Shining a light on the creative industries: From the North East to the world
Meet Professor of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Professor Jonathan Sapsed, and Senior Lecturer in Economics, Dr Sara Maioli. They discuss their research and involvement in the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre (Creative PEC) and explore the local and global impact of their research.
26 March 2024
What is the Creative PEC?
JS: Creative PEC is the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre, funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC). The project is now in its second phase led by Newcastle University in partnership with the Royal Society of Arts (RSA).
It is a twin-hub model with a research unit in Newcastle and a policy unit in London, which are in everyday communication. It is led by Hasan Bakhshi, who joins us as Professor of Economics of Creative Industries at Newcastle University Business School and Principal Investigator of the Creative PEC. The Director of Research is Giorgio Fazio, Professor of Macroeconomics at Newcastle University Business School.
The centre provides data and evidence on the creative industries to inform policymakers on how best to support the growth of the sector. It will deliver regular ‘State of the Nations’ style data reporting on four set themes:
- clusters and innovation, led by Sussex University
- education and skills, led by Work Advance
- arts and culture, led by Sheffield University
- internationalisation, which Sara is co-leading as the core theme for the Newcastle research
In addition, it will conduct and publish primary research on a diverse set of topics.
SM: My team focuses on reporting on internationalisation of the creative industries. In my team there is Professor Giorgio Fazio, Dr Jonathan Jones, Senior Lecturer in Economics, and Daniel Simandjuntak, Research Associate.
What areas within this are you both currently exploring, and can you tell us a bit about this?
SM: We’re using macroeconomic, microeconomic and sectoral level statistics on international trade, foreign direct investment and migration flows. We aim to provide evidence on how the UK is positioned globally with exporting and attracting investment and foreign talent to the UK in the creative industries. We also want to compare policies on creative industries at an international level. In our first report, due to launch in March 2024, we will also delve into some international digital trade experimental statistics for the UK, and other countries and provide a case study on South Korea’s policies in fostering the creative industries, such as K-pop music, and what lessons can be learnt from their success in exporting music.
JS: My research relates to an initiative called the Northern Creative Corridor, led by the RSA. Across the North, the growth rate of the creative sectors has been flat over the last 10 years, even though there’s huge talent, world-class universities and many creative businesses and freelance activity. This initiative will attempt to boost growth and the profile of creative industries in the North.
We’re trying to join up the Northern creative clusters. The way that policy is organised can set regions against each other in a competitive bidding process.
The Corridor initiative looks at areas of access to finance for creative businesses, upgrading skills, innovation, linking to the universities, and culture and heritage.
My role is to provide evidence to inform policies and interventions, especially for the devolution agenda. I’m mapping existing recent policy interventions across the North and running workshops with stakeholders to understand what is working well, and what is required.
This will help flesh out the vision of a northern super cluster, looking at what interventions could be most impactful, for instance by the North East Mayoral Combined Authority, along with other partners such as Arts Council England and North East Culture
Partnership, and their respective counterparts who are involved in creative industries across the North.
How will this work benefit others and the region?
JS: We hope the Northern Creative Corridor initiative will help creative industries in the North scale up and benefit from better connections across regions. This will help retain the talent that we have in the region by upskilling. We hope this can serve as a pilot for other UK regions, maybe even internationally.
Another benefit is around our cultural heritage. We have wonderful cultural assets and venues in the North that play an important role. It’s not only about economic growth, but also a sense of creating good quality of life and a sense of pride in place.
How will this work benefit the UK’s global position?
SM: We can learn from policy in other countries and compare this with what’s happening in the UK. Our research helps us understand, on a detailed geographical level, the global outlook of creative firms to inform future policy. For example, we will be able to tell if foreign investors have positive spillovers in the local areas where they invest. For international trade, we need to understand what our strengths are and what can be improved. For example, what barriers do exporters face – is it access to finance, trade agreements, red tape, or other factors? We need to monitor the attractiveness of foreign talent in creative industries, especially following Brexit and recent policies that are tightening immigration. This builds on previous Creative PEC research. You can find out more about our publications at www.pec.ac.uk