19th October, 2023, Melanie Harriss
At just 16, Bethany Little broke the record as the youngest trainee accountant in Stephenson Smart’s 103-year history. Fast forward five years and she’s done it again – as one of the youngest people in the UK to pass the joint ACA/CTA qualification, giving her the title of Chartered Tax Adviser.
Now 22, Beth has also been promoted to manager at the firm’s King’s Lynn office and is enjoying working alongside the other tax specialists there to support clients, and trainees.
Beth said: “The option of taking the joint qualification is part of our armoury and demonstrates the level of service that we offer. To perhaps be the youngest person to have achieved it is incredible, but to me I’ve just done what I can to be the best I can be at my job.”
Beth joins an experienced team of tax specialists within the firm, who assist with queries across the firm’s seven offices. This often includes offering more specialist advice in areas such as capital gains tax, self-assessment for non-UK residents, Inheritance Tax liabilities and complex Stamp Duty Land tax calculations.
It was partner, Claire Melton, who spotted Beth’s potential when she joined her team on work experience and took her on as a trainee. Claire has a further specialist qualification in the firm as a member of the Society of Trusts and Estates Practitioners (STEP), this gives her the expertise in all things trust and estate related, which are pivotal to most tax planning strategies.
In addition to Beth and Claire, the firm are fortunate to have Dan Jastrzebski and Henry Pettitt as two partners who also hold the CTA tax specialist qualification, and tax manager, Kayleigh Wilson. Working towards their CTA qualification alongside the experts are Luke Wrycraft, Jordan Hill and Ellie Raynor. It became obvious to Luke that specialising in tax would be a good way forward when he achieved 95 per cent for his ACCA tax exam, the highest result worldwide in that sitting!
Claire said: “As a firm we aim to always be at the top of our game so we can offer our clients an unrivalled level of service and experience. This can only be achieved by investing in, and honing the talents of people like Beth, who shone from our very first meeting with her.”
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