IGN research and guidance

Culture and creative industries: A catalyst for inclusive growth

Danielle Jackson

Head of Inclusive Growth Network

Culture and creative industries

Danielle Jackson

Head of Inclusive Growth Network

IGN report

Culture and creative industries: A catalyst for inclusive growth

This report was written by Danielle Jackson, drawing on insights from in-depth interviews with senior IGN officers and national experts, as well as a review of the literature and analysis of the cultural and creative sector.

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2024 brings a general election and several mayoral elections, with devolution firmly at the forefront of the national policy agenda. Now is a key moment to look seriously at the role culture and creative industries can play in delivering inclusive growth across the UK.

Culture and creative industries have significant economic heft, contributing £160bn to the economy with 3.2 million jobs. The UK’s status as one of the top 5 exporters of creative services globally is central to its position on the world stage. Beyond this, culture plays a vital role in our day-to-day lives, shaping who we are as individuals and communities, and contributing to our wellbeing and pride in place. While many of our most internationally recognised cultural institutions are in the UK’s capital and other major cities, the social and economic impact of culture is everywhere.

Culture and Inclusive Growth Framework

In a novel contribution to policy and practice, our framework sets out how culture and creative industries can catalyse inclusive growth. It includes three intersecting inclusive growth drivers and four enablers for making positive change happen.

The report explores what local and combined authorities can do with the levers available to them and shares learnings from the experience of places across the UK through case studies and examples. There is a wealth of good practice to draw on across the IGN including the Mayor’s Screen Diversity Programme in West Yorkshire, Eurovision 2023 in Liverpool and the North of Tyne Combined Authority’s Culture and Creative Zones. It finishes by setting out what national government and arm’s-length bodies can do to enable places to go further and faster in harnessing culture as a key asset for a fairer type of growth.

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Culture and creative industries: A catalyst for inclusive growth

A report to help places put culture and creative industries at the heart of inclusive growth.

3 MB | pdf

Resource Hub

Browse our resource library to find what inclusive growth looks like in practice and how it is benefitting people and places across the UK

IGN learnings

Culture and creative industries in West Yorkshire

Inclusive Growth Network 28 Feb 2024

How Mayor Tracy Brabin is using culture to deliver inclusive growth in West Yorkshire.

IGN in action

Cultural regeneration and inclusive growth in Cardiff

Inclusive Growth Network 4 Oct 2023

Cardiff takes a novel approach to embed inclusive growth into the development of a new music arena.

Browse our resource library