Supporting entrepreneurship in deprived communities: a vision too far?

Abstract

PurposeGovernment intervention has increasingly identified deprived communities as a key focus for enterprise support. The purpose of this paper is to examine attitudes and perceptions to enterprise support in a deprived community in the UK city of Leeds.Design/methodology/approachA survey of 142 entrepreneurs and potential entrepreneurs, and 18 follow‐up in‐depth interviews with entrepreneurs, were conducted with people living in the study area. The survey examined the entrepreneurial activity of members of the community, and usage of enterprise support.FindingsThe paper finds that certain forms of enterprise support in deprived communities may actually discourage entrepreneurship. Also, where entrepreneurial ventures are supported they tend to operate in activities relating to generic trades with low entry barriers, with many enterprises having little actual or perceived requirement for external support, with it being likely that these would have been established with or without support.Research limitations/implicationsA potential limitation of the study is that it is restricted to a case study of deprived communities in one particular city.Practical implicationsIncreased investment in the supply of enterprise support may not lead to increased levels of entrepreneurship, with support that aims to engage with people who have never considered starting a business, or do not have the skills required to launch and grow a venture, is unlikely to be cost‐effective given their low growth potential.Originality/valueThe results of the research are potentially applicable to other deprived communities, and provide lessons for policy relating to the promotion of entrepreneurship.

Bourdieu’s non-material forms of capital: Implications for start-up policy

“…The 1997-2010 Labour government addressed social exclusion and promoted selfemployment opportunities to the unemployed and those residing in deprived areas (Blackburn and Ram, 2006;Jones and Jayawarna, 2010;Lee et al, 2011;Jayawarna, 2006, 2011;Slack, 2005;Taylor et al, 2004;Williams and Williams, 2011;Williams and Huggins, 2013). Through its 'Science and Innovation Policy for the 21 st Century', this Government simultaneously sought to increase the rates of value added and knowledge-driven entrepreneurship (Delcloque and Auckland, 2004;DTI, 2000;Huggins and Williams, 2009;Kothari and Handscombe, 2007;SQW, 2005).…”

An appropriate tool for entrepreneurial learning in SMEs? The case of the 20Twenty Leadership Programme

“…Again such debates lie outside the remit of this paper, but they serve to illustrate the wider context within which SME support initiatives such as those outlined in this paper take place. Specifically referring to lagging regions, Williams and Huggins (2013) find that certain forms of enterprise support in deprived communities may actually discourage entrepreneurship. Also, where entrepreneurial ventures are supported, they tend to operate in activities relating to generic trades with low entry barriers, with many enterprises having little actual or perceived requirement for external support.…”

The Support Paradox in Community Enterprise Experiments in the Netherlands

“…Within deprived communities, residents are often viewed to be lacking in key entrepreneurial attributes and skills (OECD, 2003;Welter et al, 2008;Williams and Huggins, 2013). This is part of a larger concern that especially those citizens most in need, in the most deprived neighbourhoods, have the least capacity to solve problems in own their communities, and therefore still need support.…”