Businesswoman Elinor Perry has had plenty to celebrate after being awarded a national Lifetime Achievement Award in the same month that she marks 20 years at the helm of her accountancy firm.

Elinor, was surprised with the gong at The Ladies First Inspirational Awards in Southam earlier this month, recognising a successful career at the helm of Pentlands Accountants and Advisors in Warwick.

But Elinor’s journey began as a trainee at Marks and Spencer’s at the age of 16 after leaving school with a clutch of O-levels to her name. Only two years later a speculative job application resulted in a role as Tesco’s youngest ever Personnel Manager, heading up a 250-strong team.

New-found ambitions were tested however when, at the age of just 19, Elinor fell pregnant with her son, Joel and, eight years later, became a single mum of two following the birth of her daughter Lucy and subsequent marriage breakdown.

But it was during a period of entrepreneurship, running her own retail fashion business at 23, that opened her eyes to what finally became her successful career path. She recalls:

“I always describe the shop as a great learning curve, but a really bad idea! I did the bookkeeping and learned how to use the accounting software. At that time I had this very old-fashioned accountant who was sat in his pinstripe suit on the opposite side of the desk, with his fountain pen and he said to me: ‘Here's your accounts. Sign here young lady’ and handed over a biro. And I thought, I don't know what I'm signing, but I was suitably intimidated, so signed the accounts!"

“So, when I moved from Gloucestershire to Warwickshire in 1997 as a single mum, I thought, I can't go back into this retail world. It's long hours and it just doesn't work with two young children. That’s when my dad said: ‘You enjoyed the bookkeeping, why don't you do something with that?".

She added: “I started the qualification at Warwickshire College and I wanted to get a part-time job in accountancy but recruiters basically laughed at me and said I had to be prepared to work full time, and at 30 I was too old! They wanted to take on people who were straight out of university, but I was not deterred.”

Her tenacity led Elinor to Edwards and Pentlands in Leamington, where she wasted no time - studying until the early hours around her parenting responsibilities to acquire her ACCA accreditation. And it was while she was still completing her final exams that Elinor was made a surprise offer.

“In 2005, I did a management buyout from the existing owners of the business - aged 34 – only six months after I’d completed my final exams! So I borrowed some money, along with my business partner at the time but ended up buying her out in 2010. It was a bit hair-raising for the first 10 years. It's fair to say it’s been an unusual journey with some highs and lows.”

A theme also familiar to her personal life - from the lows of a second failed marriage to dog trainer and Channel 5 personality Graeme Hall, to finding love again with her partner Ian and, more recently becoming a proud grandmother to Olivia and Noah.

Now the focus for Elinor and her 12-strong team is on celebrating success – and at a garden party at Mallory Court on June 25th they’ll be joined by invited friends, associates and clients, some of whom have been with Pentlands for up to 30 years.

Elinor said:

“A real achievement for me is building a business that is all about the people. We genuinely care and are very proud of the client relationships we’ve built over the years. And we’ve helped generations of families where their children are now running the business because the parents have retired. It just feels like a great opportunity to mark the 20 years and to say thank you.”

“I think what I’m most proud of though is always having that belief in myself that I can do it and trusting my gut, even in the testing times when things felt really tough. Everybody who's in business knows that there are highs and lows, and showing vulnerability in those times where you need support is important!”

Of her recent award, she added: “This was a real ‘pinch me’ moment and completely unexpected. It makes 2025 an even more special year, and I was so pleased that friends, clients, and members of the Pentlands team were there to share in the moment with me.”