North East families behind Hays Travel, Barbour and Fenwick's make Sunday Times Rich List

With a family fortune of £591m, Dame Irene was placed second in the North East rich list and 250th nationally.

Dame Irene and her family have seen their wealth increase by £191m in the last year.

Dame Margaret and Helen Barbour are fourth on the North East rich list with a wealth of £580m, an increase of £43m. The popular high-end clothing brand sells “classic waxed jackets and country apparel for men, women and children” and has its manufacturing factory based in South Shields.

The Barbour family fortune places them 253rd in the national rich list.

Able UK's Peter Stephenson and his family ranks joint second in the region - also with an estimated wealth of £591m, up £15m from last year and placing the Stephensons 253rd nationally. The green energy company is based in Stockton-on-Tees.

The wealthiest North East aristocracy is The Duke of Northumberland. The Duke and his family reside at Alnwick castle and have a family fortune of £517m, placing the family fifth in the North East and 269th nationally.

Sixth on the region’s rich list is Mark Fenwick and his family who are the retail family behind the Fenwick brand and the renowned Fenwick’s department store in Newcastle.

The Fenwick’s have a family fortune of £491m, down £35m from last year and giving the family a national rank of 279th place.

The North East rich list is topped by Teesside based businessmen Alastair and Michael Powell who made their fortune from their Cleveland Cable Company, the UK’s biggest electric cable supplier.

The brothers have a fortune worth £701m, down from £794m in 2025, and placing them 219th nationally.

Although not from the North East, the Reuben brothers, David and Simon, who are part of the NUFC ownership group, are second in the national list with a family fortune of £26.873bn.

The Sunday Times Rich List compiles the 350 richest people and families in the UK.

This year’s list of 350 individuals and families together hold combined wealth of £772.8 billion — 3 per cent down on last year. Sir Elton John, Lord Lloyd-Webber, Sir Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Euan Blair, Sir Lewis Hamilton and Sir Christopher Nolan all appear in the annual list.

You can find out more by by logging onto the Sunday Times Rich List.