Search is on to find Yorkshire's fastest growing private firms

The 2018 awards have once again been organised by law firm Ward Hadaway in association with The Yorkshire Post.

The awards will highlight the success of companies across Yorkshire which are not only flying the flag for business, but are vital to the region’s economic health in challenging times.

Jamie Martin, managing partner at Ward Hadaway, said: “There is no doubt that the last few years have been a time of particular challenge for business, not least because of the uncertainty around Brexit.

“There have been issues, most acutely felt by SMEs, on accessing the finance needed to invest in training, recruitment and new technologies. Our engineering and construction industries have struggled to fill a growing skills gap and many sectors are now grappling with cyber crime, a digitised marketplace, as well as changes to data protection.

“What is clear from the companies in this region that we have been involved with is that they are defying Brexit uncertainty with an upbeat outlook and that is why our support for the region’s business community is even more important this year.

Firms on this year’s list will be hoping to emulate the success of Hisense UK, which received the award for the overall fastest growing business at the 2017 awards.

The Yorkshire Fastest 50 2018 is compiled using publicly available financial data from Companies House.

By the independent analysis of company financial figures, the Ward Hadaway Yorkshire Fastest 50 identifies the privately-owned, profit-making companies which have seen the biggest annual expansion in their turnover in recent years.

This process will create a definitive list of the 50 fastest-growing companies in Yorkshire which will be published at the end of next month.

Awards will be handed out at an event in March to the fastest-growing small, medium-sized and large businesses, for companies with annual turnover of between £1m and £5m, between £5m and £15m and turnover of more than £15m respectively.

One of those three winners will then receive the accolade of being crowned Yorkshire’s overall fastest growing business for 2018.

Greg Wright, deputy business editor of The Yorkshire Post, will speak at this year’s Ward Hadaway Yorkshire Fastest 50 Awards ceremony in March, where winners from the final 50 will be revealed.

He said: “The Yorkshire Post is proud to be on board once more for the Ward Hadaway Yorkshire Fastest 50 and we look forward to working together once more.”

He added: “The awards recognise businesses that are achieving growth and contributing to the overall success of the region.”

This is the eighth time that the Ward Hadaway Yorkshire Fastest 50 has taken place, and the event has become a firm fixture in the region’s business calendar.

This year marks a special year for the firm as it is celebrates 30 years in business, with a decade in Leeds and six years in Manchester.

Philip Jordan, a partner in the company and commercial team at Ward Hadaway’s Leeds office, said: “When we initially set out on our Yorkshire Fastest 50 journey, it was to send a message to everyone about the capability, resilience and strength of the region’s business community and to emphasise our commitment to Yorkshire.”

He added: “A decade on in Leeds and we are delighted to be joining forces again with The Yorkshire Post to launch the 2018 Awards.”