10,000 Scots start-ups backed by Enterprise Allowance scheme

NEA, which was launched by the UK government in April 2011, is available to jobseekers with a business idea.

Applicants who are accepted onto the scheme receive access to a business mentor and financial support for up to six months.

They may also be able to apply for a loan of up to £25,000 to help with start-up costs.

The UK Government’s NEA figures, which cover the period from the scheme’s launch until March 2017, show at total 9,600 Scottish recipients of cash.

The data also shows that Glasgow City council area had the highest number of NEA backed start-ups in Scotland (1,650), followed by South Lanarkshire (840) and Fife (760).

Employment Minister Damian Hinds said: “As these latest figures show, thousands of people across Scotland have great business ideas and are taking the steps to turn them into a reality.

“The NEA provides the right mix of expert, tailored advice and support to people of all backgrounds which can be invaluable in the early days of starting a business.”

UK-wide, more than 105,000 businesses have been launched with NEA support.

The figures also show that of those people starting up their own firms with help from the scheme, more than twothirds were aged between 25 and 49, 24 per cent were over 50 and 7 per cent were between 18 and 24.

Two-fifths were women, 22 per cent had a self-declared disability and 13 per cent were from a black and minority ethnic background. North-west England had the highest number of NEA-driven start-ups, at 16,090.