Legal staffing firm BCL Legal has appointed Sarah Thomas as training and operations director.

Thomas is responsible for the training and development of all consultants and previously worked for a multi-sector international recruitment organisation, more recently leading its training programmes across its European office network.

The firm has also appointed a number of consultants, with Ben Hartridge joining the in-house legal team focusing on placing solicitors and company secretaries in businesses across the North, while Ify Okpalugo will be advising paralegals and legal executives looking to work in private practice.

Ben Gates joins the interim and temporary contracts team to source temporary opportunities for lawyers acting for private practices, in-house legal departments as well as public sector and not-for-profit businesses across the Midlands.

Joe Gregory has been appointed to place solicitors within private practices in Yorkshire and the North-East, primarily focusing on firms in Sheffield, Newcastle, Hull and Durham.