MORE than 40 per cent of 16-to-24-year-olds in the region have an ambition to set-up their own business during their working life, research has found.

And 58 per cent felt that starting their own business was an “accessible option” for them as a career choice based on their social background.

The study was commissioned by the Association of Accounting Technicians, and conducted by Survation.

In other findings, 39 per cent of Yorkshire and Humberside respondents said that having enough money to get started was among the top priorities, and 43 per cent identified financial management as the most important skill needed – followed by leadership and communication/negotiation skills.

Adam Harper, the association’s director of strategy and professional standards, said: “It’s great to see that young people in this region have the ambition to start their own business irrespective of their background.

“Despite prevailing barriers to social mobility, the next generation of workers has an entrepreneurial spirit that supersedes these. With the rise of flexible working environments, small to medium enterprise numbers and digital opportunities, young people are living in a world where they may view their only limitation as the scale of their own ambition.”