Get to Know Us

Liberty HR Recruitment founder, Jane Barry, is an FCIPD qualified HR professional and recruitment specialist who has worked in the sector for over 20 years. She has previously been Chair of the Portsmouth CIPD group and the Wessex Branch of the CIPD.

Specialising in HR, Talent and Learning & Development roles, Jane has an eye for detail and a meticulous approach. Everyone who knows Jane will testify to her warmth as a person and her passion for everything that she does, including her near-legendary ‘To Do’ lists..

Jane carries a small photograph of the handsome singer and song-writer Billy Bragg in her purse, hoping he will one day call and whisk her away. In the meantime she lives in Southsea with her husband Den, their three dogs and three cats.

Liberty HR Recruitment co-founder Den Barry, is our multi-talented social media and communications guru. He has previously worked in a similar capacity for a charity, a social enterprise and for other recruitment organisations, prior to the launch of Liberty HR Recruitment.

We describe Den as ‘multi-talented’ as he is a published author, the drummer in a band called The Glorias and a Trainer for Toucan Diversity Training, where he occasionally delivers disability equality training to local employers.

When not busy with any of these duties, Den can be found making tea and coffee for the team, ticking off completed tasks from assorted ‘To Do’ lists he’s been given and checking that Billy Bragg Isn’t at the front door.

Beth has more than 8 years’ resourcing and recruiting experience in specialist recruitment prior to joining Liberty AF Recruitment. She has had a great deal of involvement in recruiting for accountancy and financial roles at all levels in particular, and has expanded her horizons into the HR sector too. Beth is CIPD level 3 qualified.

With a wealth of recruitment knowledge, Beth takes great pride in building and maintaining relationships with both customers and clients. She has a keen eye for detail and a committed approach, Beth thrives on finding people their dream roles.

In her spare time, you can find Beth at football training and matches, cheering on her son Thomas from the touchline. She also enjoys walking her pet dog, a pug called Fee!

Heading up the new Liberty Commercial Recruitment division, Abby has a wealth of experience in recruitment gained over many years in the sector. Her experience ranges across all business sizes and through industries such as HR, financial services, manufacturing, retail, wholesale, health care and technology to name but a few! Prior to this she worked in a number of customer service roles.

Abby credits (or is that blames?) her Dad for influencing her career choice as he has worked in sales and customer service roles for as long as she can remember. She maintains that working in recruitment isn’t like any other job and says nothing beats making a call to someone to offer them their dream forever role! 

In her spare time Abby loves live music and going to festivals; is a proud Auntie to nephew Jesse; and is planning her wedding in Portugal for 2022. She also has two dachshunds named Richmond and Lincoln and a Bengal cat called Cobi. Abby also confesses to an incurable obsession with shoes.

Kym has twenty years’ experience of working in HR - in both the public and private sector - and more than half of those years have been spent in recruitment. She is CIPD level 3 qualified and is passionate about meeting new people. Kym loves to build new relationships with both candidates and clients and says there is no better feeling than delivering the news to someone who has just been hired in their dream role!

At home Kym has a busy life with her three children who all enjoy sports. So she spends a great deal of her spare time watching both Maddie and Joe playing football and Izzie who is a budding athlete. Her fourth ‘child’ is a ginger tom-cat called Charlie who, at the time of writing, is not involved in any sports.

If Kym is ever allowed a little down-time from her hectic schedule, she loves to socialise with friends and an occasional book or box set!

Lewis Jaffa, who is CIPD qualified, is our Recruitment Resourcer and spends his working week supporting the recruitment operations on both the HR and the Commercial sides of the business. Lewis has worked in recruitment for seven years after originally training as a journalist. He decided on the move to recruitment after realising that he’d never be financially secure enough to leave home if he stayed working in the print media! Since making the switch, Lewis has worked across numerous sectors including transport, supply chain, manufacturing, marketing, finance and more. Lewis has even been placed by Liberty HR in the recent past so he certainly know how we operate!

And now that Lewis has reached the ripe old age of 30 (!!) he has decided to re-train as a mental health practitioner. In order to do this, Lewis will be working full time at Liberty until the end of the Summer, when he will revert to a part time role, allowing him the flexibility to return to his studies.

Away from the office Lewis is a keen footballer and gym goer. Over the last year he has been learning the piano and has played the guitar since he was very young, his passion being flamenco music. And Lewis’ all-important “pet status” is that he has two dogs at home, a Jack Russell/Beagle-cross called Marley and Nell, who is a Romanian rescue. Both of whom keep Lewis and his girlfriend very busy!

Josh joined Liberty Recruitment Group as a Recruitment Advisor in April and has worked in recruitment for over 7 years. He is CIPD Level 5 qualified but has also previously worked as a Seed Merchant!

Wanting to be in control of his own destiny, Josh chose a life of recruitment as it rewards hard work and he feels it best reflects his personality and drive to help people.

In his spare time, Josh is a gym enthusiast, enjoys snooker and has just completed his first half-marathon, aiming to complete a full-length marathon in the near-future. Having bought his first home recently, Josh also harbours an ambition to become something of a property developer alongside his recruitment career.

Josh bucks the trend here at Liberty Recruitment as he doesn’t own a Dog – or any pet for that matter! Yet no-one here at Liberty was worried by this fact as - along with his busy schedule of pastimes - his young son Jack keeps him busy enough!