Could Slough or Northampton become UK's start-up capital?

You might be surprised by some of the urban centres that are establishing themselves as UK start-up hubs.

A new study by the Centre for Cities think tank, reported by the Daily Telegraph, reveals the location with the fastest rate of growth in "corporate presence" between 2010 and 2014 was Slough. The Berkshire town, which was also the fastest growing in terms of population, saw the number of companies increase by 29 per cent over the five years.

Coming up fast and likely to take Slough's crown is the east Midlands town of Northampton, which is similarly establishing itself as a cost-effective alternative to London. It saw 11 per cent growth in the number of businesses in 2014 alone and has the second-fastest rate of start-ups per capita, with more than 80 businesses started per 10,000 population.

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Of course, London remains the biggest on this latter score and also has the largest number overall, but a growing number of smaller companies will be seeking to set up elsewhere to avoid sky high rates. "Northampton is home to Carlsberg's UK office, Barclaycard's headquarters and the Mercedes F1 engine plant as well as a burgeoning tech scene," says the Telegraph.

Most of the companies scoring high in terms of new start-ups are in southern areas of England. Only Aberdeen and Edinburgh bucked this trend, with the list of companies with the lowest start-up rates including a number across the north of England and the devolved regions, including Barnsley, Dundee, Stoke, Swansea, Mansfield, Hull, Sunderland and Belfast.

The report also highlighted a similar north-south divide when it came to those urban areas fulfilling the government's policy ambition of establishing a "high-wage, low-welfare" economy. Overall, 29 of the 63 towns and cities surveyed were deemed to be failing to achieve this, with seven of the top ten in the north of England.

The study authors said the government needed to focus on boosting these areas by following through on its pledge to create a "northern powerhouse", as well as by boosting devolution to give more control over "skills and welfare budgets", notes The Guardian.