Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) 2007 – Assessing the Impact
Introduction
The Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics 2009 presents for the last time data on the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) 2003
basis. Future editions of Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics publication will be based on the new SIC 2007 basis only.
The SIC 2007 came into effect on 1 January 2008 with all units on the Inter-Departmental Business Register dual coded to SIC
2003 and SIC 2007. Therefore, the Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics 2009 tables provide a full time series from 2000 to 2009 on
the SIC 2003 basis. However, tables for registered businesses by the new SIC 2007 for 2008 and 2009 are also available on the
Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics website to help users to get used to the new classification before the full move to SIC 2007 in
2010.
Link to 2009 Registered Enterprise Tables (SIC 2007 basis)
Background
The UK Standard Industrial Classification of Economic Activities (SIC) was first introduced into the United Kingdom in 1948 for use
in classifying business establishments and other statistical units by the type of economic activity in which they are engaged. The
classification provides a framework for the collection, tabulation, presentation and analysis of data and its use promotes uniformity
across business and economic statistics.
The introduction of SIC 2007 represents the first major revision of the Standard Industrial Classification system since 1992. These
revisions are motivated by the need to adapt the classifications to changes in the world economy. The revised classifications reflect
the growing importance of service activities in economies over the last fifteen years, mainly due to the developments in information
and communications technologies (ICT).
Structure of SIC 2007
The SIC is a hierarchical five digit system. SIC 2007 is divided into 21 sections, each denoted by a single letter from A to U. The
letters of the sections can be uniquely defined by the next breakdown, the divisions (denoted by two digits). The divisions are then
broken down into groups (3 digits), then into classes (4 digits) and, in several cases, again into subclasses (5 digits). So for
example we have:
Section C – Manufacturing (comprising divisions 10 to 33)
Division 13 – Manufacture of textiles
Group 13.9 – Manufacture of other textiles
Class 13.93 – Manufacture of carpets and rugs
Subclass 13.93/1 – Manufacture of woven or tufted carpets and rugs
SIC 2003 has 17 sections and 62 divisions, whereas SIC 2007 has 21 sections and 88 divisions.
The detail of the classification has substantially increased (from 514 to 615 classes). For service producing activities, this increase
is visible at all levels, including the highest one, while for other activities, such as agriculture, the increase in detail affected mostly
the lower level of the classification. One effect of the increase in detail at class level has been a reduced need for detail at the
subclass level. The total number of subclasses has decreased from 285 to 191.
Comparing SIC 2003 with SIC 2007
At the highest level of SIC some sections can be easily compared with the previous versions of the classification but the
introduction of some new concepts at the section level, e.g. the Information and communication, makes easy overall comparison
between SIC 2007 and SIC 2003 impossible.
To assist with comparison of data Table 1 below shows the broad correspondence between the sections of SIC 2003 and SIC
2007. However, please note that this table presents only the rough one-to-one correspondence between the sections: further
additional details are necessary to establish the complete correspondence1.
1
Complete detailed correspondence tables between SIC 2007 and SIC 2003, and vice versa, are available at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=14012
Table 1 – SIC 2003/SIC 2007 (Section Level)
A
B
C
D
E
SIC(2003)
Agriculture, hunting and forestry
Fishing
Mining and quarrying
Manufacturing
Electricity, gas and water supply
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
Construction
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor
vehicles, motorcycles and personal and
household goods
Hotels and restaurants
Transport, storage and communications
J
K
Financial intermediation
Real estate, renting and business activities
L
Public
administration
and
defence;
compulsory social security
Education
Health and social work
Other community, social and personal
services activities
Activities of private households as employers
and undifferentiated production activities of
private households
M
N
O
P
Q
Extraterritorial organisations and bodies
F
G
I
H
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
SIC(2007)
Agriculture, forestry and fishing
Mining and quarrying
Manufacturing
Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning
supply
Water supply, sewerage, waste management
and remediation activities
Construction
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor
vehicles and motor cycles
Accommodation and food service activities
Transport and storage
Information and communication
Financial and insurance activities
Real estate activities
Professional, scientific and technical activities
Administrative and support service activities
Public
administration
and
defence;
compulsory social security
Education
Human health and social work activities
Arts, entertainment and recreation
Other service activities
Activities of households as employers;
undifferentiated
goods
and
services
producing activities of households for own
use
Activities of extraterritorial organisations and
bodies
Impact to the Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics Series
As previously stated, the Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics 2009 website provides data on registered businesses based on both
SIC 2003 and SIC 2007 for 2008 and 2009. We can use these tables to assess the impact of the classification change on the
enterprise count, employment and turnover from the IDBR as presented in the Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics Series. Table 2
below compares the results for enterprises, employment and turnover for 2009 on the SIC 2003 and SIC 2007 basis 2.
Table 2 – Enterprise Count, Employment and Turnover – Private Sector Registered Enterprises - SIC 2003/SIC 2007 (Section Level)
Section (SIC 2003)
A,B Agriculture, forestry and fishing
C Mining and quarrying
D Manufacturing
E Electricity, gas and water supply
F Construction
G Wholesale, retail and repairs
I Transport, storage and communication
H Hotels and restaurants
J Financial Intermediation
K Real estate, renting and business activities
M Education
N Health and social work
O Other community, social and personal services
Grand Total
Turnover
Total
in £
Enterprises Employment millions Section (SIC 2007)
19,100
56,810
4,149 A Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
265
24,710
29,209 B Mining and Quarrying
9,285
214,920
38,410 C Manufacturing
D Electricity, gas, steam
95
20,600
12,875 E Water supply; Sewerage
17,100
136,970
17,075 F Construction
26,650
364,780
57,128 G Wholesale and retail trade
H Transportation and storage
5,990
115,210
13,637 J Information and communication
12,870
156,730
6,347 I Accommodation and food service activities
1,630
97,540
NA K Financial and insurance activities
L Real estate activities
M Professional, scientific and technical activities
41,370
335,020
30,455 N Administrative and support service activities
1,580
76,090
1,910 P Education
6,035
138,810
4,960 Q Human health and social work activities
R Arts, entertainment and recreation
12,395
101,190
10,703 S Other service activities
154,370
1,839,380
226,856 Grand Total
Notes:
1. Excludes central and local government.
2. Turnover for SIC 2003 Section J and SIC 2007 Section K are not available.
3. Totals may not equal the sum of the constituent parts due to rounding.
2
Turnover
Total
in £
Enterprises Employment millions
17,750
52,570
3,900
265
24,710
29,209
8,555
203,890
37,531
80
14,040
7,165
375
11,760
6,524
19,505
144,760
19,564
25,680
361,200
56,838
5,305
94,300
9,545
6,870
58,460
6,931
12,870
156,730
6,347
1,705
97,730
NA
4,575
28,840
2,753
21,645
133,370
14,184
9,225
155,100
9,786
1,820
77,310
1,982
5,735
136,080
4,818
3,825
48,300
7,473
8,585
40,250
2,304
154,370
1,839,380 226,852
Source : Scottish Government, ONS (IDBR)
Note that SIC 2007 Sections T and U (and the corresponding SIC 2003 Sections) are out of scope of the Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics.
There are too many differences between SIC 2003 and SIC 2007 to be listed here, but we can use Table 2 to identify the
impact that the changes have on the Corporate Sector Statistics Series at the broad section level and investigate the main
drivers of change:
Grand Totals The grand totals for enterprises and employment are the same under SIC 2007 and SIC 2003. However, the turnover grand total
has reduced from £226,856 million under SIC 2003 to £226,852 million under SIC 2007. This difference is due to the finance
sector; turnover is not available for businesses in the finance sector - some businesses will have changed classification from the
finance sector under SIC 2003 to other sections under SIC 2007 (and vice versa) which means that more (or less) turnover
information becomes available.
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing –
SIC 2003 Section A (Agriculture, hunting and forestry) and SIC 2003 Section B (Fishing) have been combined as SIC 2007 Section
A (Agriculture, forestry and fishing)3.
The number of enterprises, employment and turnover have all reduced under SIC 2007 compared to SIC 2003 for agriculture,
forestry and fishing. Employment is down by 4,240 and turnover is down by £249 million. The overall reductions are driven by
landscaping services moving from SIC 2003 Section (Agriculture, hunting and forestry) to SIC 2007 Division 81 (Services to
Building and Landscape Activities) within SIC 2007 Section N (Administrative and support service activities).
Mining and Quarrying –
Although there are changes within the Mining and Quarrying Section (e.g. new SIC 2007 Division 9 (Mining Support Service
Activities)), at the broad Section level there are no differences in the number of enterprises, employment and turnover in the
Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics Series.
3
Note that although the SIC 2003 Sections for agriculture and fishing have been combined, the detail under the new SIC 2007 Section A (Agriculture, forestry and fishing) has
been substantially increased.
Manufacturing –
The number of enterprises, employment and turnover have all reduced under SIC 2007 compared to SIC 2003 for the
Manufacturing Section. Employment is down by 11,030 and turnover is down by £879 million. The overall reductions are driven
by:

SIC 2003 Division 37 (Recycling) within the SIC 2003 Manufacturing Section has moved to the SIC 2007 Section E (Water
supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation), resulting in a reduction of 1,220 in employment and a reduction of
£251 million in turnover within the SIC 2007 Manufacturing Section.

The publishing part of SIC 2003 Division 22 (Publishing, printing and reproduction of recorded media) within the SIC 2003
Manufacturing Section has moved to the new SIC 2007 Section J (Information and Communication). The new SIC 2007
Division 58 (Publishing activities) within Section J has an employment level of 9,270 and a turnover level of £700 million –
businesses formerly classified under the SIC 2003 Manufacturing Section make up the majority of these totals.
Note that repair and installation of machinery and equipment, formerly classified under manufacturing of the corresponding type of
equipment, is now identified separately in the new SIC 2007 Division 33 (Repair and installation of machinery and equipment).
Electricity, Gas and Water Supply –
SIC 2003 Section E (Electricity, Gas and Water Supply) has been replaced by SIC 2007 Section D (Electricity, gas, steam and air
conditioning supply) and SIC 2007 Section E (Water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities). Comparing
SIC 2003 Section E with SIC 2007 Sections D and E combined, we see that the number of enterprises, employment and turnover
have all increased under SIC 2007. Employment is up by 5,200 and turnover is up by £814 million. The overall increases are
driven by:

SIC 2003 Division 37 (Recycling) within the SIC 2003 Manufacturing Section moving to the SIC 2007 Section E (Water supply,
sewerage, waste management and remediation), resulting in an increase of 1,220 in employment and an increase of £251
million in turnover.

The majority of SIC 2003 Division 90 (Sewage and refusal disposal) within the SIC 2003 Section O (Other Community Services)
moving to SIC 2007 Section E (Water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation). SIC 2003 Division 90 (Sewage
and refusal disposal) has an employment level of 3,960 and a turnover level of £553 million – the majority of this is now included
in SIC 2007 Section E.
Construction The number of enterprises, employment and turnover have all increased under SIC 2007 compared to SIC 2003 for construction.
Employment is up by 7,790 and turnover is up by £2,489 million. The overall increases are driven by the development and selling
of real estate moving from SIC 2003 Section K (Real estate, renting and business activities) to SIC 2007 Section F (Construction).
Wholesale, Retail and Repairs The number of enterprises, employment and turnover have all decreased under SIC 2007 compared to SIC 2003 for wholesale,
retail and repairs. Employment is down by 3,580 and turnover is down by £290 million. The overall decreases are driven by the
repair and maintenance of personal and household goods moving from SIC 2003 Section G (Wholesale and retail trade; repair of
motor vehicles, motorcycles and personal and household goods) to SIC 2007 Section S (Other service activities).
However, note that the repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles – SIC 2007 Division 45 (corresponding to SIC 2003 Division 50)
has been retained within the Wholesale and Retail Trade Section for comparability and continuity reasons.
These changes are reflected in the name change for this section from “Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles,
motorcycles and personal and household goods” under SIC 2003 to “Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motor
cycles” under SIC 2007.
Transport, Storage and Communication –
Major changes have been made to this Section:
SIC 2003 Section I (Transport, Storage and Communication) has been replaced by SIC 2007 Section H (Transport and Storage)
and SIC 2007 Section J (Information and communication).
Section J (Information and Communication) under SIC 2007 is a major new section - the main components of this section are
publishing activities, including software publishing (SIC 2007 Division 58), motion picture and sound recording activities (SIC 2007
Division 59), radio and TV broadcasting and programming activities (SIC 2007 Division 60), telecommunications activities (SIC
2007 Division 61) and information technology activities (SIC 2007 Division 62) and other information service activities (SIC 2007
Division 63). These activities were included in SIC 2003 Sections D (Manufacturing), I (Transport, storage and communications), K
(Real estate, renting and business activities) and O (Other community, social and personal service activities), therefore having a
strong impact on comparability across the SIC versions. However, this new treatment of information and communication activities
provides a more consistent approach (based on the character of the activities carried out) than the SIC 2003 version.
Hotels and Restaurants –
Although there are changes within the Hotels and Restaurants Section (or Accommodation and Restaurants as the section is
known under SIC 2007), at the broad Section level there are no differences in terms of the number of enterprises, employment and
turnover in the Scottish Corporate Sector Statistics Series.
Financial Intermediation –
The number of enterprises and employment has increased under SIC 2007 compared to SIC 2003 for the financial sector.
Employment is marginally up by 190 under SIC 2007. The increase is a result of the activities of holding companies moving from
SIC 2003 Section K (Real estate, renting and business activities) to SIC 2007 Section K (Financial and Insurance Activities).
Real Estate, Renting and Business Activities –
Major changes have been made to this Section:
The SIC 2003 Section for K (Real estate, renting and business activities) has been replaced by three sections under SIC 2007.
Real estate is now represented as a stand-alone section (SIC 2007 Section L) due to its size and importance in the System of
National Accounts. However, and as outlined above, the development and selling of real estate moves to SIC 2007 Section F
(Construction).
The remaining activities have been separated into Section M (Professional, scientific and technical activities) and Section N
(Administrative and support service activities). SIC 2007 Section M covers activities that require a high degree of training and
make specialised knowledge and skills available to users. While SIC 2007 Section N (Administrative and support service activities)
covers activities that support general business operations - this pulls in units from many parts of SIC 2003, for example:
employment services, call centres, travel arrangements and reservation services, investigation and security services.
SIC 2003 Division 72 (Computer and related activities) is no longer part of this section. Computer repair activities have been
grouped with repair of household goods in SIC 2007 Section S (Other service activities), while software publishing and IT activities
have been grouped in the new SIC 2007 Section J.
Education The number of enterprises, employment and turnover have all increased under SIC 2007 compared to SIC 2003 for education.
Employment is up by 1,220 and turnover is up by £72 million. The overall increases are a result of SIC 2007 Section P (Education)
being broadened to include specialised sport, cultural and other educational services and also specialised support services.
Formerly these types of services would have fallen under other service Sections e.g. SIC 2003 Section O (Other community, social
and personal services).
Health and Social Work The number of enterprises, employment and turnover have all decreased under SIC 2007 compared to SIC 2003 for Health and
Social Work. Employment is down by 2,730 and turnover is down by £142 million. The overall decreases are driven by veterinary
services moving from SIC 2003 Section N (Health and social work) to SIC 2007 Section M (Professional, scientific and technical
services). SIC 2007 Section Q has been renamed Human Health and Social Work Activities to reflect this change.
Other Community, Social and Personal Services Major changes have been made to this Section:
Substantial components of SIC 2003 Section O (Other community, social and personal service activities) have been moved to SIC
2007 Section E (Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities) and SIC 2007 Section J (Information and
communication), as described above. The remaining activities have been regrouped in two new sections for Arts, entertainment
and recreation (SIC 2007 Section R) and Other service activities (SIC 2007 Section S). Repair of computers and personal and
household goods is now included in this new SIC 2007 Section S.
More Information
Details of the SIC 2007 are available on the National Statistics Classification website and in the following publications:
UK Standard Industrial Classification of Economic Activities 2007
August 2008 edition of the Economic & Labour Market Review