Graham Steele joins RSM’s innovation relief team

RSM has expanded its North West tax practice with a key partner hire.

Graham Steele joins from KPMG where he headed up the North innovation tax reliefs team. He specialises in innovation tax reliefs, including R&D tax reliefs, patent box and creative sector tax reliefs.

In his new role, Graham will work with the 110-strong North West tax team to grow the regional innovation relief offering and further enhance RSM’s technical and sector expertise within the team.

The expansion in the North West team, which now comprises over 670 partners and staff, underlines RSM’s growth ambitions in the local market.

Colin Smyth, tax partner at RSM, said: ‘More and more businesses are taking advantage of innovation tax reliefs, like R&D tax relief, patent box and creative sector tax reliefs, and it’s great to further enhance our 10-strong North West team with Graham’s appointment. Graham is well known and respected throughout the North and we are delighted to welcome him to RSM.’

Graham Steele added: ‘It’s great to be joining such an experienced, established team and we have ambitious plans to further grow our innovation tax reliefs practice. There is a huge amount of opportunity given the latest HMRC statistics show the number of claims for R&D tax credits continues to rise, with a record £4.4bn of government support claimed in the last year. 

‘The need for quality advice in this area has also never been greater, as we have seen both an increase in HMRC checks on claims and a proliferation of new advisors entering the marketplace. As a result, it is crucial that businesses take sound advice to capture the entitlements available to them and we are well placed to support regional businesses to achieve this.’