Bosses of firms ‘working after retirement age’

MORE THAN 140,000 directors of small companies are running their business past the retirement age of 66, financial experts have claimed.

Research by accountants at UHY Hacker Young has revealed that one in five small company directors are aged 66 or over, showing how work patterns have shifted over the years.

Individuals are also becoming less likely to stay in one job for long periods of time, with the average worker changing their job every five years, according to the report published today.

James Price, of UHY Hacker Young, said the outcome of Brexit could make it more difficult for directors to sell a small business quickly.

The study comes in the wake of concerns which have already been expressed over the nation’s ageing population.

Last month, councillors in North Yorkshire called for key funding for the county’s rapidly ageing population and underpressure health services.

Concerns have been mounting over demands for social care provision in the county, where there has been a dramatic shift in the number of older residents.

The proportion of North Yorkshire’s population aged 65 and over in 2011 was 20.7 per cent but that figure had risen to 23.3 per cent in 2015.