Posted: 30/07/2025
Penningtons Manches Cooper announces the reappointment of Chief Executive Officer Helen Drayton for a second three-year term, beginning 1 October. Her re-election, unopposed and unanimously supported, follows a year of robust performance and strategic progress.
Strong financial performance
FY25 was the firm’s 16th consecutive year of growth, with revenue up 7% to £120 million, an 18.4% lift in profit to £42 million and a 25% increase in PEP to £555k.
“Our results reflect the power of a purposeful strategy,” Helen commented. “By focusing on delivering meaningful outcomes for our clients and creating agile, collaborative environments for our people, we’re building a business that’s both high-performing and anchored in our ambition to be the most human law firm.”
Three years of strategic progress
Since taking over the leadership, Helen’s priority has been to bring together the firm’s full service offering across its four divisions: Business Services, Dispute Resolution, Private Individuals and Real Estate, concentrating on servicing clients in its core and growth sectors – and internationally.
Client centric strategy
- Developed by a restructured Executive and Strategy Board, the 2023–26 Strategic Plan, focuses on putting clients at the heart of every decision and supporting colleagues to thrive and deliver the quality service clients have come to expect.
- The introduction of a new key client programme is helping deepen relationships and drive innovation.
People and culture
- The firm is equipping its lawyers with the tools they need to win, retain and grow client relationships. This has included an overhaul of the training academy for all associates, a new look ‘future leaders’ programme, the adoption of DCM Insights Activator Advantage training for all partners and the firmwide launch of LinkedIn Sales Navigator.
- The firm’s new family leave policy launched at the end of 2024, offering 26 weeks paid leave for all parents, and up to 52 weeks total leave, regardless of circumstances (pregnancy, surrogacy, adoption, or fostering). It also offers an additional 12 weeks of full pay for parents of babies needing neonatal care. The policy also includes support for fertility treatment, pregnancy loss, and dependents with long-term care needs.
Growth and expansion
- Since the launch of the 2023–26 Strategic Plan, the firm has appointed 23 new partners through a combination of strategic lateral hires and internal promotions. The appointments align with core and growth sectors, and reflect a commitment to supporting clients’ developing needs.
- The firm’s new hub in the port of Antibes, in the Soth of France, enables direct access to the high-growth Mediterranean yacht sector and wider maritime industries.
- The Singapore office has also strengthened its shipping, commodities, and trade finance offering in the Asia-Pacific with two recent partner hires.
Responsible business
- The firm has rejuvenated its responsible business programme over the last year. A new committee brings together key members of the executive team (including the CEO) together with specialist partners, to help shape and oversee the firm’s commitments to the environment and sustainability, diversity, equity and inclusion, and social impact in its communities.
- The firm’s five-year partnership with the Bumblebee Conservation Trust is among its long-term initiatives.
Real estate transformation
- This Spring saw the successful completion of the firm’s programme to modernise and enhance the working environments across its UK offices. Driven by the firm’s sustainability commitments, the project also aimed to create the best possible spaces for hybrid working and cross-team collaboration, including new premises in Guildford and Cambridge. The programme now moves to focus on the international offices.
Major client wins
- Significant client mandates strengthened the firm’s position in its core and growth sectors, emphasising its ability to deliver complex work, such as:
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- The cross-border aviation ‘mega-trial’, in which the firm’s specialist aviation team successfully defended Swiss Re against significant reinsurance exposure.
- The family team’s work on one the most significant cases involving pre-nuptial agreements since the landmark Radmacher decision in 2010.
- The Madrid office advising on the delivery of Europe’s first hybrid high speed passenger ferries, and members of the London based shipping team advising on the design, build and delivery of the world’s first ammonia marine duel-fuel supply system – both projects represented important milestones in the sector’s decarbonisation efforts.
“We’ve laid the foundations—and now we’re accelerating,” said Helen. “It’s a genuine privilege to continue leading such a talented and ambitious team. I’m looking forward to helping shape the next chapter of our journey, really harnessing the successes of the last three years with a clear focus on what matters most to our clients and people.”
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