Plans to create 10,000 jobs in the North East’s cultural and creative sectors over the next decade have been set out in a new strategy published by the region’s mayoral authority.
The North East Mayoral Strategic Authority has outlined its ambitions for culture, creative industries, heritage and sport between now and 2036, with targets covering employment, business growth, major events and visitor numbers.
As well as creating 10,000 jobs, the authority wants to support more than 8,000 businesses and freelancers to grow, host more than 900 events, including 10 major events, and attract over 10 million visitors to regional events and cultural venues.
The targets form part of the newly published North East Culture, Creative Industries, Heritage and Sport Strategic Framework 2026–2036, which sets out how the authority intends to use its devolved powers, investment and influence to develop the sectors.
The strategy is underpinned by £104m of investment announced earlier this year.
That existing investment includes the £2.2m Small Venues Fund, launched in June to support arts, culture and music venues across the region, and the £11m Events Fund, which has already supported events including BBC Radio 1’s Big Weekend, Newcastle Pride and Durham Book Festival.
It also includes £38m for the Crown Works Studios development in Sunderland, which recently received planning approval from Sunderland City Council.
The new framework brings these investments together under three broad priorities: creating jobs and attracting investment, developing skills and talent, and increasing opportunities for people to take part in culture, heritage and sport.
Among the areas identified for growth are screen production, music, writing and publishing, events and sport.
The authority also wants to strengthen the visitor economy, encourage creative businesses to expand and improve opportunities for people to establish sustainable careers in the region.
Supporting freelancers and entrepreneurs, retaining talent and creating clearer routes into creative and sporting careers are identified as priorities.
North East Mayor Kim McGuinness said: “For too long, talented people have had to look to the capital for good careers, and we’re changing that, creating opportunities for local people, here in the region.
“We’re already backing our creative sector, from funding new training opportunities and supporting venues to building film studios in Sunderland. This is about creating more opportunities for young people, more support for talent, more events, more visitors, and more reasons to be proud of where we live.
“Not just for artists, athletes, or creatives… for everyone.”
The framework also places an emphasis on widening participation, with ambitions to remove barriers that prevent people from accessing cultural and sporting opportunities.
It proposes closer working between local authorities, cultural organisations, businesses, education providers and communities, alongside efforts to attract further national and international investment.
The authority’s summary document estimates that approximately 55,000 people are employed across the region’s creative industries and puts the value of the visitor economy at £7.13bn.
It also highlights figures showing that the North East recorded the fastest proportional growth in creative industries gross value added of any English region between 2019 and 2022.
The framework sets out the authority’s ambitions for the next decade, with further detail on how the targets will be delivered and progress measured expected as the strategy develops.
This will include how the £104m of previously announced investment contributes to the wider goals for jobs, business growth and cultural participation.
The authority says it has co-commissioned work with the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre to strengthen the region’s evidence base and help inform future funding decisions.
The strategy covers the seven local authority areas of County Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland, South Tyneside and Sunderland.
Its publication sets out the authority’s ambitions for the next 10 years, with the challenge now turning to how those targets translate into opportunities for the region’s cultural organisations, creative businesses, freelancers and audiences.
The framework and details of existing investment can be found at northeast-ca.gov.uk/north-east-creates.