Supporting start-ups and local business

Start-ups are crucial to the growth of the UK economy, with nearly 600,000 companies established last year – but support is needed to sustain local businesses beyond the start-up phase.

Growth of small business is an important part of driving economic progress and rebalancing the UK economy. The UK now has a larger number of start-ups than ever before, but we know much less about how many survive and reach at least £1 million in revenue after an initial three years. Getting to the ‘first million’ is a milestone ambition for many entrepreneurs striving to sustain and expand their businesses.

Research shows that almost half of all start-ups do not make it to their third year. The UK Local Growth Dashboard 2018 report, published by the Enterprise Research Centre, presents a set of growth metrics for start-ups and existing firms across the UK, particularly focusing on the 38 English Local Enterprise Partnership areas.

The ESRC published a briefing based on the UK Local Growth Dashboard.