Judges 2024

We pride ourselves on the integrity and diligence of our judging process. All judges are selected for their expertise and must have at least 10 years’ experience working in or around the finance sector.

Nadia Abdelfattah, Principal Consultant, Nigel Wright Group

View Nadia’s Biography

Tom Ainscough, Chief Executive Officer, ZyroFisher

View Tom’s Biography

Joanna Allen, FP – Greenarch Wealth Management

View Joanna’s Biography

Daniel Bloxham, Associate Director, Nigel Wright Group

View Daniel’s Biography

Nick Collins, Executive Director of Finance – Newcastle University

View Nick’s Biography

Claire Connolly, CFO –  Clearly Drinks Group

View Claire’s Biography

Philip Clare, Partner – Muckle LLP

View Philip’s Biography

Sharon Coull, Finance Director, Drummond Central

View Sharon’s Biography

Richard Dale, Non Executive Director & Chair of Audit Committee – Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust 

View Richard’s Biography

 

John Fenwick, CPFA, Director of Finance and Resources – Nexus

View John’s Biography

 

Brian Foreman, Branch Manager – Handelsbanken

View Brian’s Biography
Tom Gilbert, Senior Controller Finance – Nissan

View Tom’s Biography

Stuart Hall, Finance Director – Aspire Technology Solutions

View Stuart’s Biography

John Healey, Investor – BGW

View John’s Biography

James Kyle, Investment Director – Rathbones

View Biography

Claire Long, Director of Finance, Muckle LLP

View Claire’s Biography

Bill MacLeod, former partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Member of ICAS

View Bill’s Biography

Claire Maith, CFO – Peter Vardy Ltd

View Claire’s Biography

Bruce Parvin, Regional President, North East – CIPFA

View Bruce’s Biography

John Paul, Financial Planner, Broad Chare Partners

View John’s Biography

Gareth Phillips, Managing Director – CRL Foods

View Gareth’s Biography

Lynn Shearing, M&A Director, Bourne Leisure Ltd

View Lynn’s Biography

Paul Shields, Partner –  Johnston Carmichael

View Paul’s Biography

 

Andy Smith, Chair – CIOT North East Branch

View Andy’s Biography

Katie Tasker-Wood, Chief Strategy Officer, Redde Northgate 

View Katie’s Biography

Ian Wilkinson , Chief Executive Officer – Perspective Finance Group

View Ian’s Biography

Paul Wilson, CEO, Nigel Wright Group

View Paul’s Biography

Lynn Bassett, Global Director of HR & OD, Barbour

View Lynn’s Biography

Claire Foster, Acting Chief Financial Officer, Everyturn Mental Health 

 

Nadia Abdelfattah, Principal Consultant, Nigel Wright Group 

Nadia’s current recruitment remit at Nigel Wright focuses on permanent, finance appointments, from part qualified to mid-level across the North East of England with a salary level of up to £50,000 pa Typical assignments cover roles such as Management Accountant, Financial Accountant, Assistant Accountant, Accounts Assistant and Finance Analyst, Nadia started her recruitment career within the legal sector in Manchester. When she relocated to Newcastle, in January 2016, she made the move into finance recruitment.

 

Tom Ainscough, Chief Executive Officer, ZyroFisher

Based in the North East, ZyroFisher are the UK’s leading distributor of cycling parts and accessories, with over 50 well known cycling brands within its portfolio. Tom who leads the business as CEO has over 25 years business experience in both large corporate FMCG, SME, PE and  turnaround environments. Tom’s background is in operations and supply chain management with a keen interest in practical financial solutions for SME business needs.

A keen cyclist and outdoor enthusiast, Tom is passionate about the North East and its wealth of business talent.  

 

Joanna Allen - IFA at Greenarch Wealth Management

Joanna is an independent financial adviser with over 20 years experience advising a range of corporate, sme and individual clients.  Previously worked within both an accountancy and legal practise. 

Passionate about advice for women and ethical investing and championing bespoke, chartered, independent advice.

 

Daniel Bloxham, Associate Director, Nigel Wright Group

Dan is an Associate Director for the Finance Recruitment Team, whose current remit focuses on Permanent, Qualified, Finance Leadership and Board appointments throughout the North East of England and Yorkshire. Roles include Finance Directors, CFOs, Group FCs, Head of Finance and Transformation. Recruiting across a broad range of sectors and ownership structures, whether that’s PLC, Private Equity or private ownership. Prior to joining Nigel Wright, Dan has 13 years' experience of working with internationally recognised talent management and development framework, Investors in People. Advising on improving business performance through effective people management and development practices. Latterly, he has worked for Grant Thornton, a global leader of audit, taxation and advisory services, specifically focused on people solutions through Account Management services.

 

Nick Collins has overall responsibility for the University’s financial planning, monitoring and control ensuring that robust financial plans are in place to meet the University’s strategic plans. Nick leads the Finance function covering Financial Performance, Corporate Finance, Financial Services, Procurement & Purchasing and Funding Assurance.

Nick is also responsible for the University IT Service and the campus Estates and Facilities.

Nick is an accomplished finance professional with experience across a range of sectors. He has a broad skill set that has been developed by driving complex change initiatives, leading large teams, strengthening financial control and operating in a listed corporate environment. Nick trained with PwC where he worked with a range of businesses before then holding a number of senior roles within Virgin Money plc. Most recently Nick was the CFO of a start-up bank.

Nick is a Chartered Accountant, Corporate Treasurer and holds a Masters in Physics from the University of Oxford.

 

 

Claire Connolly, CFO, Clearly Drinks Group

Having qualified with KPMG, Claire moved into industry with the French pharmaceuticals group Rhodia before joining Sage Plc. Claire held a number of senior finance roles at Sage including Finance Director for the UKI business before moving to G4S as Finance Director for their Utility and Outsourcing business. After divesting the business into private equity ownership, Claire took on the role of FD of the Energy Retail division of M Group Services covering five trading business before moving into her current role as CFO for the PE backed Clearly Drinks.

Philip Clare, Partner, Muckle LLP

Philip is a Partner in the Corporate Team at Muckle LLP. He advises clients on a whole range of corporate matters, such as business acquisitions and disposals, private equity transactions, other investments and corporate reorganisations. He frequently acts for clients buying or selling businesses and also regularly advises on company law and corporate governance matters.

Sharon Coull, Finance Director – Drummond Central

Sharon has worked across a range of industries both in the UK and overseas. Previously Sharon was Finance Consultant at 360 Growth Partners, a Newcastle based business focused on working in close partnership with SME's to accelerate business growth. Other roles range from Finance Director at Tyneside Cinema, various finance leadership roles at Sage PLC and prior to Sage Sharon was based in Dubai working in the mobile telecoms sector.

 

Richard Dale, Non Executive Director - Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust & Chair of Audit Committee

Richard was Executive Director at Newcastle University for almost 14 years, leading financial and commercial activity for one of the UK’s largest research intensive universities.

Prior to that he worked for BT in a mix of finance, sales and technical roles. Much of the time was spent in BT’s Global Services business supporting multinational clients.

Richard studied Mathematics at Durham University, spent the first years of his career in Newcastle before moving to London and various spots in America. But Richard felt at home in the North East and moved back in 2007, currently living with his family in Alnwick.

Since retirement, he has become a Non Executive Director of Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and is chair of its Audit Committee.

 

John Fenwick, Director of Finance and Resources - Nexus

John Fenwick is a Chartered Public Finance Accountant and has been Director of Finance and Resources at Nexus, which is the trading name of the Tyne and Wear Passenger Transport Executive, since 2008.

John is a member of the Nexus Board and in addition, provides advice to the North East Joint Transport Committee in relation to Nexus’ financial affairs. John is also a director of Nexus’ subsidiary company Tyneside Transport Services and has also served on the board of Network Ticketing Limited, the company responsible for the multi-modal, multi-operator ticketing scheme in Tyne and Wear, of which Nexus is a major shareholder.

In addition to the finance function, John’s responsibilities extend to the programme management office, legal services and procurement, contracting and commercial income and ICT. John has in the past also led the major projects, corporate planning, human resources and learning and development functions.

During his time at Nexus, John’s key achievements include playing an instrumental role in attracting almost £1 billion of investment for the Tyne and Wear Metro, which has brought about unprecedented renewal and upgrades of key assets across the network since 2010, including a new train fleet which is currently undergoing testing and commissioning.

Before joining Nexus, John worked in the Criminal Justice Sector and was Director of Finance, ICT and Performance at Northumbria Probation Service between 2003 and 2008.

John began his working life at Gateshead Council, in 1987 and qualified as an Accounting Technician in 1992, before becoming a Chartered Public Finance Accountant in 1995. He also has a postgraduate diploma in Strategy and Resource Management from Northumbria University.

 

Brian Foreman, Branch Manager, Handelsbanken

Brian has 36 years of banking experience and currently heads up the Handelsbanken office in Newcastle, leading a team spanning both Corporate and Personal Banking.

Prior to joining Handelsbanken, Brian was head of SME at Barclays, but took up the new opportunity with Handelsbanken late in 2015 to provide a more bespoke offering to businesses and individuals in the region. He is a fully qualified Associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers.

In former roles, spanning 3 decades, Brian has headed a centre of excellence for Football Finance, a role that carried a national mandate, being recognised for his Professional Services to the sector at the 2010 Football Awards. Brian has also been heavily involved with both the HE & FE sectors during his time as Head of Education across the North East & Yorkshire region.

Tom Gilbert, Senior Controller, Nissan

Tom joined PwC in 2007 after graduating from the University of Nottingham with a French and History degree. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2010. His client portfolio was varied, working with companies in a broad cross section of industries including financial services, manufacturing, technology and sport. His time at PwC also included a two year period in France on secondment. In 2016 he moved to Nissan in Sunderland, and now leads their Financial Reporting and Corporate Governance teams. During this very challenging time, finance has helped to support the business deal with impact of Covid, Brexit and also the move towards electrification.

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Stuart Hall, Finance Director, Aspire Technology Solutions

Stuart is an ACA qualified accountant who oversees the financial operations and processes at Aspire ensuring that they are fit to support sustainable growth. He plays a vital role in safeguarding financial health and in ensuring ongoing compliance.

 

 

John Healey, Investor - BGF

John is an investor at the Business Growth Fund based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. With a £3bn balance sheet, the Business Growth Fund is the most active equity investor in the UK and Ireland. John has worked in M&A for over 15 years, having previously led the Corporate Finance team at UNW, a well-established independent accountancy and advisory firm in the North East of England and having spent 10 years at PwC in London.

 

James Kyle, Investment Director, Rathbones 

James was one of the founding members of the Rathbones Newcastle office when it opened in the city in 2013. Prior to that he was a Director at UBS Wealth Management.

He has 24 years investment industry experience and specialises in the management of private client, trust, offshore and pension fund portfolios.

James graduated in Law from Newcastle University in 1998, holds the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment (CISI) Diploma and is a Chartered Fellow of the CISI. James is a trustee of the St Mary the Virgin Estate Management charity and previously of the Great North Air Ambulance Service.

 

Claire Long, Director of Finance, Muckle LLP

Claire is Finance Director at leading regional law firm Muckle LLP where she enjoys playing a broad operational and strategic role across the firm. Previously to that, having qualified as an ACA with Grant Thornton, she spent 24 years working for Procter & Gamble across a variety of business units, including European Finance Director for the Pringles business based out of Geneva, UK Finance Director for Market Operations in Surrey as well as being a Director of European Treasury Accounting in Newcastle.

However, being born and bred in the North East, the future of our region matters to her and, for the last 6 and 4 years respectively, she has been privileged to act as a Non-Executive Director to both Northumbria University Students Union and Gentoo Group – both organisations fundamental to the success of our region.

 

Bill MacLeod, former partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Member of ICAS

Bill is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland and was a partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP for 25 years until he retired in 2020.

During his career with PwC, Bill held the following roles:

  • Member of the Supervisory Board which is PwC UK’s governance body. As part of this role, Bill chaired PwC’s own Audit and Risk Committee.
  • PwC UK Ethics Partner with oversight of the firm’s professional ethics matters.
  • Newcastle office Senior Partner.
  • Audit partner – Bill has led the audits of a wide range of listed and private companies.
  • Earlier in his career, Bill worked overseas for five years spending two years in New York and three years in Dubai.

Since retiring, Bill has taken on a number of Non-Executive roles: -

  • Non-Executive director and Audit Committee Chair at The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
  • Lay member of Council and Audit Committee Chair at Newcastle University.
  • Non-Executive director and Finance Group Chair at NewcastleGateshead Initiative Limited.
  • Trustee at Kielder Observatory Astronomical Society.
  • Member of the Ethics Board of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland.

In addition, Bill chaired the International Advisory Board to Newcastle University Business School between 2015 and 2022.

“Bill won the Lifetime Achievement award at the 2023 North East Accountancy Awards”

 

Claire Maith, CFO - Peter Vardy Group of Companies

Claire is currently CFO at the Peter Vardy Group of Companies. Taking on her first Finance Director role at the age of 23,  Claire is a highly experienced finance professional, having also worked at both Hays Travel and Bloom Procurement Services in the region. 

 

Bruce is currently CIPFA North East Regional President, heading an active team of Executive Committee volunteers who manage professional development opportunities for members and students in the Region. Bruce also represents CIPFA on the North East Finance Leaders Group. His day job sees him leading on School Finance for Northumberland County Council. Having previously worked in a number of senior roles in NE Councils and educational settings, Bruce remains passionate about the key role of the public finance professional.

In his spare time Bruce is a qualified junior football coach and Club Chairman with Tynemouth United Juniors FC.

 

 

John Paul, Financial Planner, Broad Chare Partners

John provides high quality, tailored wealth management and expert financial planning to a wide range of clients including individuals, families and the retired, to help them achieve their financial goals. John also provides specialist advice to business owners and understands the overlapping needs of the individual, family and business, which change from start-up to growth, succession or retirement.

Broad Chare Partners is an Appointed Representative of and represents only St. James's Place Wealth Management plc (which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority) for the purpose of advising solely on the group's wealth management products and services, more details of which are set out on the group's website. The 'St. James's Place Partnership' and the titles 'Partner' and 'Partner Practice' are marketing terms used to describe St. James's Place representatives.

Broad Chare Partners is a trading name of Broad Chare Partnership LLP.

 

Gareth Phillips, Managing Director, CRL Foods

Gareth is Managing Director at CRL Foods, a rapidly growing contract manufacturer in the ready-to-drink markets based in Gosforth.

Gareth started his career in practice as an auditor with EY where he qualified as a Chartered Accountant before moving into UNW’s corporate finance team.  At UNW he advised on multiple deals in the region including MBOs, disposals and fundraises – in particular one for CRL Foods.  It was in 2021 that Gareth moved into industry for the first time as Group Head of FP&A at Fentimans where he drove a culture of business partnering and formalised within the Group an FP&A structure.

Gareth joined CRL Foods in 2023 as Finance Director and has since been promoted to Managing Director to lead the business through its next phase of growth.

 

Lynn Shearing, M&A Director, Bourne Leisure

Studied Accountancy and Finance at Leeds University before starting my career, almost 25 years ago, at PwC.  Remained at PwC for 18 years, predominantly working in the Newcastle Corporate Finance team.  Have undertaken various roles since leaving PwC, including: M&A Director at Parkdean Resorts, which was bought out by Canadian private equity firm Onex Corporation in 2017, for a reported £1.35bn, worked with FTSE 250 Greggs Plc as a consultant, worked at Womble Bond Dickinson as a Business Development Director, was a part time Board Member at Bernicia Group (sitting on the main board and commercial board). For the past two and half years have been M&A Director for Bourne Leisure, which was acquired by Blackstone in 2021, in a deal reportedly worth £3bn.  Bourne currently operates 2 leisure brands - Haven, the largest caravan park operator in UK and Warner Leisure Hotels, which operates a portfolio of 18 hotels, which offer adult only leisure breaks throughout the UK, having previously sold its third brand, Butlins, in 2022. I have 3 children (aged 17-19).     

Paul Shields – Partner Johnston Carmichael LLP

Paul joined Johnston Carmichael in October 2023, with over 25 years’ experience working in accountancy practices in the North East of England. Paul is a Fellow of the ICAEW and a qualified auditor and is based out of the newly formed Newcastle Office where he is the Office Managing Partner.
Paul has also held several volunteer positions and is currently a director of Not-for-Profit Entity, Open North Foundation which assist North East based businesses and individuals that were adversely affected via Covid-19 and the subsequent financial downturn.

 

 

Andy Smith, Chair, CIOT North East Branch

Andy is a private client tax manager, currently working at KPMG, providing tax advisory services predominantly to Owner Managed businesses.  He is also the current chair of the CIOT North East Branch.  In his spare time he loves road cycling whenever time allows!

 

Katie Tasker-Wood, Chief Strategy Officer, Redde Northgate

Having started life as a barrister and a solicitor in private practice, Katie moved in-house and has 10 years of experience as a General Counsel and Company Sectary of listed PLCs. She has since moved into the commercial space initially as a Corporate Services Director with strategic and operational responsibility for Redde Northgate plc’s corporate functions and has recently become the Chief Strategy Officer for the Gorup leading on identification and assessment of the opportunities open to the Group, understanding market dynamics to drive investment, and looking for options to enhance operations.

As an aside, we will have changed our Group name form Redde Northgate to Zigup by the 23rd (our shareholder vote is 20 May) and therefore at the time of the awards I would like the new name to be reflected if possible and the bio updated (post 20 May) to reference Zigup formerly ReddeNorthgate plc, at this time.

 

Ian Wilkinson , Chief Executive Officer, Perspective Finance Group

Ian Wilkinson is Chief Executive Officer of Perspective Financial Group and Managing Director of Perspective (North East) Ltd based in Newcastle. He has over 30 years’ experience in both management in the financial advice sector, and the provision of financial advice to clients, including individuals, corporates and business owners. Under Ian’s leadership, Perspective continues to grow rapidly, and is regarded as the UK’s leading national client-centric financial planning and wealth management firm.

 

 

Paul Wilson, CEO, Nigel Wright Group

Paul was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Nigel Wright Consultancy in January 2014. He has over 30 years global recruitment industry experience, during which time he has successfully built teams and grown specialist recruitment businesses in the UK and overseas for some of the world’s leading recruitment consultancies. Prior to joining the industry, Paul was an officer in the Royal Marines where he served in Borneo and Cyprus. Whilst his current role carries substantial management responsibility, he is still actively involved in talent attraction, retention and development both for Nigel Wright and its clients throughout the UK, Europe and Middle East and Africa.

 

Lynn Bassett, Global Director of HR & OD, Barbour

Lynn Bassett has over 20 years of experience in human resources and organisational development gained within consumer/retail sectors. Lynn is currently HR Director for Barbour, operating at a global level and responsible for driving a people strategy that supports business growth alongside building an inclusive and engaged culture and workforce. She previously held different HR roles at Nike, most latterly as Senior HR Director responsible for UK/Ireland and member of the EMEA HR Leadership team. She also held a voluntary position as part of the International Advisory Board at Newcastle University Business School. Lynn is a Chartered Member of the CIPD and holds a Masters in Geography from the University of Cambridge, a Post Graduate Diploma in Human Resource Management alongside a Practitioner Diploma in Executive Coaching. She was also awarded a diploma in Inclusive and Authentic Leadership from Northwestern University.