There has been an overall increase of 40% in self-employment since 2008.
The solo self-employed contributed an estimated £305 billion to the UK economy in 2019.
The number of highly skilled female freelancers has increased by 69% since 2008
The key reasons people go freelance are for the flexibility (88%) and control over work (88%) it offers.
Gender equality in the workplace has been widely talked about but very little is known about the experiences of women in self-employment.
This new report with Kingston University looks at the demographic and occupational trends of the solo self-employed sector in the UK in 2019 with a focus on highly skilled freelancers
We reflect on 2019 and begin to unravel the emerging trends in 2020 - not to mention the devastating effects of Coronavirus on the self-employed community.
In our latest report we aim to uncover who are the disabled self-employed, what are their motivations for entering self-employment, what are the key challenges they face and how can we better support them.
Our research provides us with fresh insights and statics that not only help government and industry understand the self-employed sector, but also power our policy campaigns to improve the business environment and make the UK a better place to be freelance.
Campaigns
By taking part in our surveys, you will provide important insights into the self-employment market that supports our work with government and industry.
We run many surveys throughout the year, so click on the link below to see what we have coming up. If we're inbetween surveys don't worry, we'll advertise these through our membership emails and on our social channels.
As part of IPSE’s commitment to learning more about the self-employed sector, we conduct, commission and publish new research on a regular basis. Here you can find our growing library of research into freelancing and self-employment.
Resource Library