The Lomond Group has strengthened its senior leadership team as it accelerates its growth strategy across the UK with the appointment of three new directors.

Lucy Jones has joined as chief operating officer, Kirsty Franks has taken up the role of group marketing director, and Clare Wakeford has become its group human resources director.

All three are newly-created board roles at the Leeds-headquartered group, whose fast-expanding network of lettings and sales agents includes high street brands Linley & Simpson, Thornley Groves, John Shepherd, Brand Vaughan and Michael Jones & Company in England, plus Stonehouse and Braemore in Scotland.

Group chief executive, Stuart Pender, said: “All three directors have a proven track record for success in their respective fields and we are delighted to welcome them to team Lomond.

“They join at a pivotal time for the group as we step up our plans to grow at scale and at speed in both existing and new regions across the UK.

“To secure leaders of Lucy’s, Kirsty’s and Clare’s calibre, with their collective experience, is a major step forward for us as well as a clear signal of our ambitions. We look forward to them contributing to our future success.”

Jones brings to her COO role over 20 years’ experience in the residential property sector, most recently as managing director of online agency, Rentify.

She is a former equity partner at Knight Frank where she set up the investment lettings department as well as being head of lettings operations before being appointed as head of lettings.

Previous to this, Jones held various roles with LSL Property Services, most latterly as operations director.

Franks joins from Bayfields Opticians, where she was marketing and communications director leading a central marketing team which supported the business through a period of significant organic and acquisitive growth.

She brings extensive knowledge and experience in both B2B and B2C marketing across a diverse range of sectors including in retail, healthcare, financial services, IT, and not-for-profit.

In her new role, she is responsible for brand, marketing, and all areas of internal and external communications for the Group.

Wakeford, who leads the HR strategy for the group, adds more than two decades’ experience of People and Talent Management across a number of business sectors.

This includes senior HR positions across financial services, insurance, retail and private medical businesses, including mergers, acquisition and change management.

She joins from the Bravo Group, where she was group HR director, building and leading its people strategy and supporting the company’s rapid growth in the UK insurance broking market through regional acquisitions. Bravo Group was successfully acquired by the Ardonagh Group in 2021.

They join a Lomond Group board comprising chairman Peter Chappelow; group chief executive Stuart Pender; group managing director Will Linley; chief financial officer Martin Elliott; group finance director Finlay McNaughton; group acquisitions director Robert Hamilton; Regional CEOs Nick Simpson, Richard Crathorne, Jason Watkin, Tom Ghibaldan and Andy Seldon; and Non-Executive Director Jon Cooke.