Our Team

James is married with three children and enjoys most sports, although he has a particular interest in playing football whilst also watching his boyhood team, Burnley. When possible, he also enjoys getting out on the bike at a weekend.

James brings a wealth of experience from his previous roles in private equity and corporate finance at Maven Capital Partners and Mazars LLP, respectively. Whilst at Maven, James led the successful exit of Fit Cloud Technology Limited (trading as Membr) to US trade buyer, Xplor Technologies. At the point of exit, Membr operated in over 25 countries across four continents. He also led the investments into software companies, iAM Compliant and Automated Analytics both of which witnessed significant growth and international expansion during his tenure.

Before his role at Maven, James was a Manager within the Corporate Finance team at Mazars LLP, focusing on lower mid-market transactions across the Tech-enabled Services and B2B SaaS sectors. James started his career at Ernst & Young where he qualified as a Chartered Accountant.

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It’s a real privilege to partner with ambitious entrepreneurs and business owners to achieve their aspirations and accelerate their growth plans to become market leaders in their sector.  

Claudia is an Investment Manager at Beech Tree focused on sourcing and executing investment opportunities as well as supporting our portfolio.

Prior to joining Beech Tree, Claudia trained and qualified as a Chartered Accountant at EY before moving to a boutique M&A firm advising on mid-market M&A transactions. In her previous role, Claudia worked with entrepreneurs, management teams and private equity houses on both sell-side and buy-side transactions, delivering strategic advice to help all parties achieve their ambitions. Notable deals include the acquisition of Forest Holidays by Sykes Cottages and the sale of JW Doubleday to Ben Burgess& Co Ltd. Claudia holds a degree in Biochemistry from the University of Bristol.

Outside of work, Claudia can usually be found on the golf course or socialising with friends (particularly over a glass of wine or two).She also enjoys tennis and pilates.

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"Working at Beech Tree provides me with the perfect balance of challenge and sense of achievement in this unique industry. I am always excited about what the next day will bring."

Andrea is married with three children and when she is not running around after them she enjoys dining out, travelling and trying to exercise.

Andrea joined Beech Tree as Finance Director in September 2021 having worked in a range of industries since qualifying as a Chartered Accountant.

Andrea started her career at PwC where she spent a happy six years in Audit in the Midlands working mainly with Private Equity backed clients. Andrea then moved to Australia where she worked for a range of companies across a spectrum of industries including construction and a digital creative studio. Following her return to the UK, she has worked in senior finance roles, including Financial Controller for Easyfundraising.

"I love having the opportunity to work with really ambitious management teams to co-create exciting business plans. Not only does it enable us to build market leading businesses but it’s incredibly rewarding watching our portfolio companies grow into the next stage of the business lifecycle."

Outside of work, Leigh enjoys socialising with family and friends alongside focusing on his fitness by going to the gym and playing football (currently for Altrincham Hale FC). Leigh is also a long-standing season ticket holder at Everton FC.

Leigh is an Investment Manager at Beech Tree focused on sourcing and executing investment opportunities as well as supporting our portfolio. Since joining Leigh has been involved in our investments in Performanta, Ancoris, Arc Systems, CovertSwarm, and Sustainable Energy First. Leigh currently sits on the boards of Advanta, Transparity and Learnlight.

Prior to joining Beech Tree, Leigh spent 7 years at Barclays undertaking roles in both Relationship Management and more recently Leveraged Finance where he supported both Private Equity and Corporate clients in financing strategic transactions such as Growth Capex, Cash Outs and M&A.

"As sector specialists we gain real insight into the sectors we invest in, meaning we know precisely what we're looking for and understand how to help each individual business grow. And by living and breathing in our sectors we've built strong networks and domain expertise which we bring to the table for our partners."

Luke enjoys most sports, especially football – both as a player and a spectator (a loyal Nottingham Forest supporter). At the weekend Luke spends his time trying to improve his golf handicap and exploring the restaurants of Manchester.

Luke is an Investment Director at Beech Tree, bringing a wealth of experience in advising technology & tech-enabled businesses. Since joining he has been involved in our investments in Avid, Transparity, Performanta, Ancoris, Arc, and Sustainable Energy First as well as the exits of our investments in Wavenet and BCN.

Prior to joining Beech Tree, Luke spent three years in Melbourne, Australia, working for a boutique investment bank advising on mid-market M&A transactions. Prior to that he helped establish the Manchester office for GP Bullhound, a European Technology Investment Bank.

Luke is a Chartered Accountant and trained with PwC in the audit department before spending three years in the Transaction Services team working on due diligence engagements. For over ten years now, Luke has been involved in the deals environment working on a variety of M&A transactions for both private equity and corporate clients.

"Having the opportunity to work alongside ambitious entrepreneurs and helping them to scale their businesses to become category leaders fuels my passion for what I do"

Ben is married and has two young children which take up most of his "free time" currently! Prior to having children, most of his spare time was spent playing water polo, where he competed at a national standard for City of Birmingham for many years. Ben also enjoys going to the gym and is a long suffering supporter of Stoke City FC.

Ben is a Director at Beech Tree, splitting his time between sourcing new investments, executing transactions and helping portfolio companies to achieve their growth plans. Ben currently sits on the boards of Avid Insurance Services, Obsequio Group and CovertSwarm as a non-executive director. Ben was also on the board of both Redstor and Fluent Money prior to their successful exits.

Before joining Beech Tree, Ben worked for Deloitte where he was an Assistant Director in the Corporate Finance Advisory team. For over five years, Ben advised a range of clients on a variety of M&A scenarios including MBOs, disposals and carve-outs. Ben is a chartered accountant, having spent three years in the Deloitte Audit department prior to joining the Corporate Finance Advisory team.

"It’s a genuine privilege working with management teams who are leading their respective industries. The best part for me is when I look back at the companies we have helped develop and what they have achieved. This is not only in terms of the growth but more importantly the quality of the people we have helped bring together to make the business a real success. After all, the quality of the team and it’s culture is what makes a great business."

Adam is married with 2 children and enjoys tennis, golf and mountain biking when not spending time with his family. Although having 2 children under the age of 10 has had a significant impact on his golf handicap.

Adam is a Partner at Beech Tree Private Equity and sits on the boards of Transparity, Performanta, Arc and Covert Swarm. Adam was also on the board of both BCN and Learnlight prior to their successful exits. He has significant experience both investing and advising technology & tech-enabled businesses across Europe. He was involved in Gresham Private Equity’s investments in Invest is and IESA and helped establish the Manchester office for GP Bullhound, a leading European Technology Investment Bank.

Prior to joining Beech Tree, Adam held senior roles in the technology sector team at Gresham Private Equity and KPMG having previously been in industry at AO.com. Adam’s early career included several positions in a UK small cap investment bank where he was an equity capital markets advisor helping companies IPO on both AIM and the main market of the London Stock Exchange.

"Starting up Beech Tree has allowed us to instil the right values into the culture of the business from day one, which, as most entrepreneurs know is so important for the success of their businesses. This as well as the exceptional sector focused team we have built have been the main reasons behind our success to date...long may it continue"

Andy founded Beech Tree Private Equity with Paul in October 2014 and focuses on investing financial services and support services companies. Andy has over 25 years private equity experience investing in these sectors in the UK and Australia - some of his deals include Fluent Money, Avid, Advanta Wealth, Learnlight, Sustainable Energy First, Giles, Ansa, IESA, LAS , ICR Integrity and James Grant.

Andy sits on the Investment Committee of Beech Tree and the Boards of Learnlight, Avid, Advanta Wealth and Sustainable Energy First. Before starting Beech Tree Andy worked at Gresham Private Equity for ten years where he ran the Manchester office and sat on the board of Gresham.

Andy is married with 3 children and most weekends involve supporting them (driving them around) in sporting activities. His other interests include the theatre, travel and watching his football team Manchester City. He has particular passion for social mobility and that features in the ESG policy of Beech Tree.

“The opportunity to set up and run a dynamic private equity business, having come from a mainstream mid-market private equity background, was just too tempting! Working with like-minded ambitious founders of high growth businesses, with the passion and energy that brings, is such a privilege”

Paul is married with two children and enjoys most sports, especially football (both playing and watching) and road cycling (or in a spin class or on the Peleton in the winter months!). Most weekends involve some form of sport, either participating or watching Aston Villa climb the Premier League!

Before setting up Beech Tree Private Equity with Andy in October 2014, Paul was Head of the Birmingham office of Gresham Private Equity and a member of the Gresham board. Paul has been involved in corporate finance for 27 years. Paul leads the technology sector at Beech Tree, alongside Adam. It’s an exciting area with technology transforming all aspects of our business and personal lives, so to be at the forefront of this change is amazing. Paul sits on the boards of Ancoris, Performanta and Obsequio.

Prior to working in private equity, Paul worked for a number of years in the corporate finance department for PricewaterhouseCoopers advising on a number of transactions including MBOs, public to privates and development capital deals. Paul was also seconded to Bridgepoint Capital.