£20m Boost for Creative Industries
England’s creative industries are set to receive a £20m boost under a new scheme announced by the Government. The new funding has been announced by Minister for the Creative Industries Margot James and will help sectors, including fashion, broadcasting and video game development.
The deal includes £14m that will be used to fuel a Creative Careers Programme, that will see industry experts work with schools and colleges to improve access to jobs.
The plan is to reach 160,000 students by 2020.
£200,000 will be spent on the Digital Schoolhouse programme, which is delivered by games trade body Ukie and PlayStation. It aims to inspire the next generation of game creators and could be in place in 50 schools by September next year.
Ms James said “Millions of people around the world enjoy our world-class creative and cultural output every day and we want to stay as a frontrunner in these vibrant sectors. Our creative industries are a vital part of the economy, contributing over £100 billion to the economy so it is important we maintain the pipeline of talent. This package will take the sector from strength to strength by arming the next generation of creatives with the necessary skills and giving businesses in the sector the support they need to succeed.”
A further £4m will be pumped into the creative industries in Bristol, Greater Manchester and the West Midlands. Another £2m will go towards the Get it Right campaign, which seeks to educate consumers on copyright infringement.
The cash injection follows the publication of new figures which reveal the value of the creative industries to the UK is up from £94.8bn in 2016 to £101.5bn, growing at nearly twice the rate of the economy since 2010.
