Mark Duce

I feel accountancy was my natural career path, as during my years at school, maths was always my favourite subject. It made me realise that I just like working with numbers and the logic that is behind maths. When asked, what do you want to be when you grow up I always replied to be an accountant or work in a bank. I got the opportunity to work in a bank, but found it very sales orientated, always having to try and push products to customers. So, I decided accountancy the was true career for me and signed up for evening classes to study towards my AAT qualification.

After sending my CV out to all the local accountants I was given the opportunity to start as a trainee and have now been working in accountancy for almost 20 years.

I joined CBSL Accountants in March 2014, after working at three other firms in Shropshire and being mainly office based, CBSL have given me the opportunity to have more interaction with clients and going to their premises to use their software packages to produce management accounts or attend and help with audit work. By doing this I feel that I get better understanding of the client and their business.

Outside of work I have always enjoyed football, either watching or playing. After many years of playing junior football I carried on playing in the Telford Sunday league, helping with the running of the team, with the paperwork and finances. I still managed to find time to play even when my first child came along but decide to hang up my boots a few years back now when children numbers 2 and 3 came along. Having twins was hard work and still is, so I decided that I needed to be at home more at the weekends with the family and of course it had nothing to do with the fact that it was taking longer to recover after a match the older I got!!!

I still have a lot of contact with old team mates and I try and meet up as much as possible for a beer or two and it’s even better if there is a game on in the pub. As a big Liverpool fan, I enjoy the banter with my friends discussing the footballing topics of the moment.

Sunday football has again entered my life, as my eldest son has joined a junior team. He wanted to join his friends team, but the manager from the previous season decided that he didn’t want to continue. So together with my son’s friends’ dad, we took over the coaching and running of the team. This has been a great way of being involved in a sport I enjoy and at the same time spending time with my eldest son. My youngest two are always interested to find out how we have got on, as soon as we get home they ask if we’ve won.

My wife and I are looking forward to be able to start globetrotting again now the children are out of nappies. Before they came a long we managed to visit Mexico, Canada, New York and even Singapore and Bali and I believe the list of places my wife wants to visit has been started to be written up.