Press Releases

Entrepreneurs will be crucial for the UK’s recovery from COVID and dealing with economic fallout from Brexit – new report
• Early-stage entrepreneurial activity in 2020 had fallen sharply from its pre-pandemic high in the UK as the economy was essentially shut down for long periods due to COVID-19
• This decline was due to fewer nascent entrepreneurs than normal – that is, individuals in the first three months of starting their new business venture
• Nevertheless, around two-thirds of working-age adults looking to set up a business within three years said the pandemic had influenced their decision to re-assess their future engagement with the labour market

As in previous economic downturns it is the small business community that drives the recovery across all sectors of the economy. UK entrepreneurs once again stand ready to rise to the challenges and opportunities created by the Coronavirus pandemic and the economic fallout from Brexit, a new report says.
The latest Global Entrepreneurship Team (GEM) UK report found that although around of half budding entrepreneurs said that the UK government had so far dealt effectively with the economic consequences of the pandemic, there must be improved programmes, financial support and advice to start-ups and scale-ups through different stages of the business life cycle.

Media Release issued by the Mental Health and Productivity Pilot
Small businesses across the Midlands need urgent help with improving wellbeing in the workplace after a new report showed COVID-19 is now a main factor in causing mental health absences from work.
The Mental Health and Productivity Pilot (MHPP) is encouraging businesses to get in touch for advice on adopting a free mental health and wellbeing programme for workplaces, to help combat the problem.
The report, published by the Enterprise Research Centre (ERC) and authored by researchers at University of Warwick – a partner of MHPP – showed that mental health issues related to COVID-19 were a more common factor for sickness absences at Midlands workplaces than issues related to in-work problems or physical health.
It also revealed that smaller firms were much less likely to have adopted a mental health plan or to have changed working practices due to COVID-19 compared to larger companies.

• Over 40% of UK’s small and medium-sized firms report COVID-related hit to turnover, while 3 in 10 forced to cut jobs
• Around 200,000 firms could be close to collapse based on analysis of those trading insolvently or running out of cash
• But a fifth of firms report positive impacts from the pandemic, with many embracing digital technologies and green agenda

• New Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report shows UK early-stage entrepreneurship hit a new high in 2019
• Nearly 1 in 10 working age adults were in the early stages of starting or running a business, with women catching up with men
• Progress threatened by Chancellor’s decision not to provide financial support for three million entrepreneurs

UK entrepreneurship is “in jeopardy” despite hitting a new high pre-pandemic because of gaps in support for people in the early stages of running a business, a leading expert has warned.
Professor Mark Hart of Aston Business School said the exclusion of three million people from Government support schemes since March was “chipping away at the foundations of our enterprise economy”.
His comments come on the back of a new report from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) which show that the UK recorded its highest rate of early-stage entrepreneurship since the global annual survey began nearly 20 years ago.

• ‘Furlough envy’, isolation and additional home stresses have triggered deteriorations in workplace mental health, new study suggests
• Workers less likely to talk to managers about experiencing mental health problems since lockdown, fearing ‘repercussions’
• Study highlights need to raise awareness among employers of resources available to support mental health

Workers have become less open about their mental health struggles since the coronavirus outbreak because of fears they could lose their jobs if they speak up, new research suggests.
The findings from the Enterprise Research Centre, based on in-depth interviews with managers in UK firms over the summer, also show workplaces have become divided by how different staff have been treated since March – with some saying ‘furlough envy’ had split teams.

• New study challenges assumption that most productive firms will drive future productivity gains
• Inspirational leadership shown to boost productivity in firms of all sizes and sectors, even those starting with low levels
• Research provides evidence to support recent public investment in ‘soft skills’ training for business leaders.

New research from the Enterprise Research Centre suggests that small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with lower starting levels of productivity – sometimes referred to pejoratively as “laggards” – are in fact just as likely to see gains over time as their more productive rivals.

Millions of early-stage entrepreneurs and limited company directors “thrown to the wolves” despite extensions to support schemes
Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s ‘winter economy plan’ still excludes millions of entrepreneurs and small business owners from support, the Enterprise Research Centre has warned.
Key measures announced by Mr Sunak today [24 September 2020] include the new Job Support Scheme to replace the ‘furlough’ measures introduced in March, running for six months from November.

• Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report calls on policymakers to create right conditions for an enterprise-led economic recovery worldwide.


Policymakers around the world must provide clear advice and practical support for entrepreneurs to ensure global economies recover from the devastation of coronavirus, a new report says.
Presenting a snapshot of support measures introduced by 54 countries around the world since the Covid-19 outbreak, the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) – whose UK team is led by Professor Mark Hart of Aston University – says entrepreneurs starting and growing their businesses will be key to a return to global growth.
It has called on governments and enterprise agencies to prioritise clear communication and reduce red tape to help entrepreneurs take advantage of changes in technology and consumer behaviour since the start of the pandemic.
The report assesses each participating country’s performance against a set of nine metrics known as the GEM Entrepreneurial Framework Conditions. The chapter on the UK’s response highlights the gaps in support for many early-stage entrepreneurs and fears that measures implemented early on to help entrepreneurs and firms are being withdrawn too soon.

A new report funded through the Midlands Engine Mental Health and Productivity Pilot (MHPP) finds that firms impacted by mental health sickness absence suffered a 25% hit to their productivity.
A new report funded through the Midlands Engine Mental Health and
Productivity Pilot (MHPP) finds that firms impacted by mental health sickness
absence suffered a 25% hit to their productivity
• Bosses surveyed cited remote working and job insecurity as risk factors – but many unsure where to turn for advice on boosting staff wellbeing
• Report calls for firms to appoint ‘mental health leads’ to oversee wellbeing policies and seek advice from specialist mental health charities
• Report is part of three-year programme funded by the Midands Engine that is supporting employers with workplace mental health challenges

New data shows a spike in limited companies going out of business - coupled with a big decline in new starts - has hit all regions and sectors since the start of March.

New data suggests the UK economy is facing a worrying “pincer movement” due to the coronavirus pandemic, with a surge in limited companies going bust being mirrored by a drop in new firms setting up.
The analysis by the Enterprise Research Centre shows that 61,472 limited companies folded between the start of March and mid-April, with a parallel drop in the numbers of new firms registering with Companies House.
Comparing figures from March this year with the full month’s data from last March, the number of firms going out of business was 70% higher than a year ago (up 21,206), while the number of new firms incorporated fell by 23% (14,270 fewer).