Bishop Fleming has appointed a non-executive chair in February 2026, as it charges ahead with the next stage of the firm’s evolution after taking a private equity investment in 2025.
The tax, audit and advisory firm, with an office in Cheltenham, has appointed Giles Derry to the role.
He will support its 'Better Growth' strategy, which is said to involve rapid expansion through organic growth and strategic mergers and acquisitions.
Giles is a chartered accountant with extensive experience in leadership and investment. He spent 15 years as a private equity investor, including as a partner at Dunedin where he focused on scaling tech-enabled and business services companies.
He was CEO of private-equity-backed Blackrock Expert Services Group, with the company tripling in size during his four-year tenure.
Blackrock was then acquired by global risk and advisory firm, Kroll, where Giles held senior executive roles, most recently as president of the risk advisory business.
Bishop Fleming's CEO and managing partner, Andrew Sandiford, said: 'We’re delighted to welcome Giles as our first non‑executive chair. His track record of scaling people-focussed, professional services businesses and working with private‑equity‑backed organisations, brings valuable breadth of experience to our board.
'As we execute our growth plans, Giles’s perspective will help ensure we continue to deliver the trusted, personal service our clients expect, while scaling our business for the long term.'
Giles added: 'I’m delighted to be joining Bishop Fleming at this pivotal juncture in their growth. Bishop Fleming is a firm with strong values, impressive momentum and clear ambition.'
Bishop Fleming took a minority private equity investment from Synova, which manages £1.7 billion of capital across the UK, Ireland and continental Europe markets, in 2025, enabling it to pursue its ambitious growth goals while remaining partner-owned and led.
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