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Start Up Loans celebrates £25m of loans to entrepreneurs in Hampshire

Press release 14 January 2025

  • Since launching in 2012, Start Up Loans has delivered more than £25m in loans to founders in Hampshire, with an average loan value of £11,172
  • Portsmouth South and Southampton Itchen revealed as entrepreneurial hotspots
  • Sam Hopkins used a Start Up Loan to turn his passion for skateboarding into a business in Totton

Start Up Loans today announces that it has provided over a thousand founders in Hampshire with £25m in loans through its partners since the programme began in 2012. 

Across the South East region as a whole, over 12,200 aspiring entrepreneurs have taken out a Start Up Loan since 2012. These loans have amounted to over £130m in funding, with an average loan value of £10,690.
In Hampshire, based on analysis of figures for each of the county’s parliamentary constituencies, Portsmouth is an entrepreneurial hotspot with the highest number of Start Up Loans being given to businesses in Portsmouth South with Portsmouth North in third place. By value of finance provided, the three most entrepreneurial constituencies are Portsmouth South, Southampton Itchen and Portsmouth North.
Loans to female-led start-ups made up 37% of the total loans issued to entrepreneurs in Hampshire. This broadly reflects the overall programme’s gender split while exceeding the level of female business ownership in the business population. Wider market data shows that, in 2022, 18% of smaller businesses with employees and 20% of smaller businesses without employees were female-led.

One example of entrepreneurial success in Hampshire is Sam Hopkins, who founded the New Forest Skate Hub. At Totton skatepark in Southampton, Sam shares his passion for skateboarding by teaching both children and adults the joys and skills of the sport.

Turning my love for skateboarding into my work has been incredibly rewarding. There's nothing quite like helping people, maybe especially neurodivergent kids and adults, to try something new and gain confidence. Watching one of my students go on to compete has been a particular highlight for me. The finance and support was vital to me being able to purchase the necessary equipment to turn my passion into a business. - Sam Hopkins founder of New Forest Skate Hub
Reaching the £25m milestone in loans to entrepreneurs in Hampshire is a testament to the diverse and vibrant business landscape of the region. Community-focused ventures like the New Forest Skate Hub are crucial to contributing to the local economy, but also add social value to local people. The people Sam is teaching to skateboard are learning a new skill, enjoying themselves and supporting a local business, all of which are fantastic. Each Start Up Loan represents a story of ambition and we're proud to support founders like Sam in turning their business dreams into reality. - Louise McCoy Commercial Managing Director, Small Business Lending at the British Business Bank

If you are interested in setting up a business for the first time, Start Up Loans has recently released its Essential Guide to Starting a Business, with a guide to marketing coming soon. 

For more information, please contact:

Andy Ross
Comms Manager, Start Up Loans Programme 
[email protected]
m: +44 (0)7741 686 645

The British Business Bank team
MHP Communications
+44 20 3128 8589
[email protected]

Notes to editors

See below a breakdown of the Start Up loans to constituencies*  in Hampshire since 2012, including volume of loans, value, and average amount per constituency. 

Constituencies Loans Made Amount Lent (£)Average Loan Amount (£)
Portsmouth South2172,007,931£9,253
Southampton, Itchen1521,906,258£12,541
Portsmouth North1631,728,051£10,601
East Hampshire1411,697,913£12,041
North West Hampshire1361,680,670£12,357
Basingstoke1451,622,401£11,188
Meon Valley1471,575,411£10,717
Eastleigh1311,370,243£10,459
Fareham1221,367,250£11,206
Southampton, Test1171,359,825£11,622
Romsey and Southampton North1091,350,497£12,389
Winchester 1111,260,148£11,352
North East Hampshire1041,230,770£11,834
Aldershot1171,170,075£10,000
New Forest West1061,168,280 £11,021
Havant951,070,016£11,263
New Forest East911,044,045£11,473
Gosport88860,595£9,779
Hampshire2,29225,470,379£11,172

Individual constituency data for particular cities and localities is available on request.

*Data collected is according to constituencies that existed prior to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies. 

About Start Up Loans 

The Start Up Loans programme provides personal loans for business purposes of up to £25,000 at a 6% fixed interest rate per annum and offers free dedicated mentoring and support to each business.

The funding for the Start Up Loans programme is provided by the Department for Business and Trade (DBT).

The primary aim of the Start Up Loans programme is to help ensure that viable start-ups and early-stage businesses have access to the finance and support they need in order to thrive. A network of Business Support Partner organisations supports applicants in all regions and industries throughout the UK.

The Start Up Loans programme is operated by The Start-Up Loans Company, a company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales, registration number 08117656, registered office at Steel City House, West Street, Sheffield, S1 2GQ.

The Start-Up Loans Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of British Business Bank plc which is a development bank wholly owned by DBT.

British Business Bank plc and its subsidiaries are not banking institutions and do not operate as such. They are not authorised or regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority or the Financial Conduct Authority.

Free guides on a range of subjects related to starting a business and recent media press releases are available on the Start Up Loans website.

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