EDINBURGH and south-east Scotland has the highest percentage of female entrepreneurs of any part of the UK, according to a new survey.
The study, by leading business financial platform Tide, found that 39% of self-employed workers in Edinburgh and south-east Scotland are female – a figure that’s well ahead of North Tyne and west of England, both with 34.7% females self-employed. Aberdeen City region and Glasgow City region are joint second in Scotland with a figure of 33.5%.
Just under three quarters (74%) of those who are self-employed in health and social work are female. This was followed by industries such as “households as employers”, which encompasses cleaners, babysitters and secretaries (69%) and other service activities, such as hairdressers and beauticians (66.8%).
Across the UK, the number of self-employed women has increased by 148% since 1984, up from 646,000 to 1.6 million. Over the same period, the number of self-employed men in the country has increased by 47%, from 2.05m to 3.02m – so while the gap is closing, there are still just under twice as many self-employed men as women.
The research used figures compiled by the Office for National Statistics. Tide stated: “According to our survey, around one in five women have considered starting a business, which is lower than the number of men who said they have considered forming their own company (29%), but shows that there is still a considerable number of budding female entrepreneurs out there. So why is there such a difference?
“There are many factors that can put women off starting their own business and there are many barriers in place. Of those who have thought about starting their own business but haven’t yet taken the plunge, the most common reason why not is savings or financial concerns, while the second most common reason for women not starting a business is the risk involved.”
Liza Haskell, chief administrative officer at Tide, said: “Our research reveals that the number of self-employed women has increased by 148% since 1984, with over 1.6m women in self-employment in the UK today. It’s great to see how women have made huge strides in entrepreneurship in recent years, with more female-fronted businesses than ever before.
“Starting your own business can be daunting, but there is lots of support and initiatives out there to help empower you.
“At Tide, we’re committed to supporting women in the UK in starting and running their own business, and we have set ourselves the target of helping 50,000 women in starting their business by the end of 2022.”
To read Tide's report, The UK Female Entrepreneurship Index, click here.
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