Moore Kingston Smith has appointed James Bird as an audit partner in the nonprofit team. He brings nearly two decades of experience in audit, risk and governance across the charity and education sectors, having worked with a variety of large and complex charities, universities, independent schools and membership bodies, both domestically and internationally. Previously he was an audit director, not for profit, at Grant Thornton.

HaysMac has promoted David Bareham, Mike Crowson, Sabina Burke and Tom Stock to partner. All four have made significant contributions across key practice areas and sectors, bringing together technical excellence, a focus on client relationships, and strong leadership. Bareham specialises in share schemes and employee incentives, Burke is also co-head of the creative, media & technology sector, while Crowson has a strong reputation in audit, and Stock leads the audit technical team. These promotions reflect the firm’s commitment to investing in leadership from within as it embarks on its next phase of growth.

Forvis Mazars has appointed 10 partners across its UK offices, including four who trained at the firm, and one external hire. The appointments span a range of services including audit, tax, and financial planning. Six partners will be London based, including Karishma Merchant, infrastructure & energy valuation, Josh Thorneycroft, debt advisory, Paul Simmons, financial planning, Mark Saldua, audit quality, Robbie White, innovation & digital skills, and new hire Mandi Dosanjh will focus on audit services. In the Midlands, Richard Tidball becomes a corporate tax partner, Tommy Cooke, audit in Milton Keynes, Simon Withington, technology assurance in Newcastle, and Sean Cockburn, private client tax advisory in Scotland.

Mercer & Hole has promoted Andrew Dean to audit and business advisory partner based in the firm’s London office, bringing the partner count to 28. Dean joined the firm in 2016 as a newly qualified accountant and has built a strong and growing portfolio, working closely with startups, high-growth owner-managed businesses and groups with an international presence primarily in the hospitality, retail, and real estate sectors. He also sits on the firm’s audit quality and technical committee.

PKF Francis Clark has promoted Rob Gear to partner, recognising his contribution to the firm’s corporate finance practice and leadership of its due diligence team. Gear has been with the firm for over a decade and has more than 20 years of experience, including seven years at EY. He brings a practical approach to financial due diligence supporting both corporate and institutional buyers and funders and providing vendor assistance and vendor due diligence.

BK Plus has appointed David Griffiths as partner and head of restructuring, and Richard Tonks is promoted to head of acquisitions. Griffiths brings over 24 years of insolvency and restructuring experience, including 15 years licensed, and he will strengthen the national restructuring team. Previously he was a director at Leonard Curtis. Tonks builds further capacity in corporate finance, and is a specialist in banking and restructuring.

RSM has announced 31 promotions to director, with over half of this year’s cohort starting their careers with RSM as trainees. The promotions span all areas of the firm, with audit promoting 12 directors, seven in tax and 12 in consulting. The newly promoted directors are located throughout the UK across 15 offices, from Edinburgh to Southampton. In addition, almost 700 promotions have been awarded across the firm into roles to help drive growth and investment in existing talent.

Hunters Law has promoted two senior associates to partner, Katie Martin and Vanina Wittenburg. Martin has substantial experience in probate and estate administration, specialising in complex estates and estates with a multijurisdictional element. Wittenburg undertakes a wide range of private client work, acting for individuals, executors and trustees. She is highly skilled in drafting wills and trust documents, administering complex estates and tax and estate planning advice, with a particular interest in negotiating with HMRC to secure inheritance tax exemptions.

Price Bailey has promoted Ben Harper in the business team and Thomas Birch in marketing to director. Harper joined Price Bailey in 2023 as a senior manager in the parks and leisure team, bringing 24 years’ experience in audit and accounts, including over a decade managing teams of accounting professionals. Birch has a financial services background and has been with the firm since 2018, playing a key role in building a digitally focused marketing team. In addition, Dan Gammon, corporate finance services in the parks and leisure team, and James Hart and Ian Phillips in the audit & assurance team, have been promoted to senior manager.

RCK Partners has appointed Sophie Spells as its first group chief executive officer at the R&D tax consultancy. She will oversee the firm’s global operations and focus on continued international expansion, building on the Ireland business, working closely with James Gibson, who continues as CEO of the UK business. For the last two years, she was RCK’s general counsel and head of legal, data and compliance. Previously she was general counsel at Slater and Gordon Lawyers.

Xeinadin has expanded the VAT advisory team with the appointment of Carolyn O’Shea as senior manager, based in the Liverpool office, focusing on clients across the northwest. A former HMRC inspector with over 20 years of experience, O’Shea will be advising businesses on high-risk VAT areas including land and property, partial exemption, and HMRC challenges. Previously she was a VAT and indirect taxes senior manager at MHA, having started her career with 15 years at HMRC.

Tampnet has appointed Kirsty Lawrence as CFO, based in Aberdeen. She has experience across a wide range of corporate finance services including transaction advisory on acquisition and disposal mandates, fundraisings, valuations, forensic projects and financial due diligence. The ACCA chartered accountant joined the Norwegian offshore connectivity business in 2021 as finance business partner and was promoted to head of group business control in 2023. Previously Lawrence was a corporate finance manager at Johnston Carmichael.

Sage has appointed Gretchen O’Hara as EVP strategic partnerships & business development. O’Hara brings more than 25 years of experience in channel sales, business development, and ecosystem transformation. She is a strong advocate for partners, and a long-standing champion for women in technology and sustainability. In her new role, O’Hara will focus on scaling Sage’s partner ecosystem, accelerating growth through new and existing business models, with a focus on AI and cloud innovation. She joins from Splunk, a Cisco company, where she was vice president of worldwide channels and alliances.

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has made two senior leadership appointments with Anthony Barrett named as executive director of supervision and Penrose Foss as executive director of investigations and enforcement, and executive counsel. Barrett is promoted from his current role as director of audit quality review and replaces Sarah Rapson, who has left to become CEO of the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). Prior to joining the FRC in 2020, Barrett was assistant auditor general at the Wales Audit Office. Foss will join the FRC on 15 December replacing Elizabeth Barrett, who is retiring, and brings 30 years of litigation and investigations experience drawn from the private sector and government. She has extensive experience of managing complex regulatory investigations affecting auditors, accountants, actuaries, taxation professionals and insolvency practitioners. Foss is currently a partner in the commercial and professional disputes team at law firm Clyde & Co and is a fee-paid judge of the First-tier Tribunal of the General Regulatory Chamber. 

Scottish Building Society has strengthened its board with the appointment of Graeme Hartop as non-executive director. Bringing three decades of experience in financial services, he joins the board following the retirement of Shelia Gunn and Andrew Lee in September. Hartop most recently served as chief executive of Edinburgh-based Hampden Bank from 2013 to 2024. He has previously held senior leadership roles at Scottish Widows Bank plc, including chief executive and finance and operations director.

Pictured: Sabina Burke, HaysMac