DARWEN: Three months after joining Crown Paints, the largest independent decorative coatings manufacturer in the UK and Eire, Kathryn Hill has been appointed as the company's financial director and board member.

Ms Hill brings over 20 years of experience to the role. she has held  senior financial manager and finance director posts across a broad range of industries and disciplines including auditing, manufacturing, asset management and logistics.

Thirteen years as a senior manager with PricewaterhouseCoopers provided Ms Hill with the opportunity to work closely with a portfolio of blue chip clients operating in many diverse sectors of the market.

She then spent four years as finance director at Plaxton, the coach builder, followed by five years as European finance director with TrenStar, an international asset management and integrated logistics company.