One of our core missions at Small Business Britain is to make the entrepreneurial landscape in the UK open to all. Through the Lilac Review, we have been working to understand and remove barriers to entrepreneurship for Disabled people. This work culminated in a comprehensive report and the launch of the LILAC Centre, the UK’s first flagship business incubator and research centre dedicated to advancing the success of Disabled entrepreneurs.
The Lilac Review’s reach and impact prompted us to think about how we can broaden our efforts and further our mission of opening up access for everyone.
This summer, we launched the Maple Review, which marks a pivotal moment in our efforts to build a truly inclusive entrepreneurial landscape in the UK. Alongside Co-Chairs Minister for Small Business Gareth Thomas and WorkSpa founder Grace Graham, I am incredibly passionate about what this new independent, Government-backed review aims to achieve: identifying and dismantling the economic barriers that prevent so many individuals from pursuing their entrepreneurial dreams.
It’s a stark reality that roughly 24% of the UK population now lives in poverty, the highest recorded number in the 21st century. This often translates into a lack of access to crucial networks, financial resources, and essential education and training – all vital ingredients for starting a successful business.
We also know, according to an earlier independent review by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, that social mobility in the UK is at its lowest point in over 50 years, which prevents those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds to overcome those circumstances. This isn’t just a societal issue; it’s an economic one. When we stifle entrepreneurial talent due to someone’s starting point or life circumstances, we are not only denying individuals life-changing opportunities but also holding back the wider UK economy.
The Maple Review is designed to directly address these inequalities. With the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer’s recent commitment of an additional £1.2 billion per year into the skills sector, now is a critical time to ensure that people living in economic deprivation have a clear pathway into entrepreneurship.
What’s more, people from diverse ethnic backgrounds, Disabled people, women and girls, and those from working class or rural areas, among others, are disproportionately represented in that 24% figure, and we aim to look at how economic disadvantage, intersectional as it is, affects entrepreneurial prospects. This review will only be the first step in dismantling these barriers.
My fellow Co-Chair, Grace Graham, the founder of corporate wellness business WorkSpa and herself an entrepreneur who started her business after going through extremely difficult challenges early in life, will bring real commitment to ensuring that the voice of people facing disadvantage are not just heard, but truly centred in the process. This way, the Maple Review will deliver insights that are meaningful, practical, and rooted in the realities people face every day on the path to entrepreneurship.
With Grace’s close involvement, we will be engaging directly with entrepreneurs who have lived experience of these economic barriers, gathering their insights through surveys, focus groups, and roundtable discussions. This direct consultation, combined with extensive research, will provide us with concrete evidence to build a list of recommendations for government, the private sector, and other policy makers to drive change.
These recommendations will be included in the Maple Review’s final report, due in Spring 2026, which will be a comprehensive document, packed with data, case studies, and actionable recommendations. Through this work, we want to urge a collaborative and concerted effort to open up access to entrepreneurship for all.
Ultimately, the Maple Review is about more than just business; it’s about equity, wellbeing, and creating genuine opportunities for people from all backgrounds to thrive. By unlocking the entrepreneurial talent that exists in every community, we can generate opportunity, jobs, and growth across the entire UK. I encourage everyone to follow our progress and engage with the Review as we work to make entrepreneurship a universal right, not a privilege.
