Menzies has promoted Andy England, one of its directors, to the role of partner. In his new role England, a corporate tax specialist who has been with Menzies since 1997, will focus on further developing the firm's range of tax services for companies investing in research and innovation.

Construction and property consultancy Sweett Group has appointed Patrick Sinclair as CFO. Sinclair, who qualified with PwC in 2001, joined Sweett as group financial controller in October 2012, having previously held senior positions at Penna, NCP and Danone UK. He takes over from Chris Goscomb, who is retiring having been with the company since 2007 and CFO since January 2009.

Latest data from the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo) suggests the professional jobs market rebounded strongly in 2013. Its analysis indicates the first upturn across every sector of the professional jobs market for a year, in contrast to the start of 2013 when there was a 1% drop in both placements and vacancies across the board.

APSCo figures now show placements in the temporary and contract sector for accounting and finance roles have risen by 25% over the course of 2013. In the professional jobs market as a whole, placements were up by 8.5% and the number of vacancies, as measured by online advertising activity, was up by 25% across the sector.

Ann Swain, chief executive of APSCo, said: 'While we have tentatively been talking "recovery" for some months, this latest data is the most encouraging yet and we believe that 2014 will be the year of the professional jobs comeback. All the economic indicators are there: UK liquidations and receiverships are down by 11.5% year on year; the number of new companies incorporated has grown by just over 2%; we have the highest employment rate since 2008 and full time work growth is accelerating faster than part time.'