Matt Atkinson to become MH&A's first externally recruited partner
Public sector consultancy MH&A has appointed Matt Atkinson, bringing two decades of experience to the role. The appointment is a milestone for the firm, with Atkinson becoming its first externally sourced partner.
In recent years, the public sector has become the second largest buyer of consulting services in the UK advisory market. That was even the case before Covid-19 brought with it a surge in engagements, with government organisations using consultants to patch over gaps in their staff, and come up with strategic responses to the historic challenges the country faced.
In this environment, MH&A was ideally positioned to succeed. Founded in 2018 by Professor Matt Hamnett – an expert who had worked at senior levels in central government, corporate and social sector organisations – the company’s website confirms it has since done “a huge amount of work in the education sector, working with clients in central government, the wider public and private sectors” on national policy, organisational strategy, and other matters. Clients have included the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, NCFE, Ofqual and the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education, as well as members of the FTSE50.
As the firm looks to build on this momentum, it has determined the time is right to expand its ranks, with its first outside partner-hire. Matt Atkinson will assume responsibilities with MH&A from September 2022, working to provide corporate finance advice to clients in education, economic development, and local Government – including schools trusts, colleges, universities, and combined / local authorities – as well as banks and other financial stakeholders.
Founding Partner Matt Hamnett, commented, “Matt is an exceptional corporate finance professional with the rare ability to deliver complex, challenging work at pace. As important, he shares our values and commitment to doing work which creates real social value. Inviting Matt to join us as our first externally recruited partner was an easy decision. I’m looking forward to introducing his expertise to our clients.”
Atkinson joins the firm from the Department for Education, where he has spent the last five years as the Senior Civil Servant responsible for providing market oversight in the schools and further education sectors. Before joining the Department, Atkinson, a qualified accountant and insolvency practitioner, worked in PwC’s deals team – where he led restructuring, insolvency, mergers and acquisitions engagements in the public and private sectors; he was also seconded into one of the nation’s largest banks during the 2008 financial crisis. He also spent a year as Head of Transactions Unit with the government’s Skills Funding Agency, and was previously an Administrator with Begbies Traynor.
The firm’s focus on cutting through the complexity, focussing on what matters, and working alongside clients to deliver socially valuable outcomes fits perfectly for me. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the civil service – and am now looking forward to talking to colleagues in the sectors we serve about how I can help them.”
Speaking on his new role, Atkinson added, “The firm’s focus on cutting through the complexity, focussing on what matters, and working alongside clients to deliver socially valuable outcomes fits perfectly for me. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in the civil service – and am now looking forward to talking to colleagues in the sectors we serve about how I can help them.”