The opportunity

A well established, fully FCA regulated wealth management firm based in Bristol is building an in-house tax and accountancy division, and is looking for the senior tax professional who will lead it.

The firm advises a distinctive client base drawn from professional sport and the entertainment industry – clients whose earnings are concentrated into short, intense career windows and whose tax affairs are correspondingly complex. Until now, that work has been referred out to external accountancy practices. The business has reached the point where it wants to own that relationship: to advise the whole client, keep the work in house, and open up cross-referrals in both directions between wealth management and tax.

This is a build, not a takeover. You would be the first senior appointment into the new division, shaping the service, the pricing, the systems and eventually the team around you. The firm is part of a national advice network backed by one of the UK’s longest-established wealth managers, so you would be building inside an established, regulated business rather than starting from nothing.

What you will be doing

Establishing and leading the firm’s tax and accountancy division from first principles

Advising a high net worth client base of sports professionals and entertainment figures on personal tax, image rights, incorporation, remuneration structuring and long-term planning

Working alongside the wealth management team so that tax and investment advice genuinely join up, and building the cross-referral flow between the two

Setting the service model – scope, pricing, workflow, software and compliance processes

Recruiting and developing the team as the division grows, alongside the firm’s wider expansion plans

Contributing to the leadership of the business as a partner in waiting rather than as a technician

What we are looking for

A senior tax professional from a practice background – CTA qualified, or ACA/ACCA with a strong personal tax specialism. Candidates dual qualified in tax and accountancy will be of particular interest

Demonstrable private client or high net worth personal tax experience; exposure to sports, entertainment, media or other high-earning individual clients is a significant advantage

Someone who has built or materially grown a service line, department or client portfolio, rather than only inherited one

Commercial instinct as well as technical depth – you will be expected to win and keep clients, not simply service them

The credibility and communication skills to sit in front of clients and their advisers, and the appetite to work closely with a wealth management team

Someone looking for a long-term home with autonomy and ownership, not a stepping stone

What is on offer

A base salary of £80,000 to £100,000 depending on experience, with bonus and profit share on top. The reward model is deliberately built around profit share rather than commission, so that the person leading the division is rewarded for building something durable rather than for chasing individual fees.

Beyond that, there is a clear and genuine route to equity participation over the next three to five years for the right individual. The firm is expanding – additional premises, further wealth managers and support staff – and wants the person who leads this division to grow with it.