British consultants face slowdown as corporate spending slumps
The British consulting industry is set to grow by a single digit this year as the sector faces a slowdown in spending from corporate clients.
According to research from the Management Consultancies Association (MCA), the primary representative body for management consulting firms in the UK, the UK consulting sector’s predicted growth for 2026 stands at 6 per cent, below a previous forecast of nearly 9 per cent.
The predicted growth is lower than MCA’s previous reports, which forecast an 11 per cent increase in 2023 and a 9 per cent increase in 2024.
However, the trade body reported that the sector’s revenue grew by almost 10 per cent in 2025, driven by advising organisations overseas as other countries seek “UK excellence” in consulting services, while domestic appetite remains seemingly flat.
Tamzen Isaacson, chief executive of the MCA, told City PM that this is partly because UK businesses are “focused on cost efficiencies” and spending less on consulting services amid an unstable economy.
“We’ve had a weak economy here in the UK, stuttering through various political changes which have reduced business confidence and consumer confidence, which has made for tough market conditions in certain areas, such as retail, manufacturing, consumer-related industries,” Isaacson said.
The MCA said, however, revenue for firms advising clients in both private and public sectors in other countries grew by 9 per cent last year, up from £5.9bn in 2024, with nearly a third of revenue from more than 60 per cent of MCA firms generated overseas in 2025.
Isaacson said the spike overseas is due to there being a global rise in “a series of really specific issues which require specialist industry expertise”, including advisory on tariffs, cyber security, defence, AI, health, and infrastructure.
“There are specific, demanding issues that the economy has been facing, and this has required specialist expertise,” she said.
Isaacson added that clients overseas have been opting for British consulting firms to provide advisory services, as they specifically want the “excellence” that the UK consulting sector offers.
“It’s about British standards,” Isaacson said. “When clients employ British professional services firms, they know there is a quality that they are buying in terms of standards, in terms of modern slavery requirements, technology, and charters and ethics.”
Europe and North America contributed 10 per cent to revenue growth; APAC, 4 per cent; the Middle East and Africa, 3 per cent; and South America, 2 per cent.
The UK’s consulting industry is already worth an estimated £21.8bn, and, in response to the MCA’s figures, Chancellor Rachel Reeves said it “is demonstrating that British services are competitive, credible and in demand across the globe.”
“Britain’s consulting sector is a world-class export success story, and these figures show exactly why the UK is the destination of choice for businesses and investors seeking trusted expertise,” Reeves said.
Sector at a crossroads
However, the figures come as the consulting industry faces a crunch point as firms cut headcount and AI tests their traditional business models.
City PM reported in May that the industry is peddling “an outdated model” where “no one is doing anything differently”, with firms’ uptick in AI use leaving clients reshaping their expectations.
The Big Four consulting giants have been slashing headcount as technology uproots the sector, with firms including PwC revealing in April that it was drawing up a blueprint to standardise its consulting services across its global business, following a decline in fees in its consulting arm.