UK creative industry strategy backed by £77mn in state funding

The government is set to back new “creative clusters” across the UK as part of plans to boost industries such as film production and computer game development.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will on Wednesday promise to commit £77mn to support the creative industries, two-thirds of which will go towards developing at least six specialist clusters to add to the nine existing ones.

The rest of the money will largely top up existing funds that support video game studios, grassroots music venues and the development of TV and film production technology using AI and virtual reality. Some of the funds will also support the London fashion and film weeks.

Hunt said the state funding would help grow the sector by a third, boosting its economic value by £50bn and adding 1mn more jobs by 2030. “Our creative industry isn’t just about the glitz and glam of the red carpet in Leicester Square. It brings in £108bn a year to help fund our public services, supports over 2mn jobs, and is world-renowned.”

The UK has one of the leading creative sectors internationally but executives and artists are often left frustrated by the lack of recognition they get for their contribution to the British economy. Brexit has hurt parts of the industry, reducing access to skilled labour from the EU and restricting British artists’ ability to travel and work in the bloc.

The new funding commitments are part of a new creative industries strategy drawn up by British television executive Peter Bazalgette, who is co-chair of the Creative Industries Council and former chair of ITV.

The strategy is aimed at improving the export potential of the sector by setting up new trade missions and encouraging universities to spin out new technologies. It also calls for a skills audit to identify and address gaps in education. 

As part of the strategy, the government said that it would set up four advanced screen and performance technology research labs in Buckinghamshire, Yorkshire, Northern Ireland and Scotland backed by £76mn in previously announced state funding. The private sector will contribute a further £63mn.

Bazalgette told the Financial Times that he was looking for “the creative designers of the future”. He said his strategy would allow “creative industries coming of age”, adding: “We were the first country to recognise it as an industrial sector in 1997. There is more work to be done but this is a step in the right direction. The job starts now to realise the potential.”

Bazalgette welcomed the state funding as “significant” even if it did not match the scale of Hunt’s other four “priority” economic growth areas — life sciences, green industries, technology and advanced manufacturing. He said the creative clusters of businesses would be important, given the need to foster specialist expertise in certain areas to create thriving industries.

Alex Mahon, chief executive at Channel 4, welcomed the launch of the new strategy and said it would help the broadcaster “attract more people into the creative industries across the UK, particularly those from different backgrounds, by offering them opportunities to develop skills and experience to be successful in a career they might never have thought possible.”

Daniel Wood, co-chief executive of video games trade body Ukie, said the strategy would cement “what we have always said that the UK games industry is an engine of economic growth — creating high-quality jobs across the whole of the UK.”