Businesses in Winchester are being warned that ‘there is no time to lose’ if signs of financial distress appear this January.

R3, the insolvency and restructuring trade body, has urged directors and owners to act promptly to tackle any issues.

The call follows an analysis of new data supplied by business intelligence provider Creditsafe.

The latest figures for the South East showed that there were 235 counts of insolvency-related activity in December 2022 – down slightly from the figure of 245 for the corresponding month in 2021.

Overall, the amount of insolvency-related activity hit a total of 2,540 for the whole of 2022 in the South East with an average of 212 per month.

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Garry Lee, chair of R3’s Southern and Thames Valley region, including Winchester, said: “The latest figures should represent a call to action for any business owner or director with concerns at the back of their mind.

“Although insolvency-related activity in December was down very slightly compared to December 2021 in the South East, it was still the third highest monthly total in 2022 after November and March.

“As January gets underway, the stark reality of financial problems will loom large for those who may have buried their head in the sand.”

He added: “There is no time to lose if there are issues to address or if signs of financial distress begin to appear.”

“Concerns about a recession remain on many minds. Clearly a downturn will exacerbate any existing issues, so it is absolutely vital to seek help sooner rather than later and before the keenest impacts of any economic slump are felt.

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“A qualified and regulated advisor will be able to provide more options for the future of a business rather than waiting until it is too late.”

Latest figures from The Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that the UK economy unexpectedly grew by 0.1% in November, helped by a boost for the hospitality sector from the World Cup and demand for telecommunications and computer programming.

However, its figures also showed that in the three months to November, the economy shrank overall by 0.3 per cent.

Before Christmas, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) – the government's independent forecaster – warned that the UK will fall into a recession ‘lasting just over a year’ with the economy shrinking by 1.4% in 2023 before growth gradually resumes.

Creditsafe is a multinational business intelligence provider with services including company credit scores and credit report information.

R3’s Southern & Thames Valley region includes Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight and Berkshire.