Enterprise Educators UK (EEUK) welcomes the publication of The Maple Review: Exclusion and Enterprise – Entrepreneurship, Poverty and Breaking Down Barriers, a significant contribution to the growing evidence base on entrepreneurship, social mobility and economic inclusion. The review draws on extensive research with entrepreneurs who have experienced economic hardship and identifies a range of structural barriers that continue to limit entrepreneurial participation and success.
The report’s findings resonate strongly with many of the issues that enterprise educators encounter in schools, colleges and universities. In particular, its emphasis on confidence, access to networks, financial capability, mentoring and exposure to entrepreneurial role models reflects longstanding discussions within enterprise and entrepreneurship education.
Universities have an important role to play in addressing these challenges. Higher education remains one of the most significant drivers of social mobility in the UK, providing access not only to knowledge and qualifications, but also to professional networks, entrepreneurial ecosystems, mentoring opportunities and practical enterprise experiences. For many students from underrepresented or economically disadvantaged backgrounds, university may provide their first meaningful opportunity to explore entrepreneurship as a viable career pathway.
This is particularly relevant given that a substantial proportion of UK students come from groups identified within the review as facing heightened barriers to entrepreneurship, including students from lower-income households, disabled students, mature learners, first-generation entrants to higher education and students from minority ethnic communities.
EEUK is pleased to see contributions from members of our own network reflected within the review. The report cites research from Dr Sarah Preedy of the University of Plymouth, whose work has highlighted the ways in which financial precarity can constrain entrepreneurial ambition and business growth. We also recognise the important contribution being made through enterprise and entrepreneurship initiatives at the University of Birmingham, including work led by EEUK Director Helen Lockley and colleagues to widen participation in enterprise education and entrepreneurial opportunity.
The Maple Review rightly argues that entrepreneurial talent is distributed more evenly than opportunity. We welcome its call for a more inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem and encourage policymakers, educators, business support organisations and universities to engage seriously with its recommendations.
Enterprise education has a critical role to play in ensuring that entrepreneurial opportunity is not determined by circumstance. As a community of educators and practitioners, EEUK looks forward to contributing to these discussions and supporting efforts to widen participation in entrepreneurship across the UK.