UK Insolvency Intelligence
April 2026
2,595 total appointments in April 2026, up 1% year-on-year - the first month-on-month year-on-year increase in the 2026 series. Administration and CVA appointments reached 161, the highest single month in 2026. FRP Advisory retains top SPK Index position.
2,595
Total Appointments
+1% vs Apr 2025
161
Admin / CVA
+41 vs Apr 2025
737
MVL
+63 vs Apr 2025
1,697
CVL / Other
-74 vs Apr 2025
Executive Summary
UK insolvency activity returned to positive year-on-year territory in April 2026, with 2,595 total appointments recorded - an increase of 30 (+1%) against April 2025's 2,565. This marks the first month in 2026 where total appointments have risen against the equivalent month in 2025, driven primarily by a surge in Administration and CVA activity alongside a recovery in MVL volumes.
Administration and CVA appointments reached 161 in April 2026, up 41 on April 2025's 120 - the highest single monthly count in the 2026 series to date, and a continuation of the upward trend that has been building since January. On a cumulative 2026 basis (January-April), Admin/CVA appointments total 573, running +51 ahead of the same period in 2025 (522), representing a +10% uplift in complex insolvency activity year-on-year.
MVLs also moved ahead of 2025, with 737 appointments against 674 in April 2025 (+63). CVL and other appointments fell 74 to 1,697, partially offsetting the gains in the other categories. Cumulative 2026 total appointments stand at 10,440, down 6% on the same four-month period in 2025 (11,111), though the gap is narrowing as Admin/CVA momentum builds.
| Type | Apr 2025 | Apr 2026 | Mvmt | 2025 YTD | 2026 YTD | YTD Mvmt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Admin / CVA | 120 | 161 | +41 | 522 | 573 | +51 |
| MVL | 674 | 737 | +63 | 3,900 | 3,577 | -323 |
| CVL / Other | 1,771 | 1,697 | -74 | 6,689 | 6,290 | -399 |
| Total | 2,565 | 2,595 | +30 | 11,111 | 10,440 | -671 |
Excludes Official Receiver and subsidiary appointments. YTD = January to April cumulative.
- FRP Advisory leads SPK Index at 1,745 points - 175 total appointments including 28 Admin/CVA, up 10 on April 2025. Dominant in Yorkshire/Humber (864 regional SPK) and London (620).
- Begbies Traynor second at 1,596 points with 282 total appointments - including 30 Admin/CVA, up 16 on April 2025. Highest appointment volume of any firm in the month.
- Admin/CVA momentum at 2026 series high - 161 in April is the highest single month in 2026. Cumulative YTD of 573 is +10% ahead of 2025 pace. Abbey Taylor Jones, Moorfields, and KBL Advisory all posted strong April figures.
- Notable appointments include Fusion Lifestyle (S&W), GivEnergy (CB Business Recovery), Kings Education (Begbies Traynor), and MeatLiquor (Rushtons Insolvency) - spanning leisure, clean energy, education, and hospitality.
Sector Breakdown (Non-MVL)
Cumulative year-to-date comparison by sector for January-April 2026 versus January-April 2025 (non-MVL appointments). Real estate, human health, civil engineering, music/TV/film, sports and recreation, architecture, financial services, and manufacturing (metal) all showed increases in 2026.
| Sector | 2025 YTD | 2026 YTD | Mvmt |
|---|---|---|---|
| Food & beverage services | 1,008 | 975 | -33 |
| Specialist construction | 717 | 676 | -41 |
| Retail trade | 608 | 550 | -58 |
| Building construction | 426 | 426 | - |
| Office & business support | 357 | 298 | -59 |
| Personal services (other) | 313 | 287 | -26 |
| Wholesale trade | 342 | 269 | -73 |
| IT programming / consulting | 259 | 249 | -10 |
| Real estate | 184 | 217 | +33 |
| Head offices & consultancy | 232 | 215 | -17 |
| Wholesale & retail trade | 198 | 191 | -7 |
| Employment services | 167 | 155 | -12 |
| Land transport & pipelines | 148 | 140 | -8 |
| Prof, scientific & tech | 148 | 117 | -31 |
| Human health | 94 | 120 | +26 |
| Financial services excl ins | 98 | 110 | +12 |
| Manufacturing (metal) | 86 | 101 | +15 |
| Sports & recreation | 98 | 102 | +4 |
| Architecture & engineering | 91 | 99 | +8 |
| Civil engineering | 54 | 71 | +17 |
| Music / TV / Film production | 56 | 67 | +11 |
| Manufacturing (other) | 87 | 77 | -10 |
| Building + Landscape services | 104 | 79 | -25 |
| Education | 69 | 74 | +5 |
Appointments by Firm - Top 25
Ranked by SPK Index score for April 2026. Comparative columns show Admin/CVA appointments only versus April 2025.
| # | SPK | Firm | Total | Admin/CVA | Other | MVL | Apr 25 | vs 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1,745 | FRP Advisory | 175 | 28 | 89 | 58 | 18 | +10 |
| 2 | 1,596 | Begbies Traynor | 282 | 30 | 193 | 59 | 14 | +16 |
| 3 | 471 | Leonard Curtis | 85 | 9 | 44 | 32 | 8 | +1 |
| 4 | 414 | Quantuma | 72 | 7 | 43 | 22 | 6 | +1 |
| 5 | 272 | KBL Advisory | 18 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 1 | +4 |
| 6 | 251 | Opus | 45 | 4 | 26 | 15 | 3 | +1 |
| 7 | 248 | SFP | 82 | 2 | 68 | 12 | 4 | -2 |
| 8 | 203 | Moorfields Advisory | 9 | 5 | 3 | 1 | - | +5 |
| 9 | 185 | S&W | 9 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | +2 |
| 10 | 153 | Valentine | 18 | - | 12 | 6 | 1 | -1 |
| 11 | 149 | Forvis Mazars | 14 | 2 | 9 | 3 | 1 | +1 |
| 12 | 138 | Abbey Taylor Jones Limited | 19 | 5 | 14 | - | - | +5 |
| 13 | 137 | BDO | 15 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 1 | +1 |
| 14 | 136 | Rushtons Insolvency | 13 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 1 | +1 |
| 15 | 127 | CG & Co | 14 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 2 | +1 |
| 16 | 126 | Antony Batty & Co | 20 | 3 | 14 | 3 | 2 | +1 |
| 17 | 126 | Herron Fisher | 7 | - | 6 | 1 | - | - |
| 18 | 110 | Interpath | 16 | 1 | 4 | 11 | 4 | -3 |
| 19 | 110 | JT Maxwell | 29 | 1 | 28 | - | - | +1 |
| 20 | 105 | Leading Business Services | 58 | - | 40 | 18 | - | - |
| 21 | 104 | PwC | 12 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 1 | - |
| 22 | 104 | KRE Corporate Recovery | 13 | 2 | 4 | 7 | - | +2 |
| 23 | 96 | CB Business Recovery | 9 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 1 | - |
| 24 | 93 | Kroll | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | - | +2 |
| 25 | 92 | Teneo | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | - |
About the SPK Index: The SPK Index is a proprietary algorithm managed by Spark that ranks firms based on a weighted combination of appointment volume, complexity (by company size), and appointment type. A firm with fewer appointments but higher-complexity cases can outrank a firm with higher raw volume. Read the full methodology →
Notable Appointments
Selected high-profile insolvency appointments from April 2026, ranked by turnover or asset value. Financial details from most recently filed accounts at Companies House.
| Company | IP Firm | Type | Region | Turnover | Staff | Lenders |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fusion Lifestyle | S&W | Admin | South East | £50.8m | 1,865 | Natwest |
| GivEnergy Ltd | CB Business Recovery | Admin | Midlands | £50.3m | 74 | Natwest, RBS Invoice Finance |
| Prime Education & Training Ltd (Kings Education) | Begbies Traynor | Admin | South East | £43.6m | 468 | Barclays Bank |
| Engineering Technology Group Holdings Ltd | Teneo | Admin | Midlands | £23.3m | 89 | Santander |
| Meatailer Ltd (MeatLiquor) | Rushtons Insolvency | Admin | London | £15.2m | 226 | - |
| Habitas Group Ltd | Alix Partners | Admin | London | £12.7m | 470 | - |
| JKPG Realisations 2026 Ltd (John K. Philips) | Forvis Mazars | Admin | North West | £10.2m | 117 | Lloyds Commercial Finance, Natwest |
| Envisics Holdings Ltd | FRP Advisory | Admin | South East | £1.9m | 96 | - |
| UK Truck & Plant Group Ltd | JT Maxwell | Admin | Northern Ireland | - | 43 | Time Finance |
| The LED Studio Ltd | Opus / Quantuma | Admin | South East | - | 15 | Abcor, Handelsbanken, Innovation Finance |
Financial details from most recent publicly filed accounts at Companies House. Lender information from charge register. Staff figures from last filing.
SPK Index - Regional Breakdown
Top firms by SPK Index score in each UK region for April 2026.
01. North East
- FRP Advisory156
- Begbies Traynor62
- KBL Advisory47
- Smith & Barnes37
- Leonard Curtis30
02. North West
- FRP Advisory359
- Begbies Traynor240
- KBL Advisory157
- Leonard Curtis106
- SFP67
03. Yorkshire / Humber
- FRP Advisory864
- Begbies Traynor519
- Rushtons Insolvency88
- Leonard Curtis74
- XL Business Solutions60
04. Midlands
- Teneo269
- CB Business Recovery83
- Begbies Traynor60
- Leonard Curtis58
- Opus38
05. East Midlands
- Begbies Traynor145
- FRP Advisory93
- Cowgills65
- John Harlow Insolvency & Corporate Recovery52
- PKF Smith Cooper50
06. East of England
- FRP Advisory213
- Begbies Traynor96
- KBL Advisory58
- Forvis Mazars57
- KRE Corporate Recovery50
07. South East
- FRP Advisory485
- Begbies Traynor370
- Quantuma188
- Opus137
- Valentine118
08. South West
- Begbies Traynor85
- Monahans62
- KPMG60
- Kirks Insolvency29
- FRP Advisory23
09. London
- Begbies Traynor781
- FRP Advisory620
- Moorfields Advisory493
- Herron Fisher196
- Valentine116
10. Wales
- Begbies Traynor52
- Leonard Curtis42
- Purnells19
- Stones & Co15
- FRP Advisory9
11. Scotland
- BDO98
- Quantuma52
- Johnston Carmichael50
- Henderson Loggie41
- Interpath24
12. Northern Ireland
- JT Maxwell46
- Keenan Corporate Finance23
- McCambridge Duffy16
- McKeague Morgan12
- Artemis Insolvency Services8
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