A finance veteran has been hired to take charge of the books at one of Bath's biggest private employers.

Former Misys Healthcare Systems chief financial officer Charles Lambert has become finance director of accident assistance specialist Helphire. He takes over from Mark Adams, who stepped up to lead the firm after the departure earlier this year of founder Mark Jackson.

The 50-year-old previously served as chief financial officer at Medic Computer Systems and as finance director of BOC Gases Europe.

Mr Lambert will now become part of an executive management group on the board of Helphire, alongside Mr Adams.

He said: "I am very pleased to be joining a business with such a strong local presence. Helphire has an impressive record and despite the very challenging economic conditions we face at present, there are significant opportunities."

The firm's group commercial director David Robertson and group legal director Peter Holding will no longer sit on the board but will retain their executive roles.

An interim management statement last month revealed profitability was lower than expected because a large chunk of the group's costs are either fixed in the short-term or driven by the number of hire cases rather than the number of hire days.

Helphire's end-of-year results issued in September showed pre-tax profits were up by 6.9 per cent to £43 million.

Mr Adams said: "We are very pleased to have someone of Charles's calibre join the group"