Shropshire accountancy firm Columb & Gosling is developing its team with two new recruits and a national training programme for other members of staff.
The Telford based company, headed by Helen Columb, recently welcomed Vicki Evans and Jamie Thatcher to the team.
Vicki, age 21, has joined the firm as an apprentice and has already started work on her Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) level 3 qualification.
She came to Columb & Gosling in August after spending six months travelling in Australia.
“I always planned to come back and look for an apprenticeship in accountancy after being in Australia. I started the apprenticeship last year and it was transferred to Columb & Gosling when I started here in August. It’s a good way to get into the career,” said Vicki who is from Telford.
Jamie, age 28 and also from Telford, joined the team after working in an internal accounts department within industry and is just completing his AAT qualifications.
“When I left school I didn’t really know what I wanted to do and ended up working in a factory. But I had always been interested in business and finance and decided to do my AAT qualifications at night school.”
“I then worked for a company in Bridgnorth for five years dealing with all its accounting functions. Joining Columb & Gosling takes me from industry to practice which is where I always wanted to be,” he said.
Helen Columb said that the recruitment of Vicki and Jamie had brought extra vibrancy to the company.
“We want to make sure that we have new young members of staff with the chance to work their way through their accountancy qualifications and bring a new perspective to our company. Both Vicki and Jamie have already contributed a huge amount to the team and we look forward to seeing them develop and grow,” said Helen.
As part of the professional development of the staff, existing team members Andrea Logan-Weston and Gemma Hartshorn are about to launch into the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants qualifications which will give them the full qualification for professional accountants.
Andrea, from Telford, has already completed her AAT qualification and joined Columb & Gosling last year after working in industry. She manages the company’s payroll service, handling the whole process from start to finish creating a seamless service for clients.
Gemma, from Newport, works alongside Helen Columb in preparing annual accounts as well working on clients’ VAT returns and bookkeeping. Gemma joined the company in 2018 and is already AAT qualified.
“Giving our staff the chance to continue their professional development is a very important part of our company and gives our clients extra expertise and insight as part of our service,” said Helen Columb.
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