Creative PEC’s Response
Executive Summary
In this submission, the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre (Creative PEC) addresses several of the questions posed by the Culture, Media and Sport (CMS) Committee, drawing on our recent and forthcoming research. Our response highlights the important role the UK’s Film and HETV sector plays in the UK economy, including its ability to attract significant foreign direct investment (FDI). However, its global standing cannot be taken for granted.
In particular, Creative PEC’s response highlights the following challenges, and outlines policy options for consideration by the committee. These include:
- Strengthening the UK’s R&D Tax Relief Offer to support the Screen sector.
The UK’s screen sector is R&D intensive, however the full breadth of R&D activity the sector undertakes is under-supported by the UK’s current R&D tax relief scheme. This is because they are more likely to undertake R&D in the arts, humanities and social sciences (AHSS) which are currently excluded from R&D tax relief.
We recommend that the UK Government the amends its definition of R&D for tax relief purposes so that it is fully in line with the OECD’s Frascati Manual for collecting and reporting data on R&D, which acknowledges the contribution of AHSS disciplines to R&D.
- Improving the quality of evidence to support the sector to demonstrate its social and civic value.
There is a continued need to support UK cinema venues and the film exhibition and screen heritage sectors to make robust cases for investment in their venues. Research from the British Film Institute (BFI)[1] and Independent Cinema Office[2] highlights that some UK cinema, multiplexes and mixed arts venues are still struggling post-pandemic.
We recommend that the Committee, and the Government, continues to back the Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s (DCMS) Culture and Heritage Capital Framework, to help assess where support is needed. We also recommend that this includes the continued production of resources and guidance materials for the sector on how to use these valuation methods in business cases and appraisals.
- Tackling challenges to the UK film and HETV’s talent pipeline across the education and skills system, including improving the quality of work in the sector
Access to the UK’s skilled workforce is a major driver of FDI into the sector, however there are current significant skills shortages within the UK’s screen sector. That these affect a wide range of roles in the sector highlights that change is needed at multiple points of our education and skills system.
We highlight several recommendations for consideration by the Committee, drawing on findings from the Creative PEC’s Good Work Review[3] that seek to improve the
responsiveness of the Film and TV skills system to industry needs; promote industry-led innovations; improve funding; and giving all workers in the sector, including freelancers, the opportunity to invest in their own CPD.
- Addressing work quality challenges in the UK screen sector, including for freelancers
Despite areas of good practice, there remain challenges to work quality within some roles in the screen sector, including instances of extremely long working hours, and a high proportion of freelancers in the workforce who can face insecure work and lack of training opportunities. This further impacts on the talent pipeline and exacerbates diversity challenges facing the sector.
- Increasing socio-economic diversity in the sector, including the representation of people from working class backgrounds.
The UK’s screen sector continues to face challenges around diversity and inclusion, whether viewed in terms of race, gender, disability or social class. Our response draws on recent and forthcoming research by the Creative PEC that explores the challenges faced by workers in the screen sector from working class backgrounds, who are significantly under-represented in the sector.
We outline six strategic priorities for consideration to support people from working class backgrounds to get in and get on in the UK screen sector. These include ensuring that socio-economic background is considered in industry diversity initiatives, agreeing an industry-wide approach to measuring socio-economic background in the workforce, and enhancing investment in interventions that support career progression for people from working class backgrounds in the screen industries.
[1] British Film Institute. (2023). The UK Box Office: Full Year 2022. London: BFI. Available from: Official statistics release calendar | BFI
[2] Independent Cinema Office. (2023). The financial health of the independent theatrical film exhibition centre. London: Independent Cinema Office. Available from: The financial health of the independent cinema sector – Independent Cinema Office
[3] Carey, H., Giles, L. and O’Brien, D. (2023) Job quality in the Creative Industries: The final report from the Creative PEC’s Good Work Review. London: Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre. Available from: https://creative-pec.files.svdcdn.com/production/assets/publications/PEC-GWR-Job-quality-in-the-Creative-Industries-v7.pdf
Photo by Jakob Owens on Unsplash
