Ball & Berry appoints associate director

Fulwood-based approved inspector Ball & Berry has appointed Karen Pritchard as associate director for the North West.

Karen Pritchard will oversee Ball & Berry’s various sector portfolios and will be tasked with driving forward the business’ growth in the region, using her extensive connections to establish new strategic partnerships to continue building the company’s reputation.

Karen’s first experience of building control came in 1999 via her father, who worked in the field for Cheshire West and Chester Council. The team required an assistant to support surveyors with internal admin, and Karen fulfilled the role.

She undertook extensive training on building surveying and control and became an Assistant Building Surveyor for the council in 2002, a role which she progressed in up to 2009 when she became a Building Consultancy Surveyor working in education, hospitality, leisure and commercial sectors.

In 2015, she moved into the private sector, working on numerous Ministry of Defence projects, including several military barracks, before becoming a Project Manager in 2018. She was later promoted to Principal Managing Surveyor and Regional Manager for the North West, before joining Ball & Berry as an Associate Director.

Her extensive expertise in building control and consultancy surveying spans various industries, including local authority, education, healthcare, defence and residential, and she is always willing to take on additional responsibilities.

Karen is currently studying an NVQ in Spectator Safety, having spent several years as a safety steward for Wrexham AFC. She is a former Chair of Wales’ regional group for CABE, and was a board member for CABE until May 2017.

Karen said: “Having worked for both local authority and private sector companies, I’ve experienced virtually every application of building control possible, which has armed me with extensive knowledge of the sector. I’ve also straddled projects across England and Wales, so understand the differing regulations and ways of working – something which I will apply to my new role.

"I’m excited to get stuck in and particularly keen to spend my time training the younger generation, supporting the development of junior staff so they can get involved in all parts of building control just as I was able to.”

Paul McNeill, director at Ball & Berry, said: “Karen is a proactive self-starter and has demonstrated she is keen to push the boundaries of our business to help us further raise our profile as the leader in our field.

“Within a short space of time she’s already made a huge impression, and I know her experience will shine throughout the business to inspire other people to follow in her footsteps well into the future.”