Hounslow’s creative sector has gained half a million pounds in a creative industries jobs boost. A timely win for the borough’s economic recovery ambitions, the fund will help people into creative careers, and support small businesses.
The new £500k pot comes from the Mayor of London (under Hounslow’s Creative Enterprise Zone designation), the European Social Fund and the Council’s own Section 106 planning receipts. The process to identify a delivery model for the project has begun, where a consortium approach to include local stakeholders such as the education sector and creative specialists, has been encouraged. The programme will launch early in 2021.
Hounslow is home to big players in the creative sector such as Sky, Paramount and Disney, but also to many small, innovative businesses and start-ups that are vital to the local economy. The pandemic brought unprecedented challenges in the cultural and creative industries, but we expect the sector to be key to economic recovery.
The project will support residents into employment in a sector often overlooked as a career choice and will also help aspirational female and BAME creatives to find work in areas where they are often underrepresented.
Councillor Steve Curran, Leader and Cabinet Member for Corporate Strategy, Planning and Regeneration at Hounslow Council said: “Continued investment in our local creative businesses forms an integral part of our economic recovery planning.
“It will support a key objective for our CEZ in helping our residents, many from BAME communities who may not previously have considered a career in the creative industries, into work. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Hounslow is forecast to be one of the hardest hit boroughs in London, this financial support will provide a timely boost.”
