In a statement, Ellis said he was “particularly delighted” by the UK’s performance “against a backdrop of Brexit related uncertainty”, resulting in “robust growth and marketshare gains”.

He said “increased demand in the regions and strong growth in financial services in London (where revenue was up 28%) has contributed to this excellent result”.

The UK & Ireland was not the only region to shine, with Europe, particularly the Benelux countries where gross profit was up 16.9%, and the Nordics performing strongly. Ellis said the board was “encouraged by the strong trading momentum in the second half of the year”.

Results for the group as a whole showed a 13.4% increase in revenue to a record £889.3m, with core operating profit, (which excludes non-recurring items) up by 22.6% to £11.4m.

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