More than 3,500 businesses in Milton Keynes are in financial distress, latest figures show

Sectors under stress in Milton Keynes include industrial and real estate and property, according to the latest figures from leading independent insolvency firm, Begbies Traynor.

UK-wide, there are 723,000 businesses in significant distress, up 42 percent year-on-year, with all sectors monitored by the research reporting an increase in financial difficulty

Milton Keynes saw a 13 per cent increase in the number of businesses struggling between the last quarter of 2020 and the first three months of 2021.

Nationally, the latest Red Flag Alert research has recorded 723,000 businesses currently in ‘significant distress’, up 42 percent year-on-year. This represents the largest numerical quarterly increase (15 per cent) in financially distressed companies since the Red Flag Alert research launched in 2014 – equivalent to 93,000 ailing businesses.

In Milton Keynes, businesses in some sectors faced greater financial difficulty than others, including industrial and real estate and property, increasing 33 per cent and 24 per cent respectively.

Julie Palmer, partner at Begbies Traynor in Milton Keynes, said: “This huge increase in financially distressed companies in Milton Keynes shows that the last 12 months have undoubtedly been some of the hardest that many businesses have encountered. We must remember that this is no ordinary recession and while some businesses have had significant assistance from central government, large parts of the economy have had to function with their doors closed to their main source of custom."

She added: “With the reopening of the economy over the next few months, there is a lot of work for many businesses to do, but those that have the talent to thrive in normal circumstances will find a way to adapt. The pandemic has changed customer expectations and behaviours potentially permanently, and those businesses that were profitable pre-Covid-19, and can demonstrate a strong recovery plan, can survive.”

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