AN accountant believes East Lancashire firms could still fall victim to the recession – even though Britain’s economy is now officially growing again.

Paul Spencer, a director at Haworth’s Chartered Accountants in Eastgate, Accrington, urged businesses not to lose out 'due to ignorance'.

He said: “Even in the current financial climate, it is surprising just how many businesses aren’t aware of their full financial situation – and that’s really asking for trouble.

“It is imperative to keep a close, regular eye on your financial situation if you are to survive these diffi-cult times.”

He said that monthly management accounts, wh-ich offer a picture of where a business stands, were a good safeguard. But he added: “All the indications are that 2010 could be worse than 2009 and traditionally more firms go out of business coming out of a recession than going in.

“That is often as a result of them trying to expand as the economic picture generally improves but then finding that the money to do that just isn’t there.

And he warned: “Having an annual set of accounts prepared giving a picture that could be months out of date just isn’t enough when you are trying to guard against problems.”