Middlesbrough named in top 10 UK cities or towns if you want your business to succeed, according to new data

A new study by Shootday has revealed exactly that. Looking at the data behind business formation and sustainability across the UK, the study determines the places where entrepreneurs have the best shot at long-term success.

To get to the bottom of this, the study examined data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), focusing on 50 cities and towns across the country. The study looked at three crucial factors: business birth rates (how many new businesses are springing up), business death rates (how many are closing), and five-year survival rates (how many stick around after the early challenges).

Each of these metrics was individually normalised and indexed from 0 to 100, allowing cities of all shapes and sizes to be compared on a level playing field. To reflect how important staying power is in the business world, survival rates were given the most weight at 50%, while both births and deaths were weighted at 25% each.

In 9th place is Middlesbrough, scoring 69.18. With a 93.8% business survival rate (9th), the town is proving to be a strong contender in the North East. It had 620 business births (40th), and just 575 closures, placing it 8th for lowest death rates.

Meanwhile, Lincoln leads the way (74.75), with 2,575 new businesses (5th), just 310 deaths (2nd), and a 93% survival rate (14th). Blackburn with Darwen (72.26) follows in second, backed by a 94.5% survival rate (2nd). Solihull takes third (70.84), while Basildon and Chelmsford (4th and 5th) both boast survival rates at or above 94%.

Salford lands sixth (70.03) with the second-highest number of new businesses (1,510, 12th) but also one of the higher death counts (1,465, 38th). Darlington (7th) had one of the lowest closure rates in the country. York (8th) and Bury (10th) round off the top 10 list with steady business figures and survival rates well over 93.8%.

On the other hand, it wasn’t good news for all locations. At the bottom of the list were cities such as Kingston upon Hull, Nuneaton and Bedworth, Luton, Stoke-on-Trent, Coventry, Sunderland, Birmingham, Harlow, Liverpool and Derby, all ranking low due to a mix of high closure rates or weaker survival numbers.

Top 20 list of best UK cities and towns if you want your business to succeed: