The UK government has unveiled a significant expansion of financial support aimed at helping creative businesses overcome long-standing barriers to investment,
as industry leaders gather in London for The Big Creative UK Investment Summit.
The move marks a step change in how public finance institutions back the creative sector, with ambitious businesses set to benefit from improved access to growth capital, specialist investors and clearer funding pathways. The announcement forms part of the government’s wider Creative Industries Sector Plan, designed to unlock investment and accelerate growth across one of the UK’s fastest-growing parts of the economy.
At the heart of the package is a major expansion of support from the British Business Bank, which is increasing its backing for creative businesses through its £4 billion allocation for Industrial Strategy priority sectors.
New funding and investment measures
Among the new initiatives announced, the British Business Bank has made a £45 million cornerstone investment into Redrice Ventures, a specialist seed-stage investor focused on creative industries. The move is intended to channel funding through investors with deep understanding of creative business models and intellectual property.
The Bank is also exploring ways to use its existing financial guarantee schemes to support IP-backed lending, helping creative entrepreneurs unlock finance against assets such as music catalogues, film rights and digital content. This follows a request from government at the Autumn Budget and aims to stimulate innovation and entrepreneurship.
To ensure businesses are supported at every stage of growth, the Bank is working closely with public bodies including Innovate UK, aligning grant funding and early-stage programmes with later-stage finance for scaling SMEs. It is also convening industry stakeholders — from small creative firms to lenders and public finance institutions — in collaboration with the Creative Industries Council, to better understand investment opportunities across the sector.
Clearer routes to finance for creative firms
To simplify access to funding, Creative UK will lead work on a new “single front door” finance service, due to launch in 2026. The service will offer clear guidance on funding options, alongside improved signposting through the Business Growth Service and the British Business Bank.
Meanwhile, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport is publishing new resources for creative businesses and regional leaders, including a map of available finance and real-world case studies of successful creative scale-ups.
On the international front, the Office for Investment and the Department for Business and Trade are working together to attract strategic investment, connect UK creative firms with global markets and showcase high-growth businesses to international investors through trade missions and major global events.
A fast-growing economic powerhouse
The announcement comes as new figures underline the scale and momentum of the UK’s creative industries. In 2024, the sector contributed £145.8 billion in gross value added (GVA) to the economy and grew at four times the rate of the wider economy between 2023 and 2024. Research from the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre also shows that almost one in ten of the UK’s high-growth potential firms operate within the creative industries.
Creative Industries Minister Ian Murray said: “The UK’s creative industries are world-class, with businesses at the cutting edge of their fields existing right across the country.
Through the Creative Industries Sector Plan, we are determined to ensure they can continue to grow. Accessing finance is key to that, which is why we are working with industry to open up more opportunities”.
Caroline Norbury OBE, Chief Executive of Creative UK said: “Creative UK has long advocated for more investment into the creative industries. This increased support from the British Business Bank is an important step forward for the sector, and I am pleased to see more initiatives being unveiled for the creative industries at our Summit today. As we look to unleash the full potential of the Sector Plan - access to finance for founders and creatives is a key driver for success, and we look forward to working with the British Business Bank and DCMS to keep widening access further”.
Building on earlier commitments
The latest measures build on a £500 million government package announced last month to support innovation across the creative industries. Further updates on delivery of the Sector Plan — including skills development, trade, regional growth and key sectors such as music, film and games — are expected in the coming months.
The Big Creative UK Investment Summit, taking place in London today, brings together investors, policymakers and business leaders to explore investment-ready opportunities across the sector. Speakers include Shriti Vadera, co-chair of the government’s Creative Industries Council.
With sustained public-private collaboration now firmly in place, the government says the new package will help ensure creative businesses of all sizes have the tools, confidence and capital they need to start, scale and succeed in the UK. Photo by Carlos Delgado; CC-BY-SA, Wikimedia commons.