A leading law firm with a Cheltenham base have ensured that they are set up for the new decade with the appointment of a new head of technology.

Harrison Clark Rickerby's, who have one of their eight regional bases in Chetlenham, have appointed Nicola McNeely to the new role to give the firm's expertise in the area renewed focus.

The firm said she will "advise on the legal and regulatory aspects of implementing blockchain technology for enterprise, as well as raising capital through Security Token Offering."

Her role is also to "work closely with start-up and scale up disrupters with their market propositions, MVP and growth strategies, as well as with large corporates on new technology adoption."

Ms McNeely has worked on secondment to The Royal Mint on new business and intellectual property and also for clients in a range of sectors on IT outsourcing agreements, master services agreements and blockchain solutions.

She will lead a team of 12 working across the firm's eight offices.

Ms McNeely said: "Technology touches all areas of our lives now, and it's important that we, as a firm, are ahead of the curve so that we can support clients who want to use technology to develop their business.

"Giving businesses the right help to enable them to grow is really important and I love working with entrepreneurial and innovative people."

Robert Capper, Head of Sectors for the firm, said: "Nicola's knowledge and experience in the sector are outstanding.

"I know that she will bring energy and commitment to the role and I look forward to working with her as she develops her vision and plan for our work in the sector."

Harrison Clark Rickerbys has more than 500 staff and partners based at offices in Worcester, Hereford, Cheltenham, Birmingham, the Wye Valley, the Thames Valley, central London and Cambridge.