Business deaths in the East Midlands (UK)
Business deaths in the East Midlands (UK) stood at 5,045 Businesses in Q2 2026, according to Office for National Statistics (ONS). It is one of the indicators in the Business births, deaths and companies table (Value · Quarterly), with a complete series running from Q1 2017 to Q2 2026. The complete series with an interactive chart, free to download.
This indicator in the Business births, deaths and companies table
| Indicator | Q2-2026 | Q1-2026 | Q4-2025 | Q3-2025 | Q2-2025 | Q1-2025 | Q4-2024 | Q3-2024 | Q2-2024 | Q1-2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Business deaths by region | |||||||||||
| East Midlands | 5,045 | 5,365 | 4,285 | 4,185 | 5,085 | 5,640 | 4,665 | 4,215 | 5,145 | 6,470 | |
| Wales | 2,780 | 2,925 | 2,235 | 2,245 | 2,760 | 2,860 | 2,355 | 2,230 | 2,930 | 2,960 |
Understanding business deaths in the East Midlands (UK)
Enterprise cessations mapped to the East Midlands quantify quarterly business closures originating within that specific regional boundary of the United Kingdom. The series records any VAT-registered or PAYE-enabled trading unit that officially stops commercial activity, closing its tax schemes during the reference period. By isolating this territory from national aggregates, the metric highlights sub-national economic attrition while excluding businesses operating elsewhere in the country.
Users evaluating these regional exits must account for potential volatility arising from smaller sample sizes compared to nationwide totals. Comparing quarters sequentially can be misleading due to local administrative batch-processing anomalies, making same-quarter annual comparisons the standard method for gauging change. Analysts should also note that administrative closures lag actual operational shutdowns by several months, meaning the recorded timing reflects database updates rather than precise cessation dates.
Frequently asked questions
- How is the regional location of a closed business determined?
- The statistical assignment depends on the primary trading address registered for tax and employment purposes prior to closure.
- Do these figures include branch closures of national firms?
- Only if the closure terminates the entire enterprise registration; single-site branches do not constitute independent business births or deaths.
- Why do regional figures undergo larger revisions than national totals?
- Smaller local volumes mean that delayed administrative updates or corrected address mappings cause proportionally greater shifts in regional percentages.