Directors

John joined the firm in 1992.

Together with his team, John works closely with a variety of clients/businesses from sole-traders to large companies, and offers assistance and advice in all areas, such as bookkeeping, accounts, direct and indirect taxation and statutory audit.

He has considerable experience in dealing with your traditional large trading companies including home grown manufacturing, and import/export wholesale.

John’s approach and commitment has led him to head up ‘Special Work’ assignments dealing with both purchaser and vendor due diligence in many fields, and also Ad-Hoc Accountants Report work more recently focusing on bridging and development loan finance.

Finally, if you require any advice or assistance with matters Solicitors Accounts Rules related, then John will be your go to contact at LGB.

Graham Morris joined Lopian’s back in January 1985 and has been involved in just about every sector of the practice over the years providing him with invaluable experience as a general practitioner whilst still allowing him to specialize in the preparation of accounts, audits and corporate tax work for some of the larger groups within the office.

Outside work, he is very much kept busy and on his toes by his wife, four children and three grandchildren. He is also responsible for managing the finances of one of the largest junior football clubs in the North West.

To relax Graham’s passions are walking and horses. There is nothing he loves more than having a weekend away either tackling a climb in the Lake District or enjoying the hospitality at a race meeting cheering home one of the racehorses he has small interests in.

Jason trained in accountancy with Price Waterhouse in Manchester, later moving to Ernst & Young where he qualified as a tax adviser in 1994.

After specialising in International Corporate Taxation in the London office of Ernst & Young, Jason returned to Manchester and subsequently rejoined PricewaterhouseCoopers. During this time Jason was heavily involved in the $500m refinancing of the UK division of a major consumer group and the flotation of a FTSE 100 listed company with a market capitalisation of £1bn.

Jason joined Lopian Gross Barnett in 2002 to refocus on providing general accounting and taxation advice to entrepreneurs and was made a Director of the firm in 2004.

In his spare time Jason enjoys Hergé's Adventures of Tin Tin, playing 5-a-side football, suffering through Newcastle United FC matches and spending time with his wife, three children and his dog Sherlock.

He works closely with many international, privately owned businesses and trusts, delivering accounting advice, corporate and personal tax advice and general business advisory.

He has advised on the tax and commercial implications of company reorganisations as well as the sale and purchase of businesses.

Jonathan also has significant experience in the carehome sector and property sector.

Simon joined Lopian Gross Barnett in 2013 and has made it his ambition to change the stereotypical image of an accountant. ‘Being an accountant and tax advisor is not about sitting behind a desk crunching numbers, it’s about understanding a client’s business and/or personal aspirations and working with them to help them achieve those ambitions in the best possible way. This is the driver behind the way I work with my clients every day’.

Simon saw that this was a fundamental part of the firm’s approach to client relationships and jumped at the chance to join the practice.

Simon qualified as a Chartered Accountant and Chartered Tax Adviser whilst working for PwC in London, working within the Entrepreneurial and Private Client tax department. Whilst Simon’s eldest daughter would say that she was the driving force behind their move back to his northern homeland, after 6 years in London Simon realised his heart was still in Manchester. On relocating with his family, he joined BDO where he pursued his passion for working with entrepreneurs and their businesses and high net worth individuals.

Through all of these roles, Simon developed experience in a range of corporate matters, including tax efficient profit extraction, company reorganisations and share structuring. He has been involved in advising shareholders and management teams on business sales and management buy-outs, as well as financial due diligence matters.

On the private client side Simon is regularly involved in Capital Gains Tax and Inheritance Tax planning, as well as advising non-UK resident and non-UK domiciled individuals.

Simon advises broadly within his field but he has particular expertise in the following areas:

• Corporate Reorganisations and Succession Planning
• Structures for Employee Incentivisation
• Research & Development Tax Relief
• Enterprise Investment Scheme
• Stamp Duty Land Tax

Away from work, when not dealing with the trials and tribulations of three daughters, Simon is a sports enthusiast (anything other than horse racing or boxing!) and struggles to rein in his competitive tendencies. Despite requests from his wife to draw breath, Simon has a habit of getting involved in communal and charity initiatives – being passionate about a few of these projects he says he struggles to say no!

Ben joined Lopian Gross Barnett in 2018. Having completed his training in London he found himself gravitating back to the North West where he grew up. He joined PwC's Private Business team where he spent six years advising private businesses, owners and high-net worth individuals prior to his move to Lopians.

Ben advises his clients on a broad range of tax issues with particular expertise in the following:

• Transactional work including management buy-outs, share sales and partial exits
• Business restructuring including share-for-share exchanges, demergers and mergers.
• Expatriate tax & non-domiciles, including planning for inbounds/outbounds and remittance basis planning.
• Inheritance tax/succession planning
• Trusts
• Employee share and share option schemes
• Stamp duty

Ben has a deep-rooted passion for tax which boils down to an enjoyment in finding neat solutions to complex issues by working through the myriad of tax legislation....sometimes late at night in a dimly lit room. He enjoys forming close relationships with his clients and advising on all aspects of their personal and business tax affairs.

Outside of work Ben enjoys spending time with his family, including two young children who keep him on his toes figuratively and physically.

Nat has been a Director at Lopian Gross Barnett since 2019.

Nat specialises in Audit and Financial Reporting and covers clients in a wide range of different sectors and of all different sizes.

In his spare time Nat enjoys spending time with his wife and four children and is a proud Leeds United supporter.

He provides a comprehensive and hands-on service to his clients and has spent his career servicing a wide range of sectors and this experience means he is equally able to advise business start-ups, family-owned/managed businesses and multinational organisations.

Daniel is passionate in providing a complete service for his clients and is equally comfortable acting as a quasi-finance director, auditor or tax advisor.

He also has a wealth of experience in specialist areas such as VAT and tax on property developments, research and development tax credits, EMI share options and SEIS and EIS reliefs. 

Daniel leads the cloud accounting team and is an expert in advising clients on how best to switch from manual records onto Xero and other software providers in order to ensure that they are VAT Making Tax Digital (MTD) compliant and have access to up to date financial information. 

In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his wife and two children.  He is also a director of the Delamere Charitable Trust which provides funding for children with special educational needs.