The UK’s “creative nation” contributes £146,000 every single minute

The UK’s “creative nation”, which includes the film, television and music industries, are now worth £76.9bn per year to the UK economy. This massive contribution is an all-time high and equates to £8.8m per hour, or £146,000 every single minute.

There is already a huge number of highly anticipated offerings from every sector of the UK’s creative community; be it the latest Bond film, ‘Spectre‘, the next instalment of ‘Game Of Thrones‘, the eagerly awaited conclusion to the Arkham video game trilogy ‘Batman: Arkham Knight‘ or the publication of the first illustrated editions of the Harry Potter series of novels.

The creative industries drive growth, investment and tourism, which is why supporting the sector is now a key part of the government’s long-term economic plan. The tax reliefs in place continue to be a powerful tool in attracting foreign investment, and last year’s publication of the CreateUK strategy set out how Government and industry will work together to ensure the continued success of this dynamic sector.

According to Michael Magee, VP of marketing at MARS chocolate UK: “From technology, fashion and art, to automotive and advertising, UK creative industries are buzzing.

“The Oscar-winning success of UK-based Framestore and the extraordinary achievement of the film ‘Gravity‘ show just how much talent there is in the UK. If you look at the automotive sector, meanwhile, Gerry McGovern and his Land Rover design team continue to set the standard.

“Perhaps the most telling sign of the continued success is coming out of UK tech centres, challenging the hegemony of Silicon Valley so the UK not only remains a global leader in the creative industries, but is constantly pushing to improve on that position.”

Indeed, the UK’s creative industries are recognised as world leaders around the globe and they continue to grow from strength to strength. 

“They are one of our most powerful tools in driving growth, outperforming all other sectors of industry and their contribution to the UK economy is evident to all,” said Sajid Javid, secretary of state for culture, media and sport. “Government is determined to continue its support for this most dynamic of sectors as part of our long-term economic plan. The tax reliefs we’ve got in place and are extending to Children’s TV and orchestras have been instrumental in attracting inward investment, and are part of broad package of measures designed to ensure the continued success of the Creative Industries.”

All of this suggests that 2015 is set to be an exciting year with so many highlights to come. 

But it is now suggested that while the UK is ahead of the game globally, especially as an exporter of creative products, it faces increasing competition. Therefore, the UK needs to work hard to keep its status as a global leader in the creative industries.

John Mathers, CEO of the Design Council, said: “The job descriptions for roles in the creative industries are changing on a daily basis and we need to  keep in touch with that. We’re seeing the creative sector leap ahead of all the other industries in the UK, growing faster than any other with it now being as big as the financial services sector.

“Graduates are going into the sector at a really exciting time and this year looks set to be a bumper year. But we have to make sure that our education institutions have the very best teachers who know what’s going on in the real world and recognise that universities are a great place to foster and develop our fast-growing reputation as an ideas nation.”

By Shané Schutte

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