Boost to UK Economy: Coordinated efforts by Northern England's creative sectors could potentially generate an additional £10 billion.

Boost to UK Economy: Coordinated efforts by Northern England's creative sectors could potentially generate an additional £10 billion.

Let's get the ball rolling, shall we? With the right components in place, the North of England can unlock its creative sector's full potential and boost the region's economic growth. Here's the lowdown.

The Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) and the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre (Creative PEC) have highlighted a golden opportunity for the North to capitalize on growth in the creative industries through coordinated efforts by policy makers and the industry. This strategic alignment could generate as much as £10 billion in GVA by 2030, as stated by RSA's Chief Executive, Andy Haldane. Recent data shows that the North's creative industries outpaced the wider economy with a staggering 30% growth between 2010 and 2019, yet it only accounts for around 3% of the north's total economy.

One of the key challenges is access to skilled workers, finance, and investment in innovation, which must be addressed to achieve the North's creative potential, warns the new report 'Northern England's Creative Industries'. If these crucial ingredients are lacking, the North risks falling in the shadows of the southeast's established creative institutions and businesses.

Professor Hasan Bakhshi, Creative PEC Director, emphasizes, "The creative industries in the North have the potential to supercharge growth, but policy makers and industry leaders need to work hand in hand to make it happen. Our report suggests a starting point for this collaborative work."

Key strategies for North's creative growth:

• Coordinated funding: Secure investment for start-ups and scale-ups, tap into government funds, and encourage expert intermediaries for easier access to growth finance.
• Strengthening creative clusters: Develop innovative ecosystems by collaborating on the 12 identified creative clusters across the UK. Leverage devolved funds to establish vibrant creative hubs that attract talent and investment.
• Skills development: Implement new apprenticeships and tailored programs to equip the local workforce with creative industry-specific skills. Provide targeted support for freelancers and microbusinesses.
• Innovation, trade, and intellectual property: Encourage R&D and innovation initiatives to embrace new technologies and business models. Create marketplaces for buying, selling, licensing, and accessing digitized creative assets.
• Collaborative delivery: Foster genuine collaboration across government, agencies, and local leaders to ensure policies and funding reach the full creative sector.

By implementing these strategies to support financial aid, skills development, innovation, infrastructure, and political cooperation, the North can unlock the full potential of its creative sector and drive sustainable regional economic growth. The long-term vision for the UK is to solidify its position as a global hub for creativity and innovation.

1. The North's untapped creative sector can drive significant economic growth, as the RSA and Creative PEC suggest, with potential GVA of £10 billion by 2030.
2. The North's creative industries, growing at 30% between 2010 and 2019, are a golden opportunity for the region to embrace, but only account for 3% of its total economy.
3. Policymakers and industry leaders must collaborate to address the North's creative potential, which is hampered by inadequate access to skilled workers, finance, and innovation.
4. The new report 'Northern England's Creative Industries' warns that without these crucial ingredients, the North risks being overshadowed by the southeast's established creative institutions and businesses.
5. By implementing strategies like coordinated funding, strengthening creative clusters, skills development, innovation, trade, and intellectual property, the North can unlock its creative potential.
6. Collaborative delivery is essential, ensuring policies and funding reach the full creative sector through genuine collaboration across government, agencies, and local leaders.
7. To achieve this, the North must establish vibrant creative hubs, implement new apprenticeships and tailored programs, and encourage R&D and innovation initiatives to embrace new technologies and business models.
8. When skilled workers, finance, and innovation are ensured, the North can attract talent, investment, and become a global leader in the creative and innovation sectors.
9. The long-term vision for the UK is to become a global hub for creativity and innovation, driven in part by the North's untapped creative sector.
10. The potential economic benefits and internationalisation opportunities, coupled with the North's rich heritage, add further weight to the call for policy-and-legislation support in this crucial area of the economy, as general news outlets report.

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