Business Rescue & Insolvency Newsletter

Corporate
The last quarter of 2010 has shown a clean sweep of negative numbers as corporate insolvency numbers have tumbled from the same period last year. However, complacency should not be allowed to creep in as I believe there is every likelihood that this year will be a lot harder than last year.

If we look at liquidations as being representative of the nation's corporate health, we see that there has been almost a 17% drop in the number of liquidations in 2010 compared with 2009. Unfortunately, however, as the graph below shows we are still a long way off the numbers that were being recorded during the middle of the last decade, particularly the last quarter of 2007 when the numbers began to rise.

Personal Insolvency
There were 30,729 individual insolvencies in England and Wales in the fourth quarter of 2010. This was a decrease of 13.6% on the same period a year ago.

This was made up of 12,049 bankruptcies, down by 29.2% on the same quarter in 2009 and 12,508 Individual Voluntary Arrangements, down 5.4% on the same quarter in 2009. The only insolvency process to see an increase this quarter, across both corporate and personal insolvencies was Debt Relief Orders which although down on the previous quarter at 6,172, were 15.4% higher than the same quarter in 2009.

As with the corporate market, personal insolvency numbers are going to have a challenging year as mounting inflation and government spending cuts take hold.
 

The plight of sports and social clubs has hit the headlines again recently as many struggle to survive.

Locally in Coventry we have again seen the sad demise of one of the city’s best-know social clubs which was formerly the heart of the local community.

While this is sad to see, it does reflect an increasingly common theme for some of these organisations throughout the UK, but this is an area where Cranfield can help.

At Cranfield we have vast experience in dealing with charitable organisations like these. While nobody wishes to see these focal points of the community diminish, our expertise helps to resolve matters and bring them to a satisfactory conclusion for all parties concerned in the event that it is no longer viable for them to continue trading.

Working with a charitable organisation that needs help? Then contact Cranfield Business Recovery on 024 7655 3700 or visit www.cranfieldbusinessrecovery.co.uk for further information.
 

The Comprehensive Spending Review and the VAT rise haven’t given many small businesses much to cheer about.

Undoubtedly the next two years will continue to present major challenges for businesses throughout the UK, especially the smaller ones. Central to survival for many will be the ability of management to identify when they need help at the earliest possible opportunity.

Help, of course, can come in many forms and is where we at Cranfield can play a crucial role, specialising in helping struggling businesses identify areas that need to be addressed before it’s too late.

From setting and measuring goals to understanding funding requirements and adapting to changing circumstances, our aim at Cranfield is to offer practical support for business to put the building blocks in place to survive and thrive.

Brett Barton’s expertise in this field was recently called on by the regional media in Coventry to highlight the issues facing smaller businesses in an ‘Ask the Expert’ column.

If you are working with businesses which could benefit from Brett’s expertise, contact him on 024 7655 3700 or email brett.barton@cranfieldbusinessrecovery.co.uk. Further information is also available by visiting www.cranfieldbusinessrecovery.co.uk.
 

Cranfield is going from strength to strength and building for the future with the appointment of two new members to its team.

Dan Haigh has joined the company as Senior Manager, while George Grineaux has joined as an adminisrator.

Daniel Haigh

Dan who may be known to many of you, having previously worked for another local firm of Insolvency Practitioners, returns to Coventry where he lives with his wife and two small children. Some twelve months ago Dan moved firms to work off patch but having seen the errors of his ways has returned to join us as a Senior Manager.

Dan brings significant experience and strength to the team having passed his JIEB insolvency exams and is also a Chartered Accountant. Dan is very interested in the Institute's affairs and later this year becomes President of the Warwickshire branch of the ICAEW.

George Grineaux

George joins us from working in his father’s accountancy practice in Southam. George is new to the world of business recovery, but has left University with an LLB in law and accounts. With his recent accountancy experience, he will prove to be a valuable asset to a growing team.
 

With tickets to London 2012 going on sale from March 15th we are delighted to announce our renewed sponsorship of Coventry-based Olympic hopeful middle distance runner Katrina Wootton.

After being acutely ill early last year Katrina resumed training, braving the recent arctic conditions to stay on course in her bid to fulfil every athlete’s ultimate ambition.

We at Cranfield wish her well and hope our ongoing support will help Katrina achieve her ambition to become a member of Team GB at London 2012.

We will keep you posted on her progress and will be holding a sponsorhip event later this year to show our continued support.
 

Table Football

October saw 20 teams gather at the offices of Allied Irish Bank (GB) for the second finals night of our table football challenge hosted jointly with AIB. Suitably kitted out in players’ respective favourite team shirts, matches began on the two tables starting with a round robin series of matches to reach the quarter finals.
 

A new pairing of Tony Mitchell and Brett Barton from Cranfield were identified early on to be the team to watch and so it proved as they went on to win the evening and lift the trophy (who said the hosts cannot win!). Tony and Brett have confirmed that they have now retired from the game and will be refereeing the next event.

Both Cranfield and AIB would like to thank all the teams that participated and announce that the next event will take place in the Spring and therefore any teams of two that would like to enter should contact Louise at Cranfield as soon as possible.

Cheese and Wine Party

The last day of November saw the annual cheese and wine party held at Cranfield’s office with over 100 guests accepting the invitation to try out some rather unusual wines and cheeses.

This time, in support of the home nations, we sourced cheese and wine from England, Scotland and Wales. Despite all efforts we could not find any from Northern Ireland. If you didn’t think Scotland made wine you were wrong as we sampled two interesting little numbers based on fermented leaves and also elderberry. With all due respect to those north of the border, we probably will not be trying them again.

The event was in full swing when the fire alarms went off and we had to retreat to the great outdoors. Fortunately it was a false alarm but it was interesting to see the different reactions as some headed straight for the doors whilst other made sure their plates were full and glasses charged before exiting.
 

2011 Carting Challenge

This year’s Carting Challenge will be a single race affair in the Spring at a venue to be decided. Glynn, who operated the Tamworth track, has now left that venue and we are open to suggestions where we may go next. If anybody has been to an outdoor track that they found particularly interesting please let us know.
 

Everything I need to know about running a business can be learnt from Noah's Ark:

One: Don't miss the boat.

Two: Remember that we are all in the same boat.

Three: Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark.

Four: Stay fit. When you're 600 years old, someone may ask you to do something really big.

Five: Don't listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be done.

Six: Build your future on high ground.

Seven: For safety's sake, travel in pairs.

Eight: Speed isn't always an advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs.

Nine: When you're stressed, float a while.

Ten: Remember, the Ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic by professionals.

Anon.