Grant Thornton announces promotions in Yorkshire and North East
Grant Thornton is investing in Yorkshire and North East talent after announcing a raft of new promotions in the region. Duncan Morpeth, Richard Oddy, Eimear Considine and Dan Mansfield have been named Directors, while Paul Wilson has been promoted to Partner.
Grant Thornton has offices in Leeds, Sheffield and Newcastle, has seen strong demand from clients for support throughout an unprecedented period of challenge and change over the past 11 months, with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit among the major issues business have faced.
As it looks to expand its practice amid this demand, the firm has welcomed a cohort of more than 30 school-leaver or graduate level staff this year, as well as announcing five key promotions.
Andy Wood, Managing Partner of Grant Thornton in Yorkshire and the North East, said, “The last 12 months have been remarkably challenging for all businesses and as a trusted advisor we have done our best to support our clients to help them adapt to the changes we have all had to make.”
Duncan Morpeth has been promoted to Director from the Corporate Finance team. Morpeth and the team have had an outstanding year, according to a release from Grant Thornton – including advising on multiple transactions including YFM’s investment in Leeds based Force24 and the sale of Fultons Foods in Barnsley to Poundland.
Richard Oddy has meanwhile been named as a Director in the Advisory team. Working with Partner Chris Petts, the restructuring specialist led on two high profile administrations in late 2020, Universal Recycling, the south Yorkshire business, and Leeds-based retailer CB Imports. Richard’s specialism also include cases involving asset based lending.
Dan Mansfield is now a Director in Grant Thornton’s Public Sector Advisory team. He recently advised Nexus on the procurement of a new fleet and depot for the Tyne and Wear Metro; Merseytravel on the procurement of a new train fleet for the Mersey Electrics network; Transport for Greater Manchester on the audit of their Bus Reform Proposals and also carried out a funding and financing study for Transport for the North.
Eimear Considine is also a Director in the firm’s Consulting team, meanwhile. Based in Sheffield, and working nationally, the new Director leads the firm’s Transformation and Programme Management Office team, where she helps businesses manage through transitional change to become more resilient, efficient and better-able to maximise market opportunities.
Wood added, “People are our business, so I am delighted that we are investing in the next generation of talent… Our people have responded brilliantly over the last year, so I am really pleased to be recognising some outstanding contributions with four rising stars, Duncan Morpeth, Richard Oddy, Eimear Considine and Dan Mansfield earning promotions.”
Alongside the director promotions in Yorkshire, Paul Wilson has been promoted to Partner. Based in the North-West, Wilson has worked as a VAT director in the firm’s tax team for the last four years and prior to that he has been based in the region for 13 years of his 20 year career, which has been focussed entirely on VAT.
Commenting on his promotion to partner, Wilson said, “I am hugely excited to be taking the next step in my career with Grant Thornton. The strength of the tax team in the region was a major draw when I joined the firm in 2017, so I’m incredibly pleased to step up to partner within it. The region’s businesses have faced a year like no other during 2020. But the result of the Brexit negotiations, and the start of life in earnest outside of the EU, presents fresh challenges for many internationally trading businesses. Timely, reliable, clear advice is the ask from all business leaders and Grant Thornton is committed to providing that.”