Members in practice advisory board
The Members in Practice Advisory Board has been set up by ICAS to serve the needs of small and medium-sized CA practices.
The board, which is chaired by Suzy Kerton, meets every 3 months to discuss matters affecting practitioners and considers how ICAS can help practitioners deal with the issues which they face in their day to day working lives and ensures that ICAS has the necessary support structures in place.
The board is made up of a mixture of accountants in practice, with ICAS employees also playing a role in ensuring that the recommendations of the board are acted upon.
MiPAB members
The board is made up of the following members:
Suzy Kerton
Suzy Kerton qualified as a CA with Baker Tilly in 2012 and completed a secondment to the Buenos Aires office in Argentina shortly after qualifying.
She became CFO of a cloud accounting software company at just 26 years of age which set her in good stead when starting her own cloud-based accountancy practice. After a brief spell as Financial Accountant at the Cabinet Office, she embarked on a Full-Time MBA at Imperial College Business School. It was during the MBA that Suzy, with her business partner Latha, started Zyla Accountants, an accountancy practice offering a full range of accountancy services to startups and small businesses from year-end accounts and VAT returns to R&D tax credits and SEIS compliance.
Suzy is passionate about helping businesses understand their finances and making their accounting processes easy and efficient. Suzy also sits on the ICAS Council and the London Area Network. Beyond accountant life Suzy plays basketball and tennis, she speaks Spanish and Portuguese and loves to travel.
Angus Cowie
Angus is a partner at Williamson & Dunn in Aberdeen.
He qualified as a CA with the firm in 2003 and has quickly progressed up the ranks, having joined them as a trainee after studying Accountancy at Aberdeen University.
He specialises in a broad range of work areas including Audit & Accounts, Corporate and Personal Tax, Corporate Finance and VAT / Payroll all across a broad range of industry groups including Oil and Gas, Hospitality, IT and the Motor Trade to name a few.
In his spare time he enjoys playing Golf, Football and Walking.
John Kennedy
John is a principal in Cowan & Partners Limited, a general practice CA firm based in Leith. While principally a general practitioner, John is also an audit RI and has a wide experience in all aspects of audit, accounting and taxation, advising clients across a broad range of business types and industry sectors, including charities. Cowan & Partners is an ICAS training office and John is Training Principal in the firm.
Following graduation from Edinburgh University, John trained with Price Waterhouse in Edinburgh and after qualifying as a CA in 1983 spent over seven years in their tax department before moving to general practice with Cowan & Partners.
John is actively involved in a number of aspects of ICAS activities and is currently convenor of the local Area Training Committee and a member of the Student Education Committee and the CPD Regulatory Committee.
Outside work, John has held various roles in The Scout Association and is currently a member of the Trustee Board and Honorary Treasurer of The Scout Association in Scotland. John is married to Fiona and they have three children.
Emma Rodger
Emma Rodger graduated from Glasgow University in 1999 and spent 3 years training with Reeves and Neylan in Perth, specialising in working with owner managed businesses.
After qualifying in 2005 Emma moved with Ernst and Young to Bermuda to work in their SME department. A few years in the industry followed, as did a move back to the UK and 2 fabulous boys and in 2011 she decided to set up her own accountancy firm to achieve a better work-life balance. She has never been busier!
Outside of work Emma is a keen runner and tennis player and is an avid Dundee United fan which is tricky when based in Sheffield. She is also closely involved with the local school and is Vice Chair of the Governing Body. Other interests include working with the tax charity ‘Tax Help for Older People’ to provide tax advice to those who otherwise would be unable to access professional help.
Matt Donnelly
Matt is Managing Partner of Atkinson Donnelly trading as AD+. He has always been driven and passionate about his work and excels in delivering an excellent service to his clients. He has assisted many companies in realising greater profitability and success. His firm belief is that above all else, a person can build a business by developing good relationships. Matt's no-nonsense, straight-talking style has helped many clients in this regard. He is a keen supporter of many charities and has undertaken gruelling tasks to raise money for charities such as St Andrews Hospice, including trekking across the Great Wall of China, Machu Picchu in Peru, the Rockies in Canada and Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
Matt is married and has three children, the eldest of whom is a qualified Chartered accountant and the youngest is training to become an accountant. Matt's interests outside work include autobiographies, football and charity work.
Colleen Welsh
After leaving school, Colleen embarked upon her accountancy career in 2011 with RSM Tenon, where she studied for and gained the AAT qualification. She then trained and qualified as a CA with Consilium Chartered Accountants in 2016. Colleen has experience of working in a number of accounts practices, ranging from independent, start-up firms to international firms.
Her roles have covered a wide range of specialisms including statutory accounts, VAT, tax compliance, management accounting and business support, and digital and software solutions.
Colleen currently lives in Edinburgh, is an ambassador and campaigner for mental health causes and loves to travel and spend time with her dog.
Eric John Summers
EJ joined the family firm, Leiper & Summers, in 2011 and became Partner in 2016. The firm is based in Fraserburgh but supports clients throughout North East of Scotland, Aberdeen and Shetland.
After qualifying as a CA in 2009, EJ became Scottish Young Accountant of the Year 2014 and was part of the ICAS Top 100 Young Chartered Accountants in 2018. He specialises in working with owner managed small to medium sized businesses across varying industries. He thoroughly enjoys working with clients and delivers his work with great enthusiasm and client service.
When time allows, EJ enjoys hiking and has almost completed his first round of Scottish Munro’s with 13 left to hike out of 282. He enjoys playing badminton and is a huge fan of Formula One.
Eilidh Harman
Eilidh Harman became a Partner in 2017 with Bell Ogilvy in Castle Douglas in South West Scotland.
She studied Accounting and Finance at Strathclyde University before moving to Dumfries to a small firm where she trained as a CA and qualified in 2009.
Eilidh enjoys working with local businesses and assisting them with accounts, corporate and personal tax along with business support services. She enjoys being able to work closely with clients and their businesses and help them take their business in the direction they wish.
Outside of work Eilidh lives with her husband who is also a CA and their young daughter. She enjoys socialising with friends and family, travelling and keeping fit.