Private investment landscape for cultural organisations ‘too fragmented’, research finds

Creative and cultural organisations seeking private investment find the current landscape to be fragmented and the process too time consuming, according to a new report.

Creative UK, which will lead work with industry to provide a clear and accessible pathway for investment as part of the ‘Single Front Door’ initiative set out in Government’s Creative Industries Sector Plan, published two reports today (4 August) to assess the current situation.

The membership body for the cultural and creative industries found that information, guidance and routes into finance are distributed across multiple organisations, programmes and networks, requiring organisations to spend significant time assessing fit, eligibility and relevance.

Meanwhile, organisations repeatedly reported that they cannot search for what they do not know exists; and that what defines “investment ready” often feels “opaque or difficult to interpret”.

Lack of creative industry-specific information

Participants also described a lack of creative industry-specific information
and difficulty identifying patient and risk-aware capital suited to creative
business structures.

“The barriers identified through this research: fragmentation, sequencing
failure and investment readiness opacity, and the ineffective nature of generic provision, indicate a structural coordination failure within the information and support landscape.

“Businesses told us that programme and investor networks are distributed across institutions and intermediaries in ways that are difficult for businesses to interpret and navigate.

“Taken together, these findings suggest a coordination problem in how creative businesses access, interpret and progress through the finance landscape.”

Key findings from investors include that a ‘Single Front Door’ initiative could provide better routing by directing creative founders to appropriate funds and that there is a role for greater signposting to appropriate funding for organisations.

The report concludes that the next phase of work should focus on translating the findings into a practical model for delivery, including service design, delivery partnerships and a phased implementation plan, that can be stress-tested with the Creative Industries Council (CIC).