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Youth Business International today announces this year’s theme for Global Entrepreneurship Week: Take a step forward.

Building on last year’s invitation to “pass it on”, we’ll now be encouraging current and aspiring entrepreneurs to take a step forward in their plans – whether that’s starting a business, seizing a new opportunity or finding out more about careers in enterprise.

By Lauren Pennycook, a Policy Officer at the Carnegie UK Trust. She leads the Trust’s policy on enterprise education.

Its official - Global Entrepreneurship Week changes lives.

This year Youth Business International, the organisers of Global Entrepreneurship Week in the UK, in partnership with Barclays, set out to prove the difference that the campaign makes to thousands of people.

In 2012 the campaign reached 279,500 young people, passing on the practical help and support needed by early start-ups and individuals who are considering taking the plunge.

We asked participants to tell us what effect the week had had on them, and we were astonished by the results:

By Dianne Cornes, Director - Network Expansion, Youth Business International

During Global Entrepreneurship Week Mosaic added a new initiative to its work, which focuses on inspiring young people from deprived communities to realise their talents and potential.

It launched a new Female Entrepreneurs Network, inviting inspirational businesswomen to join the Mosaic network, and share their journeys with Mosaic’s beneficiaries, disadvantaged girls and young women.

One of the cornerstone events of Global Entrepreneurship Week took place at the London Stock Exchange this morning and brought together more than 100 investors, entrepreneurs, professional advisers and the wider enterprise community. Investing for Success: The SEIS Briefing was created to raise awareness of the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme, a breakthrough tax incentive to encourage investment in small and early stage companies. The event was hosted by Seven Hills.

Business Need2know area: Expanding

Back in September, we asked UK entrepreneurs what their business ‘Need To Know’ areas are. Entrepreneurs said: Management, Sales, Making the Leap, Finance and Expanding.

Catch up on all the Global Entrepreneurship Week Pass It On videos:

By Prior and Partners

‘Picture yourself in an episode of the BBC’s Dragons’ Den and remember the unprepared that were squirming within minutes of pitching their idea because they had skimped on their research or did not know enough about their own creation. Not good. If you have a winning idea that is beginning to take over your waking hours, you are going to need a brilliant business plan to convince any organisation to prize open their wallet.

Your proposal has got to stand the probing, prodding and poking of any potential money people.

Adzuna founders Andrew Hunter and Doug Monro met working at Gumtree in 2005 and recently set up their own enterprise Adzuna.

The site went live in April 2011 and now has 1 million monthly unique visitors.

We asked them to pass on their top tips around: funding and finance, management, expanding a business and give their top tip.

By Louisa Fleming, part of the Global Entrepreneurship Week team

We recently brought out a report which highlights the education, training and skills development of small businesses in the UK for 2012.

For those looking to start their own business, these findings may be of interest to those endeavouring to make their business a success.

By Steve Metcalfe, Communications Director at Youth Business International

New research released on Monday by Youth Business International identified two areas that are particularly important for entrepreneurs to understand: digital communications and the changing landscape of accessing finance.

So it was timely that two workshops yesterday afternoon at the British Library helped aspiring entrepreneurs to understand how to improve their leadership through better communications, and gave advice on accessing finance.

By entrepreneur Gary Martin

I have always been fascinated with companies that are able to buck the trends with their fast paced growth, whilst having limited finances and experience.

More and more, I find that it is not about the resources that a company has, but the resourcefulness of the team. I consider business to be a science, and though timing and some good fortune are important, behind this there is a formula that determines the success or failure of any company.

By Daniel Idowu, part of the Global Entrepreneurship Week team

On Tuesday I had the pleasure of attending York Enterprise Day.

The event perfectly captured GEW’s theme this year, Pass it On. It gave participants an opportunity to gain access to finance, develop their skills, increase their knowledge, meet new contacts and discover new resources which can help their businesses grow.

By James Jackson, part of the Global Entrepreneurship Week team

By Andrew Fiddaman, Executive Director at Youth Business International

Serial entrepreneur Lara Morgan is well known for her no nonsense style and this short video tells her story.

Virgin Media Pioneers is an online community of enterprising people who use videos and blogging to share their ideas and experiences. As you’ll know, the theme for this year’s Global Entrepreneurship Week is ‘pass it on’ and as that concept has always been central to the Virgin Media Pioneers community, they will be sharing some of their expertise, which they hope will inspire you in your entrepreneurial journey. This blog looks at accessing business resources.

By Dianne Cornes, Director, Youth Business International

On Monday night I joined students at University of the Arts London in the stunning Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design to hear about a new source of funds and advice for social enterprises.