Small business employment down in Q4-2025

In Q4-2025, the UK’s small business employment decreased by 2,900 jobs (-0.07%), as the chart below shows:

Annually, small business employment decreased by 5,400 jobs (-0.13%) in 2025, with two quarters of growth and two quarters of declines. Get a deeper dive into the annual trends here in the Small Business Index’s latest annual report.

Quarterly trends by sector

Seven of the 13 sectors tracked by the Index had declining employment in Q4-2025. Of these, the construction sector (SIC F) had both the largest decrease (-5,300 jobs) and the fastest decline (-0.88%). On the other end, the professional services sector (SIC M) had the fastest quarterly growth (0.88%) and the largest increase, adding 4,900 jobs. See the tables and charts below for details.

Quarterly trends by nation

All four nations of the UK had declining small business employment in Q4-2025. Wales had the fastest decline (-0.65%) but Scotland had the largest decrease (-1,400 jobs). See the tables and charts below for details.

Quarterly trends by region

Most regions of England had declining small business employment in Q4-2025, with the largest decrease (-3,000 jobs) and fastest decline (-0.74%) in North West England. Comparatively strong growth in London—where small businesses added 10,600 jobs (quarterly growth of 1.34%)—offset almost all of the net declines elsewhere in England. See the tables and charts below for details.

Methodology: For more information about the sample, data sources, and calculations used in the Small Business Index, read the full methodology here.

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