The year ahead for Hampshire business networking

The January version of this article promised "more events, more venues and more crossover between sectors". It was optimism, not evidence. Ten months on, there is evidence to work with. Here is what changed in 2026 for businesses in Hampshire, and what it suggests for the year ahead.

A new layer of regional government

The biggest structural change was the creation of the Hampshire and the Solent Combined County Authority. The regulations that set it up were made on 3 June 2026 and came into force the next day. Its four constituent councils are Hampshire County Council, the Isle of Wight Council, Portsmouth City Council and Southampton City Council.

The regulations give it powers over local transport planning and public transport, and allow it to use the general power of competence for economic development and regeneration, alongside the councils. They also provide for an elected mayor. The first mayoral election is set for 4 May 2028, and the mayor's own functions start after that.

So for 2027, the authority exists but its mayor does not yet. Expect it to be building its plans and its business engagement. If you want a say in how regional economic decisions are made, its consultations and business events are worth watching.

Business support has already moved

This builds on a change from 2024. In August 2023 the government said it would withdraw core funding for local enterprise partnerships from April 2024 and move their responsibilities to local and combined authorities. Hampshire's two partnerships, Enterprise M3 and the Solent LEP, were among those affected.

In practice, that means publicly funded business support in Hampshire now runs through the councils. The listings show it: the Solent Business Growth Service runs one-to-one business and skills clinics, Shaping Portsmouth runs start-up and skills sessions, and Southampton City Council Business Support runs workshops. Our business support page explains the kinds of help available.

More businesses on the register

In September 2026 the ONS reported that the UK had 2.79 million VAT or PAYE businesses in March 2026, 1.9% more than a year before. Every UK region grew, which the ONS said was the first time that had happened since 2017.

Hampshire followed. UK Business Counts recorded 59,420 registered businesses in the Hampshire County Council area in March 2026, up from 58,650 a year earlier. Southampton went from 7,235 to 7,285 and Portsmouth from 6,020 to 6,095.

A different measure, which includes the smallest sole traders not registered for VAT or PAYE, points slightly the other way. The Department for Business and Trade estimated 5.6 million private sector businesses at the start of 2026, 1.8% fewer than in 2025, but said the fall was small relative to the estimate's uncertainty and could not confidently be called a real decline. Read together: the number of established, registered businesses grew; the number of very small, informal ones may not have.

More people starting up

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor's UK report for 2025/26, Beyond the Unicorns, found early-stage business activity rose from 12.0% to 16.8% of UK adults in 2025, driven by young people and women starting businesses. That is a national figure, but new founders are exactly the people who look for advice and contacts in their first year.

The government's small business survey shows how much room there is. In 2025, only 28% of small and medium employers sought outside information or advice. Business networks and trade associations were one of the sources they used.

What we expect in 2027, and what we don't know

We won't forecast attendance or growth: we have no data to do it honestly. What the evidence above suggests:

• More first-timers. If start-up activity stays near its 2025 level, more new owners will be looking for a first event. Start-up sessions and business clinics are likely to stay busy.
• More public business engagement. A new combined authority building towards a mayoral election in 2028 will want to hear from businesses.
• Steady regular groups. Repeating groups make up most of the calendar in our listings (see below), and nothing in the figures suggests that changing.

What we can measure is our own listings. From 12 November to 31 December 2026, hampshire.events listed 254 dated events across the county, 18 of them online. Of those dates, 160 belonged to series that meet more than once in those seven weeks, and the weekly referral chapters alone accounted for more than a hundred. If you want something to fit round the rest of your diary, a repeating group is the easiest place to start. We will keep saying what is listed, when we checked it, and where it came from.

What this means if you're going to events

• If you are new, start with support and a first event. A business clinic and one open networking event in your first few months is a sensible start. See your first business event.
• If you are established, pick a regular group. Repetition is how contacts turn into relationships. See choosing a networking group.
• Watch the combined authority. Its business engagement will shape regional decisions on transport and the economy.
• Book the big dates early. Awards, expos and festivals are listed ahead, and the listings below show the next ones.

Find the next one

The listings below mix the season's bigger events with business support. For the rest, see this week, Christmas networking, awards and groups.