APPOINTMENTS
TEES Business
appointments
Gary Potts , Middlesbrough College Middlesbrough College has appointed Gary Potts as its new vice principal for business , innovation and community partnerships .
Gary arrives from Northumberland College where he was principal . His extensive experience also includes roles at Darlington College and the Education Training Collective ( Etc .).
After leaving school , he embarked on a five-year toolmaking apprenticeship in Newton Aycliffe and then specialised in design engineering , honing his skills in designing press tooling and programming machinery .
He later became an operations manager in the advanced manufacturing sector , gaining valuable experience in production control and inventory management .
Tilly , Bailey & Irvine Six staff have been promoted into more senior positions at Tilly , Bailey & Irvine , which was formed almost 200 years ago and now has offices in Hartlepool , Wynyard , Barnard Castle and Stockton . Among them are Wendy Beacom and Jackie Blackwell , who both started their careers as secretaries . They ’ ve respectively been promoted to equity partner and family executive .
Another new family executive , Christine Smith , joined the company more than 40 years ago .
Sara Garnett started at the firm ’ s Hartlepool office as a trainee almost a quarter of a century ago and has since risen through the ranks to become an equity partner along with Andrew Beattie , who has more than 20 years of commercial property experience .
Criminal defence solicitor Georgia Wilkinson has been promoted to associate solicitor .
Adam Collin and Lewis Blakelock , FW Capital Two promotions by FW Capital signal the firm ’ s commitment to investing in its future talent and rewarding high-performing individuals .
It comes at a key point in the firm ’ s support for local businesses after the launch of the Teesside Flexible Investment Fund .
Adam Collin has been promoted to the role of portfolio executive and Lewis Blakelock to investment executive , following FW Capital ’ s Career Path programme , which delivers a structured approach for staff to gain relevant experience and future progression .
Lewis joined FW Capital ’ s North-East property team in 2022 and previously spent two years in commercial and residential portfolio management with five years of senior management and leadership experience .
Ben Harrety and Dan Parsons , Teesside Airport Two new starters from two very different backgrounds have been welcomed to the tower at Teesside Airport .
Ben Harrety , 18 , and Dan Parsons , 33 , have joined the Air Traffic Control team .
Ben , from Wynyard , learned to fly aged just 14 and applied for an air traffic job while finishing his A-levels .
Dan has made the transition from military to civil aviation and has set down roots in the North-East .
Originally from Cape Town , South Africa , Dan moved to the UK in 2010 with the ambition of flying for the Royal Air Force . When that plan didn ’ t work out , he took a sidestep into Air Traffic Control , spending three-and-a-half years with the Navy and two-and-a-half years with the RAF .
He left the military to pursue civil air traffic training and spent the past nine months securing his licences in Gloucester .
Karen Redfearn , SABIC SABIC has appointed Karen Redfearn as communications business partner for its Teesside site .
Karen will form part of the company ’ s wider European corporate affairs team , although her responsibilities will mainly be focused on internal and external communications for the UK manufacturing site . She replaces Claire Wordsworth , who has retired .
Karen has previous experience in the process and technology industries , holding marketing and communication roles at ABB Consulting , Datum360 and EQUANS ( EFAB ) and has worked on the Wilton Site .
SABIC is one of the world ’ s leading petrochemical companies , operating in more than 50 countries and employing more than 29,000 people worldwide .
It has operated on Teesside since 2006 , through its subsidiary , SABIC UK Petrochemicals .
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