UK business signals, week to 14 October 2026: counts from the public record

In the seven days from 7 October 2026 to 14 October 2026, the Lockley index recorded 30,021 director changes, 2,366 new charges, 74 public contracts awarded, 437 new sites, 288 significant roles posted and 96 first-of-function hires. Each count is by the date on the public record, and each is set below against the week before, 30 September 2026 to 7 October 2026.

The index covers 5,578,743 active UK companies as listed by Companies House, counted on 14 October 2026. These weekly counts are counts of records, not forecasts. They say how much happened on the public record, not how many companies will buy.

Weekly signal counts, this week against the week before

What stands out

Most signals fell against the week before. Director changes fell from 53,573 to 30,021, new charges from 7,024 to 2,366, and public contract awards from 194 to 74. The exception is new sites, which rose from 51 to 437.

We do not infer a cause from a single pair of weeks. Counts by record date can move for reasons that have nothing to do with the economy, such as when a register is updated. Our guide on why weekly UK signal counts swing sets this out, and a longer run of weeks is a better basis for a view than two.

How a seller can use the numbers

The counts show where a seller is likely to find volume. A week with 30,021 director changes is too many to work by hand, so the useful step is narrowing to the sector, region and size you sell to. A week with 14 public contracts ending is small enough to read in full.

Rare signals are worth more attention per record than common ones. Only 14 contracts ended this week, so a supplier of the service in question has few chances to approach the incumbent's customer at the right moment. Our guide on which signals are common and which are rare covers this.

Before calling on any record, open the source and check the date and the company. Our guide on checking a buying signal is real describes the steps.

How the counts are made

Each count is of records dated within the stated seven days, using the date on the record rather than the date it was read. Lockley reads Companies House, Contracts Finder and Find a Tender, job postings, planning registers and company websites each night, and each finding links to the record it came from.

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