Accountancy giant EY has seen growth across the 海角视频 and the North East as it invested in more staff and a multimillion-pound refurbishment of its regional office.
EY, which has 19 海角视频 offices including a large presence in the North East at its Newcastle base, has published results for the year ended June 30 2019 showing an increase in 海角视频 fee income from £2.41bn to £2.45bn amid a challenging environment.
Despite the challenges, revenues in transaction advisory services and tax grew by 9% and 8% respectively, although advisory and assurance revenues declined on previous years by 3% and 5%. Over the last five years, EY has achieved a compound annual growth rate of 6%.
Growth was also seen in the North East, where the Newcastle practice grew its workforce to 669 people – a rise of 15% – amid an £8m refurbishment of its CityGate offices, renovating 65,000sqft of space across two buildings on St James’ Boulevard, leaving space to expand in the future.
The financial year also saw several strategic hires, as well as a change in management for the office.
Mike Scoular relocated to Newcastle from EY’s Edinburgh office in October 2018, to head up and grow the North East’s Financial Services business.
Six months later he was appointed as the new managing partner for the Newcastle office, taking over from Sandra Thompson who moved to EY’s Reading office to work on a number of significant audits.
Richard Lingwood joined the firm from PwC as an associate partner in the audit team, Mark Lee was promoted to tax partner and Harry Hawes became an associate partner.
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Mr Scoular said: “It’s been another good year for EY and one that has seen steady growth both nationally and across the North East. EY’s strategy for growth in the regions has seen headcount in Newcastle increase over 15% in the financial year – a figure that continues to grow – and real growth across our financial services business.
“As the office continues to grow, we are increasingly becoming a 海角视频 hub for personal tax services. Key partners such as Stewart Mathieson and Mark Lee have helped drive this, and our VAT offering, forward.
“EY remains committed to the North and continues to invest in our talent to ensure that we can meet the firm’s growing needs with people based in the region who know the market and can therefore best advise our clients.
“The North East continues to attract investment which is evident in the plethora of digital businesses that are continually choosing to base themselves here. This, coupled with the high standard of apprentices and graduates attracted to the region, stands us in good stead for further future expansion.”
During the year, 35 applicants from across the 海角视频 joined its apprenticeship scheme in Newcastle. The number of students rose by two-thirds from the programme’s inaugural year total of 21, with many of these making the move north from London and the home counties.
In collaboration with Northumbria University, 25 of the students are studying towards a BA in Business Leadership and Management Practice, funded by EY, whilst working and earning a salary at the firm’s Newcastle office. The remainder are working towards various professional qualifications via their work experience at EY.
Mr Scoular added: “We were delighted to welcome so many new graduates to the firm this year and thrilled that our apprenticeship degree continues to grow in popularity. Apprentices are vital to our business, driving fresh thought and innovation throughout our services. These programmes are a great opportunity for students from all walks of life to access work experience and a degree qualification with an international firm, without the burden of tuition fees.”
The year also saw EY rank in the top 20 of the Best Companies to Work For in the North East 2019.