about Cassons

About Us

Over 40 years' experience
At Cassons we have been advising barristers on all aspects of their financial affairs for over 40 years. This means that from your first VAT return through to planning for your retirement, you can be sure, whatever questions and challenges you may face in your career at the Bar, we have seen them and dealt with them successfully before. Scroll down the page to see personal profiles of our team members!
Office Picture

Organising your finances
We are proud of our reputation for looking after pupil barristers. Indeed, we have for many years spoken on Organising Your Finances at the Northern Circuit Advice to Counsel pupil seminar. We are also proud to say that we have guided clients during their careers from pupillage through to silk and judicial appointment.

We truly care for our clients
But what makes us different is that we truly care for our clients. We have a dedicated team who look after our barristers and they always try to build strong personal relationships with them. We are able to understand the specific issues being faced by barristers and it gives us a lot of satisfaction that we are able to take away their problems and find them solutions.

Meet the team

We have a team of accountants and financial advisers who specialise in looking after our barrister clients and you can see their personal profiles below. You will generally have personal dealings with one or two of our people who will organise any additional specialist support as it's needed.

Andrew Hood - Bar Department Manager
Andrew is our Bar Department Manager and is therefore the primary point of contact for many of our barrister clients. Andrew is a qualified chartered tax adviser and independent financial adviser. He has been with Cassons for 10 years and his previous experience includes time spent at the Inland Revenue, a leading London accountancy practice and another north west firm.

Outside of work Andrew is also busy, whether it's running, walking, climbing and the odd cycling event, sometimes managing to do all these in one day!
Ashley Hayman - Senior Partner
Ashley read law at Cambridge before becoming a chartered accountant and chartered tax adviser and is senior partner of Cassons. He has specialised in financial services and forensic accounting, though probably spends more of his time at present involved in corporate finance deals. He is a Founding Individual Member of the Expert Witness Institute. As part of his general client portfolio Ashley is one of the partners in Cassons who specialise in the affairs of barristers. Indeed Ashley has been advising barristers since he began to work for Cassons in 1976. Ashley has advised the Council of Circuit Judges and the Association of District Judges on taxation matters.

Ashley is a keen mountain biker and also enjoys walking in the country, especially in the Lake District. He has recently started playing bridge again after a gap of about 20 years. He is also an enthusiastic freemason.
Claire Hardwick - Bar Accounts Assistant
Claire joined Cassons in October 2007 and now looks after the bookkeeping, accounts and tax for many of our barrister clients. Claire has had a varied career and is qualified as a bookkeeper. Her degree is in Maths and Computing for Business and she worked in Information Technology for many years, including being the European Information Systems Coordinator for Cirque du Soleil! Her knowledge of IT has meant that she has moved very smoothly into computer-based bookkeeping and is able to help clients with any difficulties they may have with their accountancy software.

Claire is an active member of the National Association of Ladies Circles (parallel organisation to Round Table) having been Chairman (twice) of her local Circle and the Area Publicity Officer. In addition Claire has her hands full with two young boys, aged ten and almost five!
Janet Dentith - Tax Senior
Janet joined Cassons as a graduate trainee in September 2008 having graduated with degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of Leeds. She has gained a wide range of accounts and tax experience during her 3 year training period with Cassons, and hopes to be a fully qualified chartered accountant by August 2011.

Janet has undertaken regular accounting and tax support roles in Cassons bar department and in May 2011 she moved a full time position within the bar department where she looks after a portfolio of barristers, with responsibility for their accounts and tax returns.

Janet is keen to keep fit as she swims and attends zumba classes every week.
John Davenport - Independent Financial Adviser
John has been an Independent Financial Adviser for 17 years. He is a pensions specialist and has spoken about pension matters on local tv and radio. John regularly carries out financial planning reviews for our barrister clients, advising especially on pensions, mortgages applications and protection policies.

John has been with Cassons since 2008 having previously worked at DTE. John started his career in 1986 at Nat West bank before moving to the Prudential insurance company. In fact he was “the man from the Pru” for 8 years.

John is a self confessed sun worshipper and likes to get away to hotter climates whenever he can. John is also a very keen swimmer to the point of taking part in outdoor swimming challenges.
Kevin Birch - Consultant
Kevin qualified as a chartered accountant with a small firm in the City of London then moved to Deloitte's in London and then South Africa, Swaziland, Botswana, Zimbabwe and finally Namibia. He became Group Accountant to the Namibian Breweries & Hansa Brauerei before returning to the UK as Financial Director of a mechanical engineering company.

Kevin later joined with two colleagues to set up an accountancy practice in the UK which merged with Wise & Co in 2004. He has specialised in the financial and fiscal affairs of barristers for thirty years and lectures on that subject at Inns of Court in London.

Kevin played rugby until he was forty-two and was a keen competitor in motor rallies. He loves skiing, follows motor sport (F1) and supports Weybridge Vandals and Harlequins rugby clubs. But Kevin's main interest is photography.
Les Nutter - Managing Partner
Les qualified as a chartered accountant in 1983 and became a partner in Cassons in 1989. Les is the firm’s Managing Partner and is responsible for marketing and client care. In 2007 he was awarded the first ever title of Accountancy Personality of the Year at the North West Society of Chartered Accountants annual “Accountancy and Business Awards” ceremony. In May 2011 he was elected Deputy President of the North West Society of Chartered Accountants. He has a varied general practice list and also specialises in looking after the finances of professional clients, especially barristers.

Les has been looking after barristers for over 25 years and he has seen many of his clients develop from pupillage to becoming junior barristers before taking Silk and being appointed to the Bench. Indeed some of those initial relationships are still in place and of course he has developed many more over the years.

Aside from work, Les is a keen gardener and his prized possessions are his concrete mixer and the skip which tends to be a permanent feature on his drive from spring to winter. Otherwise he is a keen on golf, cycling, swimming and skiing and is a general sportsman, “looking forward” to his first half marathon later this year.
Nick Parkinson - Tax Senior
Nick has been with Cassons since early 2005 and worked in our tax department for most of this time, looking after a portfolio of 220 clients. In April 2010 he became a permanent member of our bar department and now has a portfolio of barrister clients.

Nick is a keen sportsman and enjoys playing Sunday league football as well as being a season ticket holder at Burnley Football Club.
Steven Greenwood - Financial Services Partner
Steven started as an articled clerk with Touche Ross. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1986 whilst working at Cassons, becoming a partner in November 1996. Steven is a former “Investment IFA of the Year”.

As well as having the responsibility for our Financial Services Department, Steven also has a small portfolio of personal clients, including a number of barristers, looking after their wealth management and business advice needs.

In his spare time Steven is involved in junior football. He is also a keen skier, organising several visits to the snow each year.
Tony Reynolds - Partner and Head of Bar Department
Tony trained and qualified with a practice in Sale, South Manchester. He joined Cassons after qualifying in 1987, became an Associate in 1998, and a partner in 2002. He is the partner responsible for the Bar Department and also client relationship partner for a portfolio of non-barrister clients.

Tony is especially interested in the developments within the Bar to open up the legal services market, such as direct public access and the development of legal disciplinary practices and alternative business structures.

Tony is a keen golfer and spends as many summer weekends as possible out on the golf course and with his family at their mobile home on Anglesey.