Surge in number of new firms in city

Entrepreneurs power new economic milestone for county

New figures show the number of companies registered in Peterborough rose last year by just short of 2,000.

The increase came in the face of prolonged economic uncertainty as politicians argued over Brexit.

The statistics show that the 1,896 new companies brings the number of companies registered in Peterborough to 10,655.

The city’s enterprising spirit has helped drive the number of companies registered in Cambridgeshire to beyond the 50,000 mark for the first time.

According to the company software specialist Inform Direct, at the end of last month, there were 50,066 businesses registered in the county.

It is an increase of 1,676 registered firms over the year - up from 48,390 at the end of 2018, in what was a record year for the county with the number of new companies rising by 6.3 per cent.

South Cambridgeshire is now home to 11,844 registered firms and Huntingdonshire has 10,091. The city of Cambridge has 8,874 registered businesses.

The figures are based on data from Companies House and the Office for National Statistics.

John Korchak, director of operations at Inform Direct, said: “This is a significant milestone, passing the milestone of 50,000 companies for the very first time. As an international centre for world-leading research and innovation, the county continues to attract new enterprises and start-ups to join its successful cluster. It is clear the roll-call of global names and links with academia are a powerful driver for those looking to locate a business.”

John Korchak, director of operations at Inform Direct.