Working mothers are turning to self-employment to achieve flexibility, a survey has found.

The Workingmums.co.uk annual survey of over 2,390 working parents found that 63% of working mums have considered setting up their own business or franchise, up from 57% last year, and 38% have put the wheels in motion. Of the women questioned, 36% feel their job is not very or not at all flexible.

Recent figures from the Office for National Statistics show the number of women in self-employment is increasing at a faster rate than the number of men. In 2014 women made up just under one third of the self-employed (1.4 million). Since 2009 the number of self-employed women has increased by 34%. By comparison over the past five years the number of self-employed men has risen by 15% to 3.1 million in 2014.

Gillian Nissim, founder of Workingmums.co.uk, said: “Many of the women who we speak to who have set up their own businesses mention flexibility as a key issue. This is surely food for thought for employers and policymakers.”

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Categories: News, Self-employed, Trends