Specialist Chartered Accountants based in East Anglia

Lovewell Blake Chartered Accountants

Our History

Still trading under our original name

Lovewell Blake celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2008.   The firm was established more than 20 years before the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales  (ICAEW), becoming a founder member.   Lovewell Blake is reputed to be the oldest accountancy firm retaining its original name.  

1858 Lovewell Blake, eldest son of ship owner and coal merchant Garson Blake, sets up in business at Great Yarmouth at age of 21. This was the year when the Britannia Pier was opened, the construction of the former Southtown Station began and gaslight was becoming more widely installed.  

1880 Becomes a founder member of the ICAEW.  During a period of considerable insolvency, Lovewell Blake also appointed the region’s official liquidator and goes on to handle one per cent of all insolvency work in the country

1883 Office moves to South Quay where they remained for 100 years, with other offices soon set up at Lowestoft and Beccles

1925 Norwich office opens when Arthur Dicker joins the firm; he had set up a practice in the Old Bank of England Court two years earlier

1956 Arthur Dicker becomes national ICAEW president – to this day, only practising East Anglian accountant to hold this position

1964 Start of 16-year association with Cooper Brothers & Co (later Coopers & Lybrand, now PwC)

1978 Flood water inundates Great Yarmouth offices – emergency operation to rescue the firm’s first computer 

1988 Merger with E J Riches & Son, doubling size of Norwich office which moved to Prince of Wales Road premises

1998 New purpose-built offices open at Great Yarmouth;  Kidson Impey’s Norwich partners  join Lovewell Blake

1999 Lovewell Blake Financial Planning set up, first in region to provide independent financial advice on fee basis

2005  Acquisition of J Critoph Life of Great Yarmouth by Lovewell Blake Financial Planning

2008 Celebration of 150th anniversary, with launch of LB 150 Challenge to raise £150,000 over five years for local good causes

2010 Long established Lowestoft accountancy firm of Hartley & Co merges with Lovewell Blake

2010 Lovewell Blake joins HLB International, a world-wide network of independent accounting firms and business advisers

2011 Long established Great Yarmouth accountancy firm of M Hoose & Coy merges with Lovewell Blake

2011 Opening of Long Melford office

2011 Merger with Banham Graham and subsequent move to new offices at Broadland Business Park

2012 Opening of Bury St Edmunds office

A full history of Lovewell Blake – in many ways also the fascinating story of how accountancy profession has come of age over a century and a half – is contained in the publication ‘Counting the changes’ written by Roger Ranson with a foreword by former senior partner Christopher Dicker.  This is available from Jenny Hayman at 01603 663300 (e-mail j.hayman@lovewell-blake.co.uk).