Furthermore, registration volumes in the first two weeks of January 2012 are up by 12% compared to the same two weeks last year.
One particular growth hot spot is in postcode EC1 in East London, the site of the government supported East London Tech City, launched by David Cameron (pictured above) which has experienced a 40% year on year rise in incorporation levels since 2009, and was responsible for 76% of all growth in central London in 2011.
The overwhelming majority of the start ups are tech firms, capitalising on the huge boom in demand for new software, mobile apps and social media tools.
So why are so many people driven to launch their own enterprises, and why now when economic conditions appear to be so challenging? According to a recent survey 49% of new small business owners are motivated by a desire to be their own boss, and 41% believe they can make more money running their own business than by working from someone else.
When questioned about their confidence that the economic situation would improve in 2012, 57% were confident that conditions would improve, and a promising 73% plan to growth their business during 2012.
There are many other reasons why the working population is increasingly choosing to turn their own business dreams into reality; for some it is as simple as fulfilling a wish to cut the commute and work from home, while for others it is a burning desire to launch a second career and become an expert in a new field.
There is also a growing amount of support available for new start up businesses with the government backing the Start-Up Britain campaign, which is sponsored by some of a host of leading businesses including Barclays, PayPal, Dell & AXA.
John Davis, Managing Director at BCSG, who conducted the research said: “it is so encouraging to witness the increase of small businesses; they form a crucial segment of the UK market, and will undoubtedly help to drive economic growth in 2012. It can often be a daunting step to launch your own business, but to see so many people now embracing this challenge is very credit-worthy”.