienced Justin Gliddon, who acts for a wide range of family owned businesses, has been promoted to Director. He specialises in the agricultural sector advising numerous clients on business structure, remuneration planning and succession planning.
Former Plymouth University student James Barrett has joined the firm at North Quay House as a Business Services Director. James joined PKF Francis Clark from KPMG where he worked for 16 years.

Three other Plymouth office staff have been promoted to director level:
• Katie Skea in Corporate Services trained at Deloitte following a degree at the University of Bristol.
• Ian Pring in Business Tax specialises in property taxation and previously worked for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
• Jemima Fox specialises in private client tax matters having trained with EY in London.
Office Managing Partner, Stuart Cowen said: “The scale of our recent recruitment at a senior level has been unprecedented for the firm and we are very excited about the future.

“Over the past six months, we've recruited some highly experienced people into the office and have also seen a number of promotions of extremely skilled members of staff.

“This investment has been driven by continued growth in key areas, undoubtedly assisted and driven by our membership of PKF.”

The firm has also announced a new Partner in Business Recovery and Insolvency specialist Lucinda Coleman.

Licensed Insolvency Practitioner Lucinda, who joined the firm’s Exeter office as a graduate trainee in 2003 and is an authority on Company Voluntary Arrangements (CVAs), has been promoted to Partner within the business recovery team.

Other PKF Francis Clark promotions to director include: Liam Dushynsky (VAT, Exeter); Adam Kefford (Corporate Tax, Exeter); Chris Watts (Tax Investigations, Torquay), Peter Nyland (Financial Planning, Poole) and Frances Kingsnorth (Corporate and Business Services, Salisbury).

New director appointments include Lisa MacPherson (Head of Tax Technical, Poole), Martin Brown (Rewards Tax, Taunton), Chris Harrison (Corporate Tax Director, Poole), Paul Stout (Corporate Finance, Poole), Julian Cramp (Director of Marketing) and Daniel Sladen (Corporate & Business Tax, Truro).

John Endacott, PKF Francis Clark Head of Tax, said: “Many of the appointments and promotions announced are tax related. We're seeing clients seeking advice of an increasingly complex nature, much of it with an international dimension.

“Our tax consultancy practice which provides advice to other firms of accountants and lawyers is also thriving. We've therefore invested in new recruits across the tax practice, focusing on specialisms that our clients are requesting and who we believe will add significant value.”

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