Rich List says York area family still North Yorkshire's richest on £1.35billion

The Shepherd family continues to be the richest in the York area - worth £1.35 billion, the same as last year. The figures are revealed in the latest Sunday Times Rich List, which is published online today (Friday) and in print on Sunday. Whilst the Shepherds are second on the Rich List, their wealth pales compared to the man at the top of the list - Sheffield-born Christopher Harborne, who is worth an estimated £18.177 billion. This is Mr Harborne’s debut in the Rich List. His £12 million in donations to the Reform Party propelled the secretive entrepreneur into the headlines. Based in Thailand for more than two decades, his easiest UK asset to track is a £357 million stake in QinetiQ. Cambridge-educated Mr Harborne’s most valuable asset is a 12 per cent holding in Tether. This cryptocurrency firm is estimated to be valued at £200 billion. Robert Watts, who compiled the Rich List, told The Press that the Shepherds had had a quiet year, which made it harder to track their assets. The family saw their wealth increase from an estimated £1.104 billion in 2024 to £1.350 billion in 2025. This compares with £253 million in 2015 and 2016. The increase in wealth followed the family’s sale of Portakabin to a French company in 2024 for a reported £1.5 billion. The deal also follows the family’s wealth increasing £411 million between 2023 (when they were ranked 245th) and 2024. Robert recalled this was the second time the family had sold a business, with the Shepherds previously selling a construction company. Third on the Northern list is Lord Kirkham and family - worth £1.14 billion. The Doncaster-based founder of DFS is worth the same as last year. Fourth is the family of Sir Ken Morrison, the supermarket heirs whose wealth dropped a million from £932 million to £931 million. Fifth is John Jakes, founder of Acorn Stairlifts, whose wealth increased from £869 million to £926 million. He is based in West Yorkshire and Monaco. The sixth-placed Hull-based Malcolm Healey and family, owner of Wren Kitchens, maintain their wealth of £901 million. Robert says Malcolm Healey has joined an exodus of the rich from the UK, with him now resident in the US. Barnsley-born Paul Sykes, who built the Meadowhall shopping centre in Sheffield, remains at £775 million, and is seventh in the north. In eighth place come education publishers, Sheffield-based John and Susie Seaton. Ninth is Philip Meeson, founder of Leeds-based airline Jet2, whose wealth of £579 million is down slightly from £626 million last year. Rounding off the Northern top ten is Lawrence Tomlinson of Leeds Based LNT Group, which specialises in care homes. Overall, the 2026 Rich List of 350 individuals and families hold a quarter of the UK’s annual GDP. The minimum entry level to the national list has dipped to £340 million, which Robert says is another indicator of a subdued year. Robert Watts, compiler of the Sunday Times Rich List, said: “This year’s Rich List is a tale of two exoduses. One in six of the individuals and families who appeared on the list two years ago don’t feature this time. “Many foreign billionaires who have been living in the UK have also dropped out because they have moved away. We have also seen a sharp rise in the number of British nationals now resident in Dubai, Switzerland and Monaco. As UK nationals these people remain on our Rich List — wherever they now live. “These two exoduses pose challenges for the UK economy and its public finances. Will more of the wealthy now set up or grow their ventures overseas and in doing so create fewer jobs here? How much tax – if any – will Rachel Reeves’s Treasury be able to extract from those affluent Brits who have now left the country?” He continued: “For nearly 40 years the Sunday Times Rich List has analysed the fortunes of Britain’s most affluent people. We believe understanding where wealth lies and where it is being accumulated is a vital part of a functioning democracy. “Over the years our research has told us a lot about our country, charting the way a generation of largely self-made entrepreneurs overtook the old money of the landed gentry. “This year’s edition shines a light on fortunes made from artificial intelligence, driverless cars and crypto-currencies as well as baby milk, make-up, hoodies and other everyday items. We know many of our readers find those rags-to-riches stories of entrepreneurs who started out with little more than a laptop and an idea particularly inspiring.”