Self-employment trends in the hairdressing and barbering sector: 2026

Dyddiad y datganiad:
17 August 2026

FOI reference: FOI-2026-3659

You asked

I am researching self-employment trends in the hairdressing and barbering sector and would like to establish what data ONS holds and publishes that specifically isolates self-employment status for this occupation/industry, rather than for broader groupings that include it.

Specifically, please could you confirm:

  1. Does ONS hold or publish any dataset, from the Labour Force Survey, Annual Population Survey, Business Register and Employment Survey, or any other source, that breaks down employment status (employed vs. self-employed) specifically for hairdressers and barbers, whether classified by SIC code 96.02 ("Hairdressing and other beauty treatment") or SOC codes 6221/6222 ("Hairdressers and barbers" / "related occupations")?

  2. If such a dataset exists, please provide it, or provide a link to where it is published, along with the relevant time series.

  3. If no such dataset exists at this level of granularity, please confirm this explicitly, and describe the most granular ONS data that does exist covering self-employment among hairdressers – including whether this is only available at a broader SIC section level (e.g. "Other services," SIC sections R, S, T) or broader occupational grouping, and what that broader grouping includes.

  4. Please confirm whether ONS has, since January 2024, produced or been asked to produce any bespoke analysis, table, or ad hoc release specifically covering self-employed hairdressers, whether for a government department, parliamentary committee, or external organisation, and if so, please provide details of that release and the requesting party (redacting personal data as appropriate, but not organisational identity).

  5. Please confirm whether any such bespoke release, if it exists, has been published, and if not, why not.

We said

Thank you for your request about self-employment in the hairdressing and barbering sector. 

The information relevant to your request is available from several of our sources. These sources measure employment in different ways, so the most appropriate source depends on whether the requirement is for an occupational breakdown, an industry breakdown, or information about registered businesses. These two ways of providing estimates are as follows.

Occupation-based estimates

The Labour Force Survey (LFS) and Annual Population Survey (APS) are household surveys based on interviews with people resident in private households in the UK. They collect information from people in employment about their occupation, industry and employment status, including whether they are employees or self-employed. Responses are weighted and aggregated to provide estimates for the UK population, based on mid-year population estimates and projections. 

It is important to note that LFS and APS classifications are based on individuals' responses about the industry they work in, the job they do and whether they consider themselves to be self-employed. These classifications may differ from legal, tax or accounting definitions. 

We publish APS estimates of the number of people working in each occupation, using the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) 2020, with a split between employees and the self-employed, on Nomis. This dataset provides time series information from the 12-month period January to December 2021 onwards. A comparable dataset is also available on a SOC 2010 basis for earlier periods. One period is available on both bases to support comparison between the two classifications.

For the 12-month period April 2025 to March 2026, the latest period available, the APS estimates that there were 87,000 self-employed people in occupation 6221: Hairdressers and barbers, and 63,200 self-employed people in occupation 6222: Beauticians and related occupations.

Industry-based estimates 

We also publish LFS estimates of self-employment by industry. However, the most detailed published industry breakdown from this source is for Sections R, S and T combined: Arts, entertainment and recreation; Other service activities; and Activities of households as employers. This is broader than Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) 96.02: Hairdressing and other beauty treatment.

We do not publish a detailed LFS or APS industry breakdown of self-employment specifically for SIC 96.02. More detailed industry information is available from business survey and business register sources, although these sources use different concepts and are not directly equivalent to self-employment as measured in the LFS or APS.

The Workforce jobs series includes self-employment jobs by industry. This provides an estimate for Division 96: Other personal service activities. Workforce jobs (WFJ) is generally considered a business survey source, although its self-employment component is derived from LFS data. It does not provide a published self-employment estimate specifically for SIC 96.02.

The Business Register and Employment Survey (BRES), published on Nomis, provides more detailed industry breakdowns, including SIC 96.02: Hairdressing and other beauty treatment. BRES does not provide a direct estimate of self-employment. Instead, it publishes estimates for employment and employees. The difference between these two concepts is working owners, including sole traders, sole proprietors and partners who receive drawings or a share of business profits but are not remunerated through Pay As You Earn (PAYE). This is the nearest equivalent to self-employment available from this source. In the 2024 BRES results, the latest period available, employment in SIC 96.02 was 18,000 higher than employees.

Bespoke and ad hoc analysis since January 2024 

Since January 2024, we have published the following ad hoc analyses related to hairdressing or beauty treatment from the Inter-Departmental Business Register (IDBR). The IDBR can provide information about the number of businesses by industry, size and location, and can also show register employment and register turnover. However, IDBR employment and turnover are not designated as accredited official statistics. For employment, the preferred ONS sources are BRES, LFS, APS and WFJ. For turnover, the Annual Business Survey is generally the preferred source. 

The relevant published ad hoc releases are: 

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