Focusing on spending beyond bailouts: Three essential strategies for the forthcoming Spending Review to bolster the creative sectors
The UK government has announced a far-reaching strategy to support the recovery and growth of the creative industries, which contribute a substantial £111.7 billion in gross value added (GVA) to the national economy and employ 2.1 million people. The strategy, outlined in the policy briefing "Creative industries innovation in seaside resorts and country towns," is based on research from Creative PEC, an independent research and policy organisation.
The strategy addresses key challenges faced by the creative industries, including those brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, business size, skills, and diversity. The government's approach encompasses significant investment, regional support, skills development, innovation promotion, financial facilitation, and diversity measures.
1. **Significant Investment and Regional Support**
The government has launched a £380 million Creative Industries Sector Plan, aiming to nearly double business investment from £17 billion to £31 billion by 2035. This plan includes targeted regional funds like the £150 million Creative Places Growth Fund, which is devolved to mayoral authorities such as West Midlands and Greater Manchester. These funds support local creative businesses with mentoring, skills programs, and investment connections, helping to address disparities and promote growth outside London.
2. **Skills Development and Workforce Diversity**
The strategy prioritizes building a resilient, skilled, and diverse workforce by funding skills programs designed to meet the future needs of the creative sector. This involves increasing access to high-quality education and training, supporting freelancers, and fostering diversity and inclusion across the workforce to improve productivity and innovation.
3. **Addressing Business Financing Challenges**
Start-ups and scale-ups in creative industries often face challenges securing growth finance due to investor risk aversion. The government strategy aims to provide wider growth capital options and stimulate both public and private R&D funding to increase innovation-led growth.
4. **Supporting Innovation and New Business Models**
A key aim is to accelerate innovation via increased R&D investment focused on emerging technologies like AI and extended reality, which are reshaping the creative landscape. This innovation push also involves protecting creative intellectual property and encouraging new content creation methods.
5. **Mitigating COVID-19 Pandemic Impacts**
Recovery plans emphasize resilience by providing targeted financial and mentoring support to creative businesses affected by the pandemic. Regional programs promote local regeneration and sustaining grassroots creative venues, while national strategies integrate public service media and film industry support to maintain the UK’s global competitive edge in screen production and related sectors.
6. **Promoting Export and Trade Opportunities**
The government also focuses on increasing trade and exports of creative goods and services, helping creative firms access international markets and diversify revenue streams, which is crucial for sustained pandemic recovery and growth.
While the government plans are extensive, their success depends on effective implementation across regions, ongoing skills alignment with industry needs, and addressing barriers in finance and market access, especially for small and diverse creative businesses. The strategy is part of the government's new Industrial Strategy, which focuses on a long-term, sector-focused approach to skills.
The UK's creative industries, including film, fashion, and creative digital, are internationally oriented. Other policy briefs, such as those on Foreign Direct Investment in the UK's Creative Industries, Migration in UK Creative Occupations and Industries, and International Trade and the UK Creative Industries, provide further insights into the government's approach to supporting this vital sector.
[1] Creative Industries Sector Deal, Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport, UK Government,
- Data-Driven Decision Making and Improving Evidence Base
The government's strategy relies on data-driven analysis to inform decision making and evaluate progress, with the Creative Industries Sector Deal Implementation Plan and the Creative Industries Council's annual reports serving as key reference points.
- Promoting the UK's Creative Heritage and Cultural Exports
The strategy seeks to leverage the UK's rich cultural and creative heritage to drive exports and grow the creative industries, not only in traditional sectors like film, fashion, and creative digital, but also in unchartered territories such as heritage-based tourism and cultural products.
- Cultivating Innovation Clusters and Encouraging Collaboration
Supporting innovation clusters and encouraging collaboration between businesses, educational institutions, and local governments is a significant aspect of the strategy, aiming to foster a creative ecosystem that stimulates growth and competitiveness in global markets.
- Embedding Creativity in Business and Finance
Lastly, the strategy emphasizes the importance of creativity in driving business growth and financial success, encouraging the integration of arts and innovation into finance, business practices, and investor portfolios, thereby creating a more robust and adaptable creative industries ecosystem.
