Matt graduated from Loughborough University in 2018 with a First Class Honours Master’s degree in Automotive Materials Engineering. During his studies, he completed a year-long industrial placement as an Integrated Factory Automation Engineer at Nissan’s NMUK manufacturing plant, earning a Diploma in Industrial Studies. He was also an active member of the Loughborough University Kart Club and represented the university in the British Universities Karting Championship.

Following graduation, Matt joined Nissan NMUK as an Engineer within the Trim & Chassis department, working on current model vehicles. He was responsible for engineering delivery across defined vehicle areas, primarily Rear End Exterior and Luggage Room Interior on the Nissan Qashqai. During this time, he also achieved a Level 4 Improvement Practitioner qualification, developing expertise in Lean Six Sigma methodologies, structured root cause analysis and continuous improvement techniques.

In 2023, Matt moved into a New Model Development role on the all-new Nissan Leaf. He led planning and engineering activities for the Rear End Exterior, Luggage Room Interior, and Upper Interior vehicle areas throughout the physical development cycle, contributing to the successful vehicle launch and stable series production. As part of the vehicle development, he spent five months at Nissan’s Zama Development Plant in Japan, working alongside colleagues from NMUK and Nissan Global Headquarters during vehicle pilot build and development activities.

Outside of work, Matt has a longstanding interest in motorsport and modern classic cars and continues to enjoy car projects and karting recreationally.

Matt joined Hawkins in July 2026 as an Associate in the Road Traffic Collision team, based in our Leeds office.

Gigi completed a degree in Natural Sciences at Lancaster University, specialising in Mechanical Engineering and Astrophysics. She then undertook an internship with Foster & Partners, working within the Sustainability Department. In this role, she collaborated on international construction projects aimed at reducing environmental impact and encouraging the adoption of emerging technologies.

Following his graduation with a Master’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering, Steve began his career working with composite materials. He initially worked in the motorsports sector as a Project Engineer, building chassis, bodywork, and other composite components for both motorsport and luxury sports cars. He subsequently moved into the aerospace sector, where he developed new primary structural composite materials and assisted manufacturers with automated processes for producing composite aircraft components.

Sebastian began his engineering career as a non-destructive testing (NDT) Inspector at Bodycote, specialising in liquid penetrant inspection (LPI) and high-pressure testing of wear and corrosion-resistant coatings for subsea actuator components within the oil and gas sector. He subsequently gained valuable industrial experience at Tata Steel, where he investigated product performance and mitigated equipment failure in high-temperature environments, including coke oven and zinc galvanising operations.

Dave spent almost 20 years serving as a Police Constable with Humberside Police. After four years, he successfully transferred to the Roads Policing Unit, where remained until leaving the force in 2016. This wide-ranging role involved dealing with offenders and casualties, hazardous materials incidents, vehicle examinations, escorts, operational surveillance and contributing to major national policing operations. Frequently deployed to incidents with limited information, Dave was responsible for managing large and complex scenes, coordinating with partner agencies, witnesses and other involved parties, ensuring incidents were handled correctly to support successful investigations.

Dave sought a change in career and relocated to rural Northumberland, where he ran a local business. Wishing to give back to the community that welcomed him, he joined Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service as a retained firefighter. Once again responding to unpredictable and challenging incidents, Dave applied his operational skills across a wide range of emergency situations.  

In July 2020, he successfully applied for specialist training in Fire Investigation. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, this training was delivered in house, allowing Dave to merge his extensive investigative background from policing with his growing technical knowledge of fire behaviour. He quickly developed strong competencies and became an on-call Fire Investigator, attending complex fire scenes across Northumberland. These investigations included domestic, agricultural, industrial, vehicle and wildland fires, some involving fatalities. 

In 2023, Dave  joined Cleveland Fire Brigade as a full time Fire Investigation Technical Manager. In this role, he led the fire investigation team, coordinated continuing professional development, and developed policies and procedures aligned with national guidance from the Forensic Science Regulator. He also worked closely with Cleveland Police on complex and high-profile fire investigations. Dave has been involved in more than 150 fire investigations and has provided expert testimony in Magistrates’, Crown and Coroners’ Courts on multiple occasions.

Dave joined Hawkins in March 2026 and is an Associate based in our Leeds office. 

Michael graduated from the University of Liverpool in 2011 with a Master’s degree in Civil and Structural Engineering, specialising in advanced structural engineering. He began his career with WS Atkins Overseas, working within the infrastructure and master-planning team on large-scale projects across the Middle East.

He later returned to Northern Ireland to join Doran Consulting in Belfast as part of their civil engineering team. During this time, Michael developed a strong foundation in civil engineering scheme design and gained practical experience in contract administration under NEC3 contracts, working closely with clients, contractors, and multidisciplinary teams.

In 2015, Michael joined Albert Fry Associates in Belfast as a Structural Engineer. Over the next decade, he progressed to become a Chartered Member of the Institution of Structural Engineers and a senior member of staff, holding the position of Associate Structural Engineer. Michael became deeply embedded in the local design consultancy sector. He gained extensive experience across the residential, institutional, industrial, and commercial sectors, contributing to both client-led and contractor-led design teams within the public and private sectors.

Michael has significant design and detailing experience across all major structural materials, including steel, reinforced concrete, masonry, and timber. His project portfolio ranges from small-scale frame erections and domestic extensions  to major developments, including campus projects valued in excess of £350 million.

He has served as primary design engineer on a number of high-profile and award-winning education projects, including South West College Enniskillen and Ardnashee School and College, taking responsibility for technical delivery, coordination, and design quality throughout the project life cycle.

Michael joined Hawkins in January 2026 as an Associate based in our Belfast office.

Connor began his career in the industry in 2013. Over the following seven years, he studied part-time, on day release, to obtain his BEng (Hons) in Civil and Transportation Engineering, as well as achieving IEng status with the Institution of Civil Engineers (MICE). He is also a Fellow of the Institute of Highway Engineers (FIHE), a Member of the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation (MCIHT) and a member of The Association for Road Risk Management (MARRM).

He has experience working as a highways asset management engineer, as part of a small team delivering a multi-year contract valued at over £100m. In this role, he focused on  ensuring stakeholder safety and quality of life while maximising the performance achieved from every tax pound used to maintain the highway network.  

Connor has also worked to protect local authority interests by ensuring that highway projects constructed throughout Staffordshire, delivered as part of a multi-billion-pound national rail scheme, were built to the appropriate standards for future adoption and maintenance by the authority. 

After more than 12 years in the industry, Connor joined Hawkins in December 2025, and will be working predominantly on Highways schemes.