Surge of turnover and employment growth in UK’s creative businesses

The Government has released new statistics that demonstrate the increasing importance of the creative sectors to the UK economy, although concerns remain about the UK’s creative skills base. The figures reveal that the overall turnover of creative businesses increased by just under 10 percent in 2012 and employment increased by 8.6 percent over the same period, more than any other sector. The creative industries are now worth more than £70 billion a year and employ 1.68 million people. While employment in the UK as a whole grew by 0.7 percent over the whole economy, jobs growth in the creative sector was 8.6 percent. There was also growth in export sales, up over 16 percent between 2009-11 and worth £15.5bn in 2011.

However a note of caution has been sounded by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), which has repeatedly warned that the sector faces skills shortages and has published a strategy to accommodate and drive future growth in the sector which aims to protect intellectual property rights and includes a Europe Commission endorsed tax credit scheme for games developers.

According to Katja Hall, chief policy director at the CBI: “The UK’s creative industries are already world-beaters and make a huge contribution to our economy,” said Hall. “Now we need to build on this potential to help them achieve even greater global success. We should keep thinking big, and with the right support our creative firms can continue to lead the world, create jobs and boost our economy.”

The creative industries sector includes advertising and marketing, architects and designers, film and broadcasting, and photography, IT and software, publishing, museums, galleries and libraries, music, performing and the visual arts.