Today we relaunch the ERC’s podcast series Exploring enterprise in collaboration with Business111.com . In this episode Professor Mark Hart of the Enterprise Research Centre speaks with Liz Barclay to explain why micro-businesses are far more important to the UK economy than policymakers recognise. Drawing on decades of research, he reveals how these smallest firms… Read more
The Enterprise Research Centre (ERC), in collaboration with the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), has announced the successful recipients of the LSBS Small Grant Funding call. Funded by DBT (£25,000 in total), five projects have been selected following a competitive process to undertake secondary analysis of the Longitudinal Small Business Survey (LSBS). The successful projects… Read more
New GEM 2025/2026 Global Report Finds Record Startup Activity — But Warns of Growing AI and Survival Gaps The newly released GEM 2025/2026 Global Report, launched at Tecnológico de Monterrey in collaboration with GEM Mexico and the Instituto de Emprendimiento Eugenio Garza Lagüera, finds that entrepreneurial activity remains strong across the globe — but structural weaknesses threaten long-term sustainability. Drawing… Read more
Last week we published the latest State of Small Business Britain report. 2025 was another challenging year for the UK’s small businesses and those working to support them. On one hand, there was much to be positive about. The evidence continues to show that the UK has a vibrant entrepreneurial culture, and that digital technology adoption… Read more
Presentation videos from the State of Small Business Britain conference 2025 are now available on the ERC YouTube channel.
Ethnic minority businesses (EMBs) are a significant yet under-recognised part of the UK economy. This impact report focuses on EMBs not as a niche issue, but as a way of understanding how entrepreneurial potential is created, constrained, or enabled within the UK’s wider business environment. The Time to Change: A Blueprint for Advancing the UK’s Ethnic… Read more
“Failure to plan is planning to fail” is the aphorism which might sum up conventional views of business planning. The concept of the professionally-managed firm highlights a standard approach to running a business; however, I know of a DBA (Doctor of Business Administration) student who took a £4m turnover business to over £100m in 12 years… without having a plan. In… Read more
The Innovation State of the Nation Survey (ISNS) provides an annual overview of innovation activity across a representative sample of UK businesses. This report focuses on the 2025 survey, conducted in early 2025 and covering 2,020 firms. Results are compared with those from the 2023 and 2024 surveys to highlight short-term trends in innovation levels,… Read more
New ERC research commissioned by Economic Intelligence Wales (EIW) shows that Wales is emerging as a UK leader in high-value intangible investments. Commissioned by Economic Intelligence Wales, this latest report reveals that Welsh firms anticipate quick and predictable investment returns – a key factor that appeals to investors.
Call for proposals 2026 The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) has made available £25,000 to fund five secondary analyses of the Longitudinal Small Business Survey. The Enterprise Research Centre (ERC) is administering this call on behalf of DBT. Note that applications will not be accepted from anyone who is being supported through current ERC… Read more
