Businesses in Cheltenham
Situated in a beautiful part of the country, roughly 50 miles from both Birmingham and Bristol, and commutable to London, there are a diverse range of businesses in Cheltenham. Some well-known businesses include Superdry, Spirax-Sarco and Steinhoff UK Retail.
About 90% of businesses in Cheltenham have less than 10 employees and turnover less that £1 million.
What types of businesses are there in Cheltenham?
According to the Office for National Statistics 2019 Bulletin, there are about five thousand businesses in Cheltenham. As can be seen from the table below, by far the largest business sector in Cheltenham is professional, scientific & technical, which accounts for almost a quarter of businesses. This is followed by information and communication, construction then business administration & support services.
Table 1
| Number of businesses | % of businesses | |
| 69-75 : Professional, scientific & technical | 1,215 | 23% |
| 58-63 : Information & communication | 655 | 12% |
| 41-43 : Construction | 575 | 11% |
| 77-82 : Business administration & support services | 465 | 9% |
| 47 : Retail | 340 | 6% |
| 90-99 : Arts, entertainment, recreation & other services | 340 | 6% |
| 55-56 : Accommodation & food services | 290 | 5% |
| 64-66 : Finance & insurance | 255 | 5% |
| 86-88 : Health | 245 | 5% |
| 68 : Property | 240 | 4% |
| 05-39 : Production | 215 | 4% |
| 46 : Wholesale | 140 | 3% |
| 45 : Motor trades | 115 | 2% |
| 49-53 : Transport & Storage (inc postal) | 110 | 2% |
| 85 : Education | 105 | 2% |
| 01-03 : Agriculture,forestry & fishing | 55 | 1% |
| 84 : Public administration & defence | 5 | 0% |
| Total | 5,365 |
This information is from 2019 ONS UK Business Activity Size and Location Table 1
How many employees do Cheltenham businesses have?
As can be seen from table 2 below, most businesses in Cheltenham employ less than 5 people, which is in line with the rest of Great Britain.
78% of businesses in Cheltenham employ less than 5 people, 95% employ less than 20 employees, and 98% employ less than 50 people.
Table 2
| Cheltenham | Great Britain | ||||||
| Employment size band | Number of employers | % of employers | Cumulative total % | Number of employers | % of employers | Cumulative total % | |
| 0-4 | 4,180 | 78% | 78% | 2,067,170 | 78% | 78% | |
| 5-9 | 580 | 11% | 89% | 298,245 | 11% | 89% | |
| 10-19 | 345 | 6% | 95% | 148,845 | 6% | 95% | |
| 20-49 | 145 | 3% | 98% | 78,535 | 3% | 98% | |
| 50-99 | 60 | 1% | 99% | 26,180 | 1% | 99% | |
| 100-249 | 30 | 1% | 100% | 14,630 | 1% | 100% | |
| 250+ | 25 | 0% | 100% | 10,265 | 0% | 100% | |
| Total | 5,365 | 2,643,870 | |||||
This information is from 2019 ONS UK Business Activity Size and Location Table 10
What turnover do businesses in Cheltenham have?
In terms of turnover, Cheltenham businesses are very representative of Great Britain in general. About 90% of businesses in Cheltenham turn over less than £1 million per year, and 99% of businesses turnover of less than £10 million.
Table 3
| Cheltenham | Great Britain | ||||||
| Turnover size band (£000’s) | Number of employers | % of employers | Cumulative total % | Number of employers | % of employers | Cumulative total % | |
| 0-49 | 895 | 17% | 17% | 404,800 | 15% | 15% | |
| 50-99 | 1,185 | 22% | 39% | 615,775 | 23% | 39% | |
| 100-249 | 1,775 | 33% | 72% | 855,940 | 32% | 71% | |
| 250-499 | 675 | 13% | 84% | 332,355 | 13% | 84% | |
| 500-999 | 375 | 7% | 91% | 189,860 | 7% | 91% | |
| 1000-1999 | 235 | 4% | 96% | 108,245 | 4% | 95% | |
| 2000-4999 | 110 | 2% | 98% | 74,540 | 3% | 98% | |
| 5000-9999 | 55 | 1% | 99% | 28,530 | 1% | 99% | |
| 10000-49999 | 50 | 1% | 100% | 25,505 | 1% | 100% | |
| 50000+ | 10 | 0% | 100% | 8,320 | 0% | 100% | |
| Total | 5,365 | 2,643,870 | |||||
This information is from 2019 ONS UK Business Activity Size and Location Table 11
How have Cheltenham businesses changed over the last few years?
The number of Value Added Tax (VAT) and/or Pay As You Earn (PAYE) businesses in Cheltenham, as of March 2019, increased to 5,365, an increase of 2.09% from March 2018 and a slight recovery from the minimal losses seen between 2017 and 2018.
Table 4
| Employment size band | Number of employers 2017 | Number of employers 2018 | Number of employers 2019 |
| 0-4 | 4,125 | 4,105 | 4,180 |
| 5-9 | 575 | 555 | 580 |
| 10-19 | 320 | 345 | 345 |
| 20-49 | 160 | 145 | 145 |
| 50-99 | 55 | 60 | 60 |
| 100-249 | 25 | 25 | 30 |
| 250+ | 20 | 20 | 25 |
| Total | 5,280 | 5,255 | 5,365 |
This information is from 2019 ONS UK Business Activity Size and Location Table 10
Where the data for this article is obtained
Please note that the figures are taken from Office for National Statistics (ONS) data. According to the ONS website:
“UK business; activity, size and location, 2019 is produced from an extract taken from the Inter-Departmental Business Register (IDBR) recording the position of businesses as at 15 March 2019.
This publication represents the businesses registered with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for Value Added Tax (VAT) and/or Pay As You Earn (PAYE). The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) produces Business Population Estimates that seek to provide full coverage of all types of businesses in the UK, including an estimate of the unregistered business population.
For the purpose of this statistical bulletin the term “business” is used to represent an enterprise. An enterprise can be defined as the smallest combination of legal units (generally based on VAT and/or PAYE records) that is an organisational unit producing goods or services, which benefits from a certain degree of autonomy in decision-making, especially for the allocation of its current resources. An enterprise carries out one or more activities at one or more locations. An enterprise may be a sole legal unit.”
This article has been written by Newton Accountants, a firm of accountants in Cheltenham which works with businesses and individuals to help maximise their results. If you are looking for an accountant in Cheltenham please contact us.