At Vestd, we’re vocal supporters of the power of sharing ownership.
We know how much sharing ownership makes sense for businesses, employees and the wider economy to support growth and give employees fairer rewards for their contributions to a company’s success.
In fact, our research shows that one in three UK employees would love a share scheme at their place of work.
When we look at national statistics, however, we have identified a wider trend of equity inequality across the UK.
Our team has crunched the latest figures from the Department for Work and Pensions to map the distribution of company share schemes across the country.
Our interactive map shows the distribution of company share schemes in households across the UK.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, London leads the way on share schemes with 5% of households in the capital having investments in the form of company share schemes.
In Inner London, this rises to 7% of households.
This is in stark comparison to 1% of households in Northern Ireland, the North East and the West Midlands.
While the South East isn’t far behind London with 4% of households having a share scheme, other regions like the East Midlands, South West, North West and Yorkshire are some way behind, with just one in 50 households benefiting from a share scheme.
Commenting on the data, Vestd’s founder and CEO, Ifty Nasir, said:
“Sharing equity can have enormous power, so it’s concerning to see a rise in ‘equity inequality’.
“Employee share schemes provide opportunities for employers to create life-changing wealth for the people that power their growth - they also help to accelerate growth and increase productivity.
“Our research shows that a third of British employees would love a share scheme, but more work needs to be done to widen access to all more equally."
“For every 100,000 companies that have a scheme in place, we can add £1 billion to the UK economy - so we all see the benefits of more widespread adoption.”