Fricke joins from BNY Mellon, where she managed the Newton Higher Income Fund from April 2004 to December 2012. During this period the fund grew from around £600 million (£939 million) to over £2.4 billion.

She will be assisted by Mark Swain, who has been with the company since 2005.  In addition, she will provide input into various charity accounts managed by Smith & Williamson.

Fricke's appointment follows that of Mark Boucher, who rejoined the firm as head of UK equities in January.