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Businesses urged to take part in influential survey
Businesses urged to take part in influential survey

Peterborough businesses are being urged to share their mood and plans for the year ahead to help shape an influential economic survey.

The Greater Peterborough Business Survey 2019, now in its sixth year, is urging new businesses to join the 150 firms that filled out last year’s survey to provide updates on their current health as the UK edges closer to leaving the European Union.

The 2018 survey results saw the city’s business community bucking the national trend of entrepreneurial gloom, revealing that 64 per cent of Peterborough businesses expected to see an improvement in business performance over the coming year – an increase of ten per cent on the previous year.

That was despite the ICAEW’s national Business Confidence Monitor showing that business confidence had been negative for six out of the last seven quarters during roughly the same period.

The 2019 Greater Peterborough Business Survey is conducted in partnership between business advisory firm Rawlinsons, which is part of the Baldwins Group, and supported by economic development company Opportunity Peterborough.

Mark Jackson, partner at Rawlinsons in Peterborough, said: “We are operating in uncertain times generated by the uncertainty surrounding Brexit – emphasised by the ICAEW revealing that British business confidence is at its worst for a decade – so it’s important now more than ever that businesses shout about their experiences.

“Peterborough has an abundance of entrepreneurial spirit outperforming the national average, however, we need to understand ways in which we can keep this going.

“Gathering feedback from firms enables us as business advisors to keep on top of industry trends to ensure we are focusing on what matters to Peterborough’s businesses the most to ensure they can continue to grow and develop.     

“We know from last year’s results that key barriers to growth for businesses included availability of skilled workers, price pressure from competitors and customers, and rising overhead costs – which we have been helping business owners to tackle.

“I’d urge as many businesses as possible to contribute to this year’s survey – the more entries we have means we can improve the focus of what we need to do to help our region’s firms to develop and grow.”

Tom Hennessy, chief executive of Opportunity Peterborough added, “The results of this survey inform our conversations with local and national government bodies when discussing the economy, gives us a steer on what support we should prioritise for local businesses and bolsters our promotion of the city to investors.

“This is a real opportunity for local businesses to tell us what support they need so we can adapt accordingly, break down barriers to growth and ensure the city continues to provide the resources businesses need to really thrive here.”

The survey is available to complete online until 8th March: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/peterborough-business-survey