Lancashire’s scale-up economy — what's driving growth & what's next?

Lancashire has nearly 1,000 scale-up businesses — and their growth is helping to power the county’s economy. Its scale-up economy has seen strong and consistent growth over the past ten years, with businesses growing 20% over a sustained period.

Alongside this growth, support from both the public and private sectors has expanded significantly, helping ambitious businesses to access funding, expertise and networks. However, while progress has been encouraging, questions remain about how much more could be achieved if local leaders had greater control over the skills, infrastructure and investment decisions that shape economic growth.

Here, corporate and insolvency lawyer Nikki Whittle — founder of the popular networking event Business Circle — explores what's driving Lancashire's scale-up success, the support helping to fuel it and how more local decision-making could unlock even greater economic impact in the years ahead.

Lancashire's scale-up economy continues to grow

Released in November 2025, the Scaleup Institute’s most recent Annual Review showed an average annual growth in scale-up density of 2.8 in Lancashire over the past decade. This means that the county has gained an average of 2.8 more scale-up businesses per 100,000 population each year.

The latest figures also showed a significant increase on the previous year, rising to 61.8 scale-ups per 100,000 population compared to 48.7 in the 2024 report.

Expanding support for high-growth businesses

This growth in scale-ups has coincided with an expansion in the county’s help for fast-growing businesses from both the public and private sectors. Edge Hill’s Productivity and Innovation Centre, launched in 2017 to help SMEs scale-up, has helped over 350 businesses to date. 

Lancashire County Council has a number of support options for fast growing companies including its Fhunded network, designed to connect businesses with debt, equity and angel funding. 

Examples include Universal Atmosphere Processing (UAP), a Lancashire-based carbon reduction technology business which last year raised a six-figure investment sum from angel syndicates, including Lancashire County Council’s (LCC) Fhunded Angels network to accelerate production of its innovative gas processing system.

We’ve seen a growing number of investors increasing their presence in the county, including PXN Ventures, which manages the British Business Bank’s Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II and has invested in Lancashire companies including anaerobic digestion business ADTechOptima and audio and visual communications business Audiebant in the past year.

There are also new targeted business-led networks for scale-ups like Twenty, a collaboration between us and Lancashire-based business growth organisation Summit, which operates several exclusive groups across the county of fast-growing businesses with more than £1m turnover — designed to facilitate rapid growth and expand business leaders’ networks.

Why scale-ups matter

The reason for this increased range of support for Lancashire’s scale-up sector is clear. Nationally, scale-ups make up just 0.8% of the business population but account for 50% of SME output — about £2.19tn annually. Scale-up businesses also employ a total of 3.9m people across the UK.

The evidence shows that scale-ups punch above their weight in their contribution to wider economic growth — but could this contribution be even bigger in the optimal business environment?

Addressing barriers to growth

According to the Scaleup Institute, the key barriers to scale-up growth are access to markets, talent, leadership and infrastructure — very similar challenges to those highlighted by the institute in a similar report a decade ago.

The link between increased scale-up support and the expansion of Lancashire’s scale-up economy highlights the relationship between good local decision-making and economic growth. Now think about the art of the possible if the county had greater control over how to address skills, infrastructure investment and other persistent barriers.

The case for greater local decision-making

The True North network is a community of purpose-led businesses committed to collaborating to support the future of the North. The feedback that we consistently receive from members echoes the key growth barriers outlined in the Scaleup Institute’s report: skills, access to markets, infrastructure and investment.

Our members believe the answer lies in greater collaboration between the public and private sectors. A key part of that is increased economic decision-making at a local level, allowing policymakers to work with businesses to align skills provision with long-term local growth strategies and invest capital where it’s most needed to support key sectors like advanced manufacturing, aerospace, energy and food and drink.

Unlocking the next phase of growth

The county’s scale-up economy has already shown what’s possible when public and private sector partners work together with a clear focus on growth. The next opportunity is to build an ecosystem that maximises economic growth opportunities for high-growth companies over the next generation.

Through True North, we stand ready to support that ambition by convening businesses, policymakers and investors and helping shape practical conversations about the North’s economic potential.

If you’re committed to supporting the future of the North, join our growing collaborative network of purpose‑driven leaders.