Despite being one of the Government’s eight key Industrial Strategy sectors, the creative industries in the United Kingdom (UK) remain one of the least well appreciated segments of our economy. In 2023, the sector generated £124 billion in Gross Value Added (GVA), amounting to 5.2% of UK GVA, driving innovation and exports. At the same time the sector’s reliance on intangible assets and short term, project-based work means that many potentially high growth firms struggle to access the finance required for scaling up. A problem for many UK start-ups, this is all the harder for creative
sector firms.
This report proposes that better data and targeted investment are essential to unlocking the sector’s full potential. It examines the dynamics and geography of growth. By combining offi cial statistics with a granular analysis of Creative UK’s Creative Growth Finance (CGF) portfolio, we provide evidence that targeted finance could bridge market gaps. What’s more, such investment would be particularly effective in supporting fi rms outside London and the South East, fostering
more geographically inclusive growth at the same time as leveraging private capital.
The report also explores the transformative pressures of artificial intelligence (AI) and digitalisation. While these tools offer immense opportunities for content enhancement, they also demand a robust policy response to protect intellectual property and address labour precarity – as we argued in a previous policy report on copyright and the creative industries.1
All previous UK governments that introduced an industrial strategy recognised the sector’s economic as well as cultural and civic importance. As the UK implements its current Modern Industrial Strategy (2025), this report offers a useful evidence base for policymakers. It makes the case for a coordinated approach aligning finance, skills development, and a place-based intelligence. By treating the creative industries as a strategic driver of systemic innovation, with spillovers for other parts of the economy, policymakers can ensure the UK remains at the forefront of the global creative economy,
and that this economically important sector continues to contribute to national economic growth.
1Glenster, A.K. et al. (2025). Policy Brief: AI, Copyright, and Productivity in the Creative Industries. Minderoo Centre for Technology & Democracy.
Read the news article: Beyond headline growth: rethinking the UK’s creative industries
Read the blog: What the headline figures miss about the UK’s creative industries
