Chippenham's Old Mill announces two new partners

Published by

Peter Davison

Duncan Parkes and Jamie Rudge

Chippenham-based financial experts Old Mill have announced two new partners – both from the firm’s compliance team.

The promotions follow a restructure to enable faster career progression and a growth strategy that has created greater opportunities for staff.

Chartered accountant Jamie Rudge and Duncan Parkes, who is compliance director, have both been promoted to technical partner – the first to have achieved such a role.

Jamie and Duncan’s promotions bring the total number of partners to 25, and the number of new partners since the restructure to seven.

Jamie is a chartered accountant with a background in audit and accounts, and extensive experience in business, accounting and compliance issues.

She joined Old Mill in 2016 as an associate director and is now the practice assurance principal for the accountancy side of the business, with responsibility for all areas of regulation, standards, compliance and risk.

Jamie is also Old Mill’s ethics principal, ensuring quality and compliance throughout the firm, and has been a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) Investigation Committee since 2019 - one of the independent regulatory and disciplinary committees that oversee the ICAEW Professional Standards Department.

“I am excited to join the partner group at what is a very exciting time in both the accountancy profession, and Old Mill’s growth," said Jamie.

"There’s lots of upcoming change in the accountancy world, and I’m keen to help shape Old Mill’s future and embrace these opportunities.”

Duncan joined Old Mill in early 2008 as compliance manager and after some time as head of compliance, he moved into his current role. He is responsible for all areas of regulation, standards, compliance and risk for the financial planning side of the business and is a member of Old Mill Financial Planning Ltd.’s Board.

A Fellow of the Personal Finance Society (PFS) – and former winner of the PFS Chartered Financial Planner of the Year Award – Duncan has been instrumental in the development of Old Mill’s financial planning approach.

He helped create the PFS Power Planning initiative, which is built around on client outcomes, and has been leading Old Mill’s new enhanced strategy, which aligns closely with the Power Planning initiative, focussing on clarity, peace of mind and opportunity.

Duncan is also a huge advocate of Old Mill’s shift away from being one-off advice providers to becoming long-term full-service advisors that clients can turn to for all their professional service needs.

“To become a partner in Old Mill at such an exciting time in the evolution of the financial planning profession is something I am very proud of," said Duncan.

"The opportunities that exist for Old Mill in the financial planning space are huge and to be able to help shape our future is very exciting”.

To become a partner, candidates have to meet a number of key criteria, including embodying and acting as a champion for the Old Mill values and behaviours, bringing ambition, energy and integrity to their own roles, helping create an environment where everyone feels part of a thriving business.

Kevin Whitmarsh, CEO of Old Mill said: “Jamie and Duncan are both exceptional at what they do, not only keeping us in line with our respective regulatory bodies but also helping with technical training and helping shape the business strategically to the highest standards.

"Their hard work and commitment to quality are shown by the impact they have made on the work we do with our clients, our colleagues, and the communities in which we operate.

"They both demonstrate our firm’s values by delivering an ongoing commitment to ensuring all the work we are excited to see more from them both in their new roles as partner.”

Peter Davison

Peter Davison is deputy editor of The Business Magazine. He has spent his life in journalism – doing work experience in newsrooms in and around Bristol while still at school, and landing his first job on a local newspaper aged 19. By 28 he was the youngest newspaper editor in the country. An early advocate of online news, he spent the first years of the 2000s telling his bosses that the internet posed both the biggest opportunity and greatest threat to the newspaper industry and the art of journalism. He was right on both counts. Since 2006 he has enjoyed a career as a freelance journalist. He lives in rural Wiltshire with one wife, two children, and three cats.