UK – Insurance and pension industry consulting firm HighamNobbs Consulting is to change its name and take on 200 new employees as it expands its core business.

HighamNobbs today announced that it would change its name to Higham Group to reflect its extended product range; it says it will be expanding further.

The group now offers: complaints management to insurance companies; services to help employers through the pensions process; services for pension scheme wind-ups; and actuarial and consulting products, and clients include organisations such as Akzo Nobel, BAE Systems, Enron, Legal & General, Prudential and Zurich Financial Services.

Says Alan Higham, founder and managing partner: “The trend in company pension schemes towards closure, benefit reviews and increased funding requirements are changing the shape of the services required by this sector.”

“We recognised the need to move away from traditional consulting based advice to provide effective tailored solutions where we take responsibility for delivering rather than advising on how it could be done. We are actively recruiting and training new staff to ensure we continue to deliver service of the highest standard.”

A spokeswoman for the company said that of the 200 recruits anticipated, the majority would be in the insurance services and complaints handling sector. A new office in Shrewsbury will accommodate the staff. The London office also moved location today.

HighamNobbs was established in 1998. Last year co-founder Richard Nobbs left to start up his own consultancy company.