The latest Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) report into UK entrepreneurship in 2023, in partnership with NatWest Group, asks “How have attitudes to entrepreneurship evolved and what have been the key trends in entrepreneurial activity and aspirations since 1999?”

•  Despite the constant rise in the perception that the fear of failure would prevent people from starting their own business, as well as the poor growth record of the economy, the UK is a significantly more entrepreneurial society than it was at the start of the millennium. 
• For the first time since GEM records began, just under 30% of working age individuals in 2023 either intended to start a business within the next three years, were actively trying to start a business, or running their own business.
• There has been a remarkable increase in the level of early-stage entrepreneurial activity by women in the UK since 2002 from just over 3.5% to 10% - a three-fold increase.
• Despite changes in the demographic composition of migration, immigrant and non-white ethnic populations continue to be the most entrepreneurial groups in the UK.

Mark Hart, Professor of Small Business and Entrepreneurship at Aston Business School, who leads the GEM UK team, said: “The conditions that allow entrepreneurs to sustain and grow their businesses have been weakening for a number of years now and urgent action is needed in the areas of entrepreneurial finance, business support and physical infrastructure to ensure the UK can facilitate the growth ambitions of thousands of small business leaders – the majority of whom are outside London.

“Entrepreneurial education at all levels continues to remain a relative weakness in the UK compared to many international comparators despite numerous public and private initiatives over many decades - the practice of teaching basic business skills is still insufficiently widespread.”

Darren Pirie, Ulster Bank's Head of Accelerator said: “As the UK’s biggest bank for startups, we recognise that entrepreneurs make a huge contribution to business in the UK. They create a wide range of employment opportunities and are often the first to innovate and use new technologies.

“It’s pleasing to see that early-stage business activity is on the rise across all regions of the UK and that the motivations for starting a business are becoming multifaceted. Entrepreneurs are moving away from just opportunity or necessity as the key driver, with female founders especially valuing social considerations”.

“In 2023, 50% of our enterprise programmes support went to women and 34% went to people from ethnic minority backgrounds*, which backs up the GEM finding that non-white ethnic groups have become a cornerstone of the UK’s entrepreneurial activity”.

*NatWest Group, 2023 Environmental, Social and Governance Disclosures report

Find out all about the Ulster Bank Accelerator, including how to apply.