ATT Welcome: Sharing the journey

At our AGM in July, I took on the role of Deputy President, succeeding Barry Jefferd, who will now take on the role of President. I’m really looking forward to working with Barry for another year, alongside our new Vice President, Richard Freeman.

To briefly introduce myself, after studying Philosophy and Politics at Leeds University, I headed to Bristol to begin my corporate tax career at Grant Thornton. While completing my ATT and CTA qualifications, I decided to specialise in R&D tax credits and have stuck with that ever since! Over the past decade, I have worked in a variety of businesses and have had the pleasure of meeting so many of our members and readers of this magazine along the way.

The last few months have been full of successes and joyful occasions for the ATT. In June, we were all over the moon to hear that our very own Emma Rawson had been awarded an OBE in the 2026 King’s Birthday Honours, following her Outstanding Contribution to Taxation by an Individual award at the 2026 Tolley’s Taxation Awards earlier this year.

We are all so proud of Emma and the relentless dedication and expertise she brings to supporting HMRC, taxpayers and schoolchildren across the country. Her knowledge never ceases to amaze me, and I’m always grateful for her guidance. Both awards are thoroughly deserved!

Later in June came the Admissions Ceremony, where we welcomed our new members, prize winners and their families and friends to Merchant Taylors’ Hall to celebrate the culmination of years of hard work, and the dedication of studying alongside work and other commitments. This was my first Admissions Ceremony since joining Council and the Leadership team and, despite it being one of the hottest days of the year, it was a wonderful occasion. I also had the pleasure of reading out each member’s name, making it an especially memorable experience.

Moving into July, I would like to congratulate everyone who passed their examinations. Across the board, these are the highest marks we have seen for some time, with our examiners commenting on how better prepared the candidates were following the move to a closed-book exam format. Our students should be so proud of their achievements. If you have now completed your final exams, I hope you enjoy having your evenings and weekends back! I hope to see many of you at the next Admissions Ceremony so we can celebrate your success.

One of the aspects of this role that I enjoy the most is the opportunity to meet members from across the country. Although we work in different sectors, firms and specialisms, our conversations soon turn to familiar themes: the pace of legislative change, increasingly complex compliance obligations and, of course, the challenge of explaining all of this to clients who understandably wonder why tax never seems to get any simpler. For me, that is where the real value of professional qualifications and membership organisations lie.

Since joining the ATT Council in January 2023, I have served on a range of committees across both the ATT and the CIOT. Two key threads have run consistently through both my career and my committee work: professional standards and equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI).

Both will remain priorities throughout my year as Deputy President. It is essential that we continue to promote the highest ethical and professional standards, and work closely with our trusted colleagues at HMRC to achieve this common goal. At the same time, we must ensure that a career in tax remains open and accessible to people from all walks of life, including working closely with employers in creating opportunities for those with a range of disabilities. A career in tax should be open to everyone, and all are welcome.

As we look ahead to the autumn and beyond, many of our students will be gearing up for their first or next round of studies, and I wish you the best of luck! In the meantime, I’m excited to meet many of our members at branch events and continue to champion the work the ATT are doing.

I do hope you all enjoy the rest of the summer – and until next time!