A leading Cumbrian accountancy practice has promoted a senior member of staff to partner.
robinson+co, which has offices across West Cumbria, has announced Matthew Welsh has been promoted.
As an associate of the firm, Matthew is ACA-qualified and has been with robinson+co for almost a decade based at their Workington office.
Matthew is a VAT specialist and works with many of robinson+co’s larger audit clients. He joins the firm’s four existing partners.
Matthew said: “I’m thrilled to begin this new chapter after a nearly decade of service. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at the practice so far and look forward to continuing to work alongside colleagues servicing the diverse range of great clients we have across West Cumbria and beyond.
“It’s a great opportunity to contribute to the firm’s growth and continue delivering excellence to our clients, especially as we are in exciting times with the recent acquisition of DHC Accounting Limited.”
Managing partner, Peter Ellwood added: “Matthew has shown his dedication not only to the profession but to our clients over the 10 years he’s worked with us, it’s a well-deserved promotion. I’m certain that he will be a great addition to our group of partners as we continue to grow our practice, client base and offering.”
Laura Goad fulfils childhood dream
Seven years of hard work has come to fruition for a Carlisle trainee solicitor.
Lauren Goad, 27, has been with Wragg Mark Bell in the city for over three years, first spending 12 months as a paralegal and then the past two years as a trainee.
She has finally finished her training this week and is officially fully qualified, completing a childhood dream.
“I wanted to be a solicitor from a very young age,” Lauren said. “I couldn’t tell you where the interest came from!
“I’ve always lived in Carlisle, but went to Northumbria University in Newcastle where I did an integrated masters degree, which included my LPC.”
The route to a career in law wasn’t straightforward however, as Lauren was one of tens of thousands of students who graduated during COVID when employment was uncertain. She took a retail job to tide her over, before eventually securing her first ever law job interview at Wragg Mark Bell to be a paralegal.
After her initial year as a paralegal, Lauren has since been working as a trainee solicitor within the private law and family client team.
Lauren has been supported throughout her training by private client solicitor Keith White, as well as having the backing of managing director Nick Kennon from her very first role as a paralegal. She also praised the additional support and encouragement of Rebecca Ferris, who joined the company as operations manager.
Nick said: “I am really pleased to be celebrating Lauren’s qualification. She has worked incredibly hard to get to this point, and thoroughly deserves it.
“Lauren is an integral part of our team, bringing enthusiasm and dedication to everything that she does.
“We look forward to many more successful years with her following her qualification.”
In addition to her day-to-day tasks, some people might recognise Lauren from TikTok as she and Keith are the faces behind many of Wragg Mark Bell’s video content.
She said: “We are pushing out quite a lot of information about wills, which has helped raise awareness of having a will at a younger age – especially as soon as you have any assets or have children and you’re not married.
“I’ve just bought my first house and I’ve made sure I’ve got my will in place to protect it.
“It’s also about reaching out to a different audience on TikTok. We get quite a lot of engagement on the platform itself, and I feel like it’s just another avenue we’ve explored to get the message out there that a will isn’t something you do when you’re old.”
One of the most popular TikTok videos was actually made by Keith to answer the question of whether you can divorce your partner without them knowing. It has so far been viewed 18,500 times.
