London may lead the pack when it comes to business start-ups in Britain, but the latest research from Instant Offices reveals the UK’s other major cities are making a significant contribution to entrepreneurialism in the UK.
Instant’s Entrepreneurial Index ranks the UK’s leading cities by analysing Companies House data and comparing average population in each city with the number of businesses launched there year on year. And this year, Manchester has taken fifth place with Birmingham storming to the top of the league for start-ups.
Despite uncertainty around Brexit, the UK’s start-up ecosystem saw record investment growth in 2017, as according to a report by Deal Room, UK investment grew by 87% to €7.1 billion, which is more than Germany, France and Sweden combined.
According to a Startup Outlook Report, UK start-ups are optimistic with 49% of entrepreneurs saying they are confident in better business conditions in 2018 while 42% said conditions would remain the same. Eight in 10 start-ups plan to expand their teams in 2018.
London leads the pack for total number of start-ups, as would be expected, with 145,993 businesses launched in 2017. But, on a pro rata basis, Birmingham surpasses the capital as the Most Entrepreneurial UK City in 2018 with its impressive start-up to population ratio.
With significant growth over the past few years, Birmingham’s ability to attract and support early-stage businesses is attributed to its world-class support networks, accelerator schemes and significant infrastructure investment. The completion of HS2 is set to transform the West Midlands, and Birmingham’s sizeable metropolitan economy is predicted to see considerable benefits to boost growth.
Key Cities Ranked
| ENTREPRENEURIAL CITIES | TOTAL CO. JAN 2018 | ENTREPRENEURIAL INDEX |
| BIRMINGHAM | 21,783 | 3% |
| LONDON | 145, 993 | 2% |
| LEICESTER | 9, 796 | 2% |
| COVENTRY | 6, 985 | 2% |
| MANCHESTER | 15, 128 | 1% |
| BRIGHTON | 6, 839 | 1% |
| BRISTOL | 7, 290 | 1% |
| EDINBURGH | 7, 237 | 1% |
| GLASGOW | 9, 138 | 1% |
| NOTTINGHAM | 6, 787 | 1% |
| NEWCASTLE | 5, 930 | 1% |
| LIVERPOOL | 7, 697 | 1% |
| CARDIFF | 6, 770 | 1% |
| LEEDS | 6, 425 | 1% |
| BELFAST | 801 | 0% |
John Williams, Head of Marketing and Research at Instant Offices, said:“While majority of demand still comes from companies looking for flexible office requirements for smaller teams, our data reveals that larger, corporate occupiers are also looking for flexible space in what is proving to be a very competitive market in cities like Leicester.
