Meet the team

Managing Partner

Will Smart B.Com, F.C.A

Having originally trained with Cottons in the 1990s, Will then pursued a career outside practice, eventually acting as a Chief Financial Officer. In 2003, a return to practice saw him set up his own firm in London, which he built and eventually sold. Will has remained in general practice since, and returned with his team and clients to Cottons as a partner in 2017. Will has looked after many of his larger clients for over 10 years. Will’s key aims are to assist small business owners and taxpayers in driving profitability and reducing tax: Through careful planning and a practical approach, he aims to increase wealth generation and retention. His particular interests include countering the current Government’s tax attacks on small owner-managed businesses, contractors / freelancers, and residential landlords.

Partner

Dan Roberts B.A., F.C.A

Dan joined Cottons in 2003 as a trainee after completing a degree in Economics and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2006. After progressing through the ranks of the firm Dan became a Partner in 2013. Dan works with a broad spectrum of clients to improve internal reporting and helping clients understand their accounts as well as advising in general accounting and taxation matters. He is also a director of Northampton BID and is treasurer of a local charity.

Partner

Emma Reid F.C.A

Emma joined Cottons as a trainee in 2004 following the completion of an Accounting with Law degree at the University of East Anglia. Four years later she qualified as a Chartered Accountant whilst building experience working in general practice in our Daventry office. Since 2011 Emma has been based from our Rugby office working closely with owner-managed SMEs in a wide range of sectors to fulfil their accounting and taxation requirements, she made partner in 2018. Outside of work Emma enjoys spending time with her young family.

Partner

Mark Palmer F.C.A

He specialises in general tax planning advising both owner managed businesses and private individuals Mark said “My job is varied, I like to develop a relationship with my clients and find that I am often the first port of call on matters that have little to do with accountancy”  

Partner

Dave Ingram F.C.C.A.

Dave joined Cottons in 1987 as a trainee and went on to qualify with the firm in 1992. He helped set up the firm’s second office in Northampton and became a Partner in July 1999. Dave now works in our Rugby office as a general practitioner, is a Responsible Individual for audit reports and is also the Employment Partner for the whole firm.

Partner

Nick Warne F.C.A., A.T.I.I.​

Nick joined Cottons in 1987 and moved back into general practice following a spell heading up a taxation team. He was responsible for bringing Cottons forward as a training office for Chartered Accountants and the expansion into their second office in Northampton in 1991. He has overseen further progress as offices have opened in Banbury, Rugby and Southam. During this time Cottons continued to add specialisms to its core accounting services enabling it to grow from a small Daventry based firm to one of the top 100 firms in the UK.

Partner

Richard Wilch F.C.C.A

Richard joined Cottons LLP in 1989 and has supported the growth of the Daventry Office from general practice work to providing all aspects finance and accounting to large corporate and group structures within the local community , nationally and internationally. Whilst continuing his general practise role for his clients Richard works with the larger corporate entities, helping them to develop internally and strategically as they move in to new markets.

Partner

Lisa Malone F.C.C.A., C.T.A

Lisa joined Cottons as a trainee accountant in 1987 qualifying as a Certified Accountant in 1993. She then went on to qualify as a Chartered Tax Advisor in 2005 and became a partner in 2008. Lisa is based at our Daventry office running her own portfolio of mainly SME clients in many different trading sectors. In addition to this Lisa continues to support the practice together with a small team of tax professionals in dealing with technical tax issues and planning across all the taxes.

Partner

Ollie Warne A.C.A

It’s true you are more likely to see our accountants sporting a pair of New Balances than a pair of Brogues, and it is this style with substance that is surely
earning Cottons London the reputation of one of the coolest accountancy practices in the capital but where has this come from?

Following his upbringing in the Midlands and training in Manchester, Ollie moved to London, now regarding East London as his spiritual home. After
spending time working at various firms with some brilliant brands and bands alike (counting ASOS, Rekorderlig and even The Courteeners on his C.V!)
he made the move to open this Southern branch of Cottons and use these experiences to drive its areas of focus.

Partner

Callum Veasey A.C.A, M.A.A.T

Callum is based at our Daventry Branch and since obtaining the partner designate role in October 2017 is growing his own portfolio steadily. He helps also to support the audit function and is heavily involved with the larger clients we act for in the practice. He has vast experience with dealing with forecasting assignments to help support the corporate finance department and help dealing with financial funding.

Director

Charles Hill

Charles has built up considerable experience over the past 10 years specialising in advising and assisting entrepreneurial owner-managed businesses with their forward strategy and compliance requirements.

Charles qualified as an ICAEW Chartered Accountant with Cottons in 2016 after graduating with a degree in Economics, and after a 5 year stint working with a portfolio of SME’s in a variety of sectors at a top 12 firm, returned to Cottons in 2022 to contribute to its continued expansion.

Charles not only enjoys forming strong relationships with his clients through a thorough understanding of their business and future goals, but also building teams in order to provide exposure for those training with him.

In his spare time, Charles enjoys spending time with his young family and in the mountains; be it skiing, cycling or hiking. He is also a keen follower of Rugby Union and certain motorsport.

Director

Enamul Khan B.A., A.C.C.A

Enamul joined Cottons in 2014 and qualified as a member of ACCA in the same year. He is also Xero certified. Enamul is based in our Daventry office where he works closely with a wide range of small businesses and is also a part of our audit team. He manages the work flow in the office and is involved in the training and development of our junior members of staff.

Director

James Melvin B.A., A.C.A

James has been with Cottons since 2006, qualifying as a Chartered Accountant four years later. James also provides ongoing support to clients and colleagues across the practice. He demonstrates strong technical knowledge and performs the role of Audit Manager for a number of our clients

Director

Sarah Randall A.C.A

Sarah joined Cottons in 2005 whilst on a placement year for her degree. After graduating she was given a training contract with us and qualified as a member of the ICAEW in 2011. Based in our Northampton office she works mostly with owner-managed SMEs, across a broad range of industries, working with new businesses as well as those already established. Sarah also specialises in Solicitors’ Accounts Rules work, leading Cottons’ dedicated team, training others and working with a range of solicitors across the county.

Director

Aneta Sheridan B.A, A,C,C,A.

Aneta joined Cottons in 2010 as a trainee following completion of Accounting and Finance degree at the University of Northampton. She has qualified as a member of ACCA in 2014. She is also Xero certified. Aneta is based in our Daventry office where she works closely with a wide range of small businesses, assisting them with their accountancy, VAT and other requirements. She is also involved in the training and development of our junior members of staff.

Consultant

Guy Pain B.A., B.F.P., F.C.A., C.F

Guy is a partner who heads up our rapidly expanding corporate finance department. He has over 30 years of experience in corporate finance work and has also worked as a finance director of a large international family owned company. Throughout his career, Guy has focused on developing cost effective and bespoke corporate finance solutions within the owner managed business sector. He is involved in business acquisitions, finance raising, succession planning and business disposals, strategic planning and forecasting, tax efficient corporate structuring and employee incentives, company and business valuations.

Director

Sarah Kite A.C.C.A

Sarah joined Cottons in 2017 as part of Will Smart’s team and is based in our Northampton office. Sarah has over 15 years’ experience in the industry and is qualified AAT and ACCA and member of the VAT Practitioners Group. She works closely with owner-manged SMEs in a wide range of industries ensuring their compliance but also ensuring good communication with her clients for the best possible advice/planning, without the jargon. She has vast knowledge of cloud accounting and is certified to use both Xero and FreeAgent, as well as being a Xero Champion. Her role also includes training and mentoring our junior staff to ensure their growth and expertise develops, building our future accountants.

Senior Accountant

Rebecca Bott

Rebecca joined Cottons in 2006 and qualified as a member of the ACA in 2011. Rebecca is based in our Northampton office where she works closely with a wide range of businesses, assisting them with their accountancy, VAT and other requirements. She is also involved in the training and development of our junior members of staff. She has experience in cloud software and is Xero certified.

Senior Accountant

Karl Spencer F.C.C.A, M.A.A.T

In 2005 Karl qualified as a Certified Accountant, later that year he joined Cottons. He has over 15 years’ experience in general practice where he specialises in management and corporate accounts. Karl helps manage workflow in the Daventry branch is also part of our Audit team and Corporate Finance Team. Away from work Karl has a passion for motorsports and football, he can be seen supporting his local side Rugby Town FC at the weekends.

Accountant

Sarah Palmer

Sarah joined the Rugby Office Team in 2008 maintaining clients’ books, preparing VAT returns and annual accounts. Sarah works with a number of our farming clients and, at weekends, can be found out enjoying the countryside with her horse, Victor.

Qualified Accountant

Sarah Dymond A.C.A.

Sarah qualified as a member of the ACA in 2019 and is Xero certified. Sarah’s works with our clients with various matter including annual accounts, corporation tax returns and personal tax returns and also assists our Business Support department.

Part Qualified Accountant

Oliver Vale

Oli joined Cottons at our Southam office as an AAT apprentice accountant in 2011 before relocating to his home town of Rugby three years later. He is currently in the final stages of his ACCA training and hopes to have qualified as a chartered accountant during 2018. Oli works with a variety of different businesses including preparing monthly management accounts for several customers. When not at work Oli enjoys playing football for a local 6 a side team as well as adjusting to the joys of parenthood after the arrival of his son, Lewis, in October 2017.

Part Qualified Accountant

Zack Rees

Zack joined Cottons at our Rugby office in 2015 as a trainee accountant after completing his Accounting & Finance degree at De Montfort University. He is currently studying for the A.C.A qualification. Outside of work Zack competes in the local Rugby & District Pool league and is a proud supporter of Liverpool FC.

Personal Tax Compliance

Lesley Voss

Lesley joined our Daventry office in May 2014 as a tax compliance accountant specialising in personal tax. She has extensive knowledge and experience in income tax and capital gains tax, enabling her to provide a quality and efficient service for clients. Lesley manages a portfolio of clients including sole traders, company directors, partners, high net worth individuals and trustees.

Trainee Accountant

Serena Di-Rienzo

Serena joined Cottons in July 2016 as a trainee accountant based in our Northampton Office. She is currently studying for her AAT qualification, and is Xero Advisor Certified. Her position involves working with owner-managed SMEs, completing VAT returns, bookkeeping and accounts for sole traders & Partnerships.

Trainee Accountant

Bradley Small

Bradley joined Cottons in July 2019 and works with our team in our Northampton office on a variety of work with sole traders, limited companies and partnerships. He is Xero certified and is studying towards his ACA.

Trainee Accountant

George Cameron

George has recently joined our Northampton office. He works with a range of clients while also studying for his ACA.

Payroll Manager

Dawn Hopper MCIPP(Dip)

Dawn is our payroll bureau manager with over 20 years payroll experience and is based in our Daventry office. She specialises in payroll processing including pension deductions and all legislative requirements for RTI, assisting clients with their own payroll processing queries/computer programme support and basic employment law.

Chartered Accountant

Ross Stokes A.C.A.

Ross is an ACA chartered accountant who works particularly with small businesses, qualifying in 2012. Ross gained his practising certificate in 2017 and now works on a varied portfolio of clients in our London office taking a special interest in each one. He enjoys getting to know each client’s business thoroughly and is happy to advise on all areas of business. In particular business plans and forecasts with a view to gaining investment along with the usual tax planning and business advice which is vital to a small business.

Qualified Accountant

Mai Chung

Mai joined Cottons in 2015 as a trainee accountant having studied for a Master of Mathematics degree at the University of Liverpool. Her role at Cottons involves preparing accounts and tax returns, as well as working on both statutory and solicitors account audits. She is currently studying towards her ACA qualification. In her spare time, Mai enjoys spending time with friends & family, eating out and going to the gym.

Receptionist

Lorraine Perham

Lorraine joined Cottons at the Rugby Office in December as a receptionist and secretary, working alongside Julie. Outside of work Lorraine’s passion is her Spanish Andalusian horse, Verano, riding to music and exploring the countryside with him. Lorraine also enjoys spending time with her family in Leicestershire.

Payroll

Tejas Pathak

Accountant

Samantha Barnett

Reception & Admin

Aisha Gallant

Accountant

Shabana Parveen

Trainee Accountant

Ryan Chau

Accountant

Nicola Goddard

Accountant

Lesley Thomson

Tax Accountant

Lyn Murphy

Accountant

Liz Harris

Business Support

Joanne Betts

Business Support

Emma Johnson

Trainee Accountant

Emilia Walker

Accountant

Debbie Whitmore

Trainee Accountant

Charlotte Matthews

Business Support

Claire Peal

Trainee Accountant

Bradley Kineton

Senior Accountant

Callum James

Business Support

Yvonne Niblett

Business Support

Linda Jackson

Tax Manager

Scott Whitmore

Payroll Administrator

Sophie Adnitt

Head of Payroll

James Wathey

Trainee Accountant

Declan George

Reception & Admin

Kerry Lyons