AAT announces Vernon Anderson as 38th President

AAT has announced that Vernon Anderson has been appointed the organisation’s 38th President.

Vernon will hold the office of AAT President until September 2019. He succeeds Nicky Fisher in the role, and will be supported by John Thornton as Vice President.

Vernon’s career background includes time in the British Army and in the plastics industry. He is a former administration and finance manager at a large local town council, where in 2004 he first trained in what was then AAT’s Level 3 and Level 4 (now Advanced Diploma and Professional Diploma) core qualifications to support his role. Vernon became a qualified town clerk with legal responsibilities in both finance and council administration, and continued in similar roles while also being a Licensed Practitioner for over 10 years, until his early retirement in 2018.

During Vernon’s AAT membership he has been active within AAT’s branch network, being a committee member for both the Bristol Branch and Cornwall Branch. He launched the Cornwall Branch in 2010 as its inaugural chairman, then chaired the Bristol Branch from 2012 to 2015.

Following his appointment, Vernon said: "It’s an honour to become President of AAT. I’ve enjoyed my time working with various AAT branches and my time as Vice President over the past year, and now I’m looking forward to promoting the skills of our students and  members as President. AAT is a fantastic pathway for many thousands of people starting and progressing through careers in accountancy and bookkeeping, and I’m proud to play my own small part in the organisation’s work."

Biography: Vernon Anderson FMAAT

• 1958: Born in Leeds, West Yorkshire
• 1974: Completed education from Allerton Grange Comprehensive School, where he was one of the first pupils in Yorkshire to be educated in computer science
• 1976: Graduated from the Army Apprentice College as a vehicle technician, going on to be posted to Germany
• 1991: Left the armed forces to resettle in the UK
• 1996: Retrained as an injection moulding operative for a multinational plastics company
• 2004: Became Administration and Finance Manager with a large local town council which led to training in AAT’s level 3 and level 4 core qualifications
• 2012:  Elected to AAT’s Council
• 2018: Began early retirement. Elected President of AAT

Marriage proposal at AAT Achievement Awards

One of Vernon’s first tasks as President was to meet with over 300 AAT members at the AAT Achievement Awards Ceremony, which celebrated 25 years of full or fellow AAT membership, and was held at the Grange St Paul's Hotel in London on 29 September.

Along with handing out various awards, Vernon witnessed a marriage proposal where AAT member Connie Haste was proposed to by Will Dredge. Watch this video to find out if she said yes!