{
 "id": "business-births-deaths-uk",
 "title": "Business births and deaths, UK",
 "category": "economy",
 "summary": "Enterprises born and enterprises that died in the UK each year, with the number of active enterprises and each nation's births and deaths in the latest year, from the ONS's business demography.",
 "unit": "count",
 "chart": "line",
 "volatile": false,
 "status": "The deaths for 2023 and 2024 are provisional",
 "notes": [
  "Enterprises on the Inter-Departmental Business Register, counted by the ONS when they first appear (births) and when they cease to trade (deaths); each count is rounded to the nearest five, so the nations add up to the UK.",
  "The ONS adjusts the latest two years' deaths to allow for businesses that start trading again, and says those figures are provisional and subject to revision (its note 5).",
  "In 2024, by nation: England 282,680 births and 249,730 deaths; Wales 10,105 births and 9,710 deaths; Scotland 18,420 births and 16,140 deaths; Northern Ireland 6,235 births and 4,790 deaths.",
  "The Office for National Statistics publishes these as accredited official statistics."
 ],
 "provenance": {
  "publisher": "Office for National Statistics",
  "publisher_url": "https://www.ons.gov.uk/",
  "source_page": "https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/business/activitysizeandlocation/datasets/businessdemographyreferencetable",
  "licence": "OGL-3.0",
  "licence_name": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.",
  "retrieved_at": "2026-11-09T14:48:40Z",
  "raw_files": [
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    "name": "dataset.json",
    "url": "https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/business/activitysizeandlocation/datasets/businessdemographyreferencetable/data",
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 },
 "meta": {
  "latest_period": "2024-12-31",
  "active": {
   "2019": 2889115.0,
   "2020": 2897115.0,
   "2021": 2939675.0,
   "2022": 2924685.0,
   "2023": 2870295.0,
   "2024": 2859535.0
  },
  "nations": {
   "year": "2024",
   "England": {
    "births": 282680.0,
    "deaths": 249730.0,
    "active": 2521340.0
   },
   "Wales": {
    "births": 10105.0,
    "deaths": 9710.0,
    "active": 100420.0
   },
   "Scotland": {
    "births": 18420.0,
    "deaths": 16140.0,
    "active": 172065.0
   },
   "Northern Ireland": {
    "births": 6235.0,
    "deaths": 4790.0,
    "active": 65710.0
   }
  },
  "flags": {
   "Deaths": {
    "2023": "an adjustment has been made to the latest two years deaths to allow for reactivations. These figures are provisional and subject to revision.",
    "2024": "an adjustment has been made to the latest two years deaths to allow for reactivations. These figures are provisional and subject to revision."
   }
  },
  "ons_edition": "current",
  "file": "businessdemographyexceltables2024.xlsx",
  "accreditation": "Accredited official statistics: the ONS's dataset page gives them as national statistics"
 },
 "headline": {
  "label": "Business births",
  "value": 317440.0,
  "period": "2024",
  "note": "280,370 deaths; 2,859,535 active enterprises"
 },
 "series": [
  {
   "name": "Births",
   "points": [
    {
     "x": "2019",
     "v": 363825.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2020",
     "v": 333020.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2021",
     "v": 363995.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2022",
     "v": 336925.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2023",
     "v": 316025.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2024",
     "v": 317440.0
    }
   ]
  },
  {
   "name": "Deaths",
   "points": [
    {
     "x": "2019",
     "v": 303495.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2020",
     "v": 300475.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2021",
     "v": 328495.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2022",
     "v": 348675.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2023",
     "v": 309680.0
    },
    {
     "x": "2024",
     "v": 280370.0
    }
   ]
  }
 ]
}