Prime Minister’s Enterprise Advisor Lord Young, published a report on the changing face of business over the past 5 years

A new report on small firms from the Prime Minister’s Enterprise Advisor Lord Young, published today, reviews the changing face of business over the past 5 years. Lord Young’s report on small firms  shows that small businesses are entering a ‘golden age’, with a record number of small firms now established in the UK – some 5.2 million, an increase of 760,000 since 2010 – and a record number of people in work.

It finds that our changing relationship with the internet has brought down barriers that might previously have stopped a good idea from being turned into a viable business. The government’s drive to roll out super-fast broadband around the country, which has now reached over 2 million homes and businesses, and the increasing use of tablets and smartphones providing on-the-go internet access have made it easier for those working for themselves to reach customers and make sales.

The report also charts a change in culture, with growing numbers of people choosing to be their own boss including young people not simply out of commercial necessity in particular young people, but because of conviction in their own ideas.

It also outlines how government policies providing more support for small firms and new enterprises have helped transform the business landscape over the past 5 years. As part of the government’s long term plan to back business, create jobs and build a more resilient economy, Lord Young was appointed as the Prime Minister’s Enterprise Advisor in October 2011 and asked to review support for small businesses and look at how new and developing businesses can grow.

Ross Bennett Chair Hull Youth Enterprise Partnership said

“Since his appointment as the Prime Minister’s Enterprise Adviser, Lord Young’s reports have helped inform our youth enterprise strategy and action plan in Hull to support enterprising young people.

We were particularly pleased to contribute to his report Enterprise for All, published in June 2014, which focused on the entrepreneurial spirit in education. It looked at how schools, colleges and universities work with employers to inspire and motivate young people and help them make the best choices for their future education and careers. It recommended that young people should have a digital record of extra-curricular achievements and business-related activity, an Enterprise Passport, alongside their exam results, which we are already developing a local version with teachers and tutors in the City.”

As a partnership we welcome the idea of a new company to bring coherence and leadership to enterprise learning in education, backed with £20m in the first year. The company will develop an Enterprise Passport and a network of Enterprise Advisers working with local intermediaries and the Humber LEP in our area to put in place a network of Enterprise Advisers, who will often be local business people, providing advice to head teachers on developing an enterprise offer for their pupils as part of their duty under the Careers Statutory Guidance."

Lord Young said:

In the last 5 years I have met countless numbers of inspiring young entrepreneurs and small firms including representatives from the Hull Youth Enterprise Partnership and members of your young entrepreneurs network  who presented me with a copy of Hull’s Enterprise Trail Game which I understand you are now developing as an APP to be made available to young people in your city.

My report reflects on the key developments that government and its partners have supported to raise ambition about enterprise and enable entrepreneurs to build successful businesses.

Put these together and you can see the transformative effect on enterprise opportunities in the UK today. This is the golden age for small firms – there has never been a better time to start and grow a business.

Further Information

The Report https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/report-on-small-firms-2010-to-2015-by-lord-young