Hounslow & Harrow best for growth

Hounslow and Harrow are the best performing West London boroughs in a table showing business growth over the past two years.

The table, which show figures just released by the Office for National Statistics, shows the growth in the total number of active businesses between 2009 and 2011. Formation has exceeded closure in all but one London Borough, but the rate of growth varies widely across the capital.

East London dominates the top of the table, with Hounslow as the best placed western borough at tenth in the list. Harrow is just behind. Hammersmith & Fulham only just showed growth, and is ahead of only Kensington & Chelsea.

The figures reflect rapid growth in new businesses in East London during the past two years, and a much more static picture in the rest of the city. The national figure is a growth of 10%, however, this is likely to reflect a rapid browth in self-employment following redundancy.

Full Table:

Shows total number of active businesses (i.e. those reporting turnover and completing VAT returns). Figures from ONS.