Hi, I'm Briony.
Associate Director - Business Tax, and family chef, Reading
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My journey so far…
I was born in Winchester, but lived in Saudi Arabia for several years as a child. My dad worked in the crane hire business, so our whole family moved out for his job. We lived on an ex-pat compound, and my main memories are of playing in the swimming pool with the other children who lived nearby.
After a brief stint in Kuwait when I was 13, we moved to Chichester, where I completed the rest of my education. I’d always wanted to study law, so I chose a Tax and Legal Degree at Bournemouth University. To my surprise, I didn’t really enjoy the legal side as much as I’d hoped. But during my placement year I had the opportunity to sit in on an HMRC inquiry meeting about someone who had been underpaying tax. It was really interesting, and inspired me to help people to get things right.
After working for other accounting firms, I joined Deloitte as an Associate Director in the Private Client practice in 2019, in the Reading office. I really like it here, as it’s very central and there’s always a nice buzz and a sense of community, plus you can easily go to London for meetings too. Flexible working means I enjoy a mix of office days, alongside home working. When I first joined the firm I was doing 23 hours a week to support my life as a mum with two children. They’re now getting older so I’ve started working four days across five, which is the perfect balance. It’s great that I’ve been supported to increase or decrease my hours in line with the needs of my family.
"I’m a people person, so I enjoy developing relationships and building trust with my clients. Every new venture has a tax element, and I love being able to demystify that for people to help them achieve their goals."
Work that matters
In my current role, I support private clients, typically entrepreneurs and high net worth individuals. I advise them on all aspects of their tax affairs, which includes anything from selling shares in their businesses to helping them structure a new business. I also support them when they’re planning new investments or charitable donations, as well discussing the tax implications of personal situations when needed. My job is mainly around education and ensuring that people fully understand and are compliant with tax laws. Compliance with tax laws is essential for everyone, but it can be complicated. I enjoy helping people understand what they need to do, and why it’s so important to get right.
Another part of my job I really love is working with individuals and families - I get to build relationships and be their trusted advisor. I especially like talking to people about what they do and the exciting businesses or charity initiatives they’re creating. For example, investing in conservation and renewable energy is something many of my clients are now interested in, and I’m able to support their goals from a tax perspective.
Highlights from my week
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I met a potential new client for coffee who is selling her business. We have developed a good rapport and she told me that she trusts me to get things right, which is really nice to hear. | I worked from home today. It’s great that we can be flexible about where we work, taking into account the needs of our clients and teams. Within 10 minutes of finishing, I collected my children and went for a walk. | I had a positive feedback session with one of the partners on a piece of work that I led the team on. It was the first piece of work that I had undertaken for that partner, so it was great to have a positive outcome. | I finished early today as it was one of my shorter days so I was able to sit and watch my son and daughter at rugby training. My husband was back from work early too, so we had a lovely family dinner. | Our team delivered its part of a large engagement, which involves multiple teams. It was a great feeling to end the week completing a project as it really sets you up for a relaxing weekend. |
My weekend looks like
I love doing things with my family. My children are very sporty, so we are always off to rugby matches or gymnastics classes. We enjoy going walking or mountain biking together in the New Forest and spending time with friends and family locally.
I take time out to exercise, and I also love cooking. We get fruit and vegetable boxes delivered, and I spend time planning our family meals around all the amazing seasonal produce we get.
3 things I've learned
Embrace learning
There are so many opportunities to learn and grow on a daily basis, it doesn’t stop once formally education and qualifications have finished. Learning is life long, and it’s always something I’ve really enjoyed.
Be yourself
We’re all unique, and we all bring different experiences and perspectives with us in both our working and personal lives. Diverse teams really do perform better, because you can utilise those wide-ranging perspectives.
There is no such thing as a stupid question
You can do anything with the right knowledge and you can always ask. Whether you’re new to a role or very experienced, it’s important to make sure you ask questions and communicate with your team and clients.
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Briony's book recommendation
Jen Gale
The Sustainable(ish) Living Guide
"Climate change is scary, and many of us wonder what impact we can have as individuals. This book discusses how small changes can have an impact, and the huge potential that we have to create positive change - even if we’re not doing everything perfectly. The author quotes Anna Lappe, saying: “Every time you spend money, you’re casting a vote for the kind of world you want”. This really struck a chord with me, and I think it’s an important principle to take away."
