North East Chamber of Commerce says growth is returning following recent losses

The membership group said it felt the effects of a challenging economic climate but addressed them via a small restructure to put itself on a stable footing

The North East Chamber of Commerce says its business model remains strong despite a fourth consecutive year of losses and a fall in membership numbers.

New accounts for the prominent regional business group show operating losses narrowed to £189,000 in 2025, compared with £278,000 the year before, as turnover increased to £3.09m from £2.97m. Chief executive John McCabe told the group’s annual general meeting that income gains had been outpaced by rising costs – including Employer’s National Insurance Contributions – that were also impacting many of its members.

He said: “By the midway point in the year, we took the decision to enter a consultation with staff which saw four senior management roles being made redundant. Redundancy packages added to the costs incurred in 2025 but this decision to reduce our headcount in a limited way has contributed significantly to a much-improved cost base in 2026.

“Having taken this step and despite the economic headwinds, the fundamentals of the Chamber’s business model remained strong and have continued to improve in 2026.”

The Chamber said its net operating loss of £315,000 was within board expectations and was covered by its cash reserves. Membership numbers were down from 2,009 to 1,830 – which bosses put down to significant uncertainty in the economic environment – however, membership subscriptions increased from £1.99m to £2.18m as new packages including ‘start-up and grow’, ‘solo’ and ‘enterprise’ were said to have performed well.

There was also significant investment in its Newcastle and Durham offices, with its Westgate Road site in Newcastle now full of tenants and licence holders, generating more than £400,000 in revenue. Refurbishment of the group’s Aykley Heads office at Durham is almost complete.

The Chamber pointed to the success of its events programme. In 2025, more than 8,000 people attended at least one of its 250 events.

Other notable work included the delivery of phase two of a Local Skills Improvement Plan in partnership with the Tees Valley Combined Authority. And its appointment by the North East Mayoral Strategic Authority to deliver the joint employer pilot as part of the ‘Get Britain Working Trailblazer’, looking at the pathways to work for those currently economically inactive due to ill health.

At the annual general meeting, attended by members in Newcastle Cathedral, Natasha McDonough, founder and managing director of MMC Research was elected Chamber president, succeeding Deborah Walton of Palintest, who came to the end of her two-year term in office. Northumbrian Water’s Louise Hunter was appointed Chamber vice president.

Mr McCabe said the Chamber is on course to end 2026 with a £160,000 revenue improvement on 2025. He added: “Last year we took difficult decisions to control our costs but remained focused on the delivery of our long-term objectives of membership growth and diversified income. I’m delighted to report that on the evidence of 2026 so far, the strategy is working and growth is returning to the Chamber.

“We are continuing to build strong foundations of a successful business; an ambitious, modern Chamber of Commerce that remains in the service of its members and region. We’re widely seen as an anchor institution at the heart of the North East, championing our region at the highest levels of power, promoting our shared potential on the international stage and standing shoulder to shoulder with our members at every stage on their growth journey.”