The overall size of the UK freelance workforce may soon be accurately calculated after a study was given the green light by an organisation that represents professional contractors.
The research will be carried out by Kingston University in South West London on behalf of the Professional Contractors Group (PCG).
Led by Dr John Kitching and Professor David Smallbone from the University's Small Business Research Centre, the project will look at several key issues including providing an acceptable definition of freelance work.
It will also derive estimates of the size of the freelance workforce in the UK and in particular sectors. It will provide details of the nomenclature used to describe freelance work in different sectors and work contexts and profile the personal, work and organisational characteristics of the freelance workforce.
The PCG has long been calling for research in the UK and across Europe in an attempt to establish just how many people work as freelancers.
John Brazier, managing director of the PCG said that he believed that, because official statistics are sketchy, the number of professional freelancers is far greater than the government recognises.
That, he said, is partly because of the way people describe themselves, the way they are officially described and the very fluid nature of the freelance community.
Initial findings from the research are expected later this year.