English Devolution White Paper: what does it mean for cultural and creative industries?

Six months ago, Sir Keir Starmer’s first King’s Speech as Prime Minister included no less than 39 new pieces of legislation as part of the UK Government’s plans to put this country on the “path of national renewal”. The legislative package planted the seeds of the new government’s growth agenda, central to which was the promise of a “devolution revolution”.  

Shortly before Parliament rose for Christmas, the UK Government published its long-awaited English Devolution White Paper: a plan for the “permanent shift of power away from Whitehall and into the hands of those who know their communities best.” 

In practice, the plan is to extend devolution to all parts of England, as well as providing additional powers and funding flexibility for mayors, and to replace the existing two-tier local government (county and district councils) with unitary authorities. But what does the White Paper mean for the cultural and creative industries, where place-based approaches to investment, such as the Creative Industries Clusters Programme and the existence of micro-clusters across the UK, have already shown significant promise in leveraging private investment, addressing regional disparities and promoting inclusive growth? 

Meanwhile at the Creative Industries Growth Summit in Gateshead on Friday 17 January, the Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy made an announcement which previewed which regions would be prioritised as part of the UK Government’s plans to grow the cultural and creative industries and therefore drive regional economic regeneration. Nandy announced that the North East, Greater Manchester, Liverpool City Region, West Yorkshire, West Midlands, Greater London, West of England, South Wales, Glasgow, Edinburgh-Dundee corridor and Belfast had been designated priority regions for the creative industries.  

Alongside proposed additional funding for six Mayoral Combined Authorities (North East, Greater Manchester, Liverpool City Region, West Yorkshire, West Midlands, West of England), it is becoming increasingly clear that the UK Government views our sector as a critical partner in its growth agenda, particularly in underserved regions whose full potential is yet to be unlocked. This blog explores the key features of the White Paper and evaluates where and how the cultural and creative industries can best support its ambitions.   

Integrated Settlements and Local Growth Plans 

What the White Paper refers to as the ‘hoarding’ of power in SW1 includes the view that the approaches in place have prevented local leaders from taking the decisions that best deliver change for their communities. While local leaders understand what their communities need better than anyone else, there’s also a view set out in the White Paper that for too long towns and cities have been forced to compete with one another for funding. It’s suggested that this ‘cap in hand’ approach, as the White Paper calls it, has led to greater regional inequality, slower wage growth and a relative decline in living standards compared to other developed countries. 

Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram, the respective mayors of Greater Manchester and the Liverpool City Region, have often been held up as examples of how metro mayors can successfully deliver on local priorities when given the flexibility to do so. Burnham, for example, has the most powers of any elected mayor outside of London and has demonstrated this influence through significant changes to transport, housing and education and skills in Greater Manchester. Similarly, Mayor Tracy Brabin has championed the creative industries in West Yorkshire, launching a £2.3 million support package to boost the sector as part of the “You Can Make It Here” programme. 

Such success stories provide the foundation for the UK Government’s commitment to offer Integrated Settlements to six Combined Authorities, starting with Greater Manchester and the West Midlands this year and followed by the North East, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and the Liverpool City Region in 2026. Their idea is to integrate legislative, administrative and fiscal aspects of devolved governance into a coherent package, allowing Combined Authorities to move funding between policy areas depending on that region’s priorities.  

The new and enhanced Devolution Framework set out in the White Paper therefore represents an opportunity for Combined Authorities to freely invest in their burgeoning creative economies, without being bound by strict Westminster rules on how that money is spent. As the Local Government Association (LGA) has cautioned, the timelines to implementing are tight – it will be important that the 2026 deadline does not force Combined Authorities to rush structural changes, without adequate time to consult communities and plan effectively. 

Local Growth Plans, announced before the publication of the White Paper, will enable each of the 12 metro mayors to demonstrate how culture, heritage, sport and tourism can contribute to the long-term growth of their region over the next decade. This is particularly important for those local authorities that rely heavily on their visitor economies for driving local economic growth, employment opportunities and civic engagement. Culture, creativity and the visitor economy play an immensely important role in many regions’ outreach efforts, with culture in particular a vital mechanism for engaging local communities and including parts of the population recognised as “hard-to-reach”.  

When the English Devolution Bill is first introduced in Parliament, it’s essential that the cultural and creative industries  call on the UK Government to reward those Combined Authorities whose Local Growth Plans explicitly recognise the role of cultural organisations and publicly funded arts and culture initiatives in driving regional growth, alongside growth efforts in support of industry – particularly in light of the significant financial pressures that councils already face and the potential strain that rapid reforms could place on local budgets and services.  

In areas such as Leeds with its gaming ecosystem and Birmingham’s independent music scene, the cultural and creative industries have catalysed employment, tourism, and inward investment. The Secretary of State’s recent announcement of priority regions for the creative industries is designed to create opportunities for local talent, fostering community engagement and generating tourism revenue in these areas. As such, the UK Government recognises the role of creative subsectors in forming the foundation of thriving creative clusters, which in turn strengthen the development of people and IP up and down the country.  

Local Skills Improvement Plans 

While the White Paper acknowledges the value of culture, heritage, sport and tourism as “vital anchors” in regional economies, these industries’ full potential will only be realised if Local Growth Plans are aligned with the skill demands of communities they’re intended to serve.  

We already know that regional creative clusters often lack access to the same level of resources, networks and mentorship opportunities available in London and the South East. Ensuring Local Skills Improvement Plans are aligned with Skills England’s assessment of skills needs in specific areas will help level the playing field across the country, guaranteeing equitable access to cultural and creative job opportunities in underserved regions where there is significant untapped potential.  

The White Paper’s focus on establishing Employer Representative Bodies, tasked with developing Local Skills Improvement Plans in coordination with Strategic Authorities, will better enable local employers to nurture talent pipelines and meet regional regeneration and social inclusion goals.  

Learning from best practice 

Despite the clear and evidenced success of the Creative Industries Clusters Programme (CICP) – estimated to have raised around £277 million in public and private co-investment and funded over 1000 industry-led R&D projects since the launch of the first tranche of clusters in 2018 – there is no mention of the CICP in the White Paper. 

While there is a second wave of regional creative clusters due to be developed, after the Arts & Humanities Research Council secured an initial £50 million for its launch, it is crucial that the Government leans into the expertise of the cultural and creative industries where there is already work underway achieving the same goals as those set out in the White Paper. 

The English Devolution Bill, once introduced, will be implemented in tandem with the UK Government’s Industrial Strategy, which has a clear remit to focus on skills development as a key factor in driving growth and productivity across the eight identified sectors, one of which is the creative industries. 

There are highly skilled individuals in every part of the country who, with targeted support and guidance, have the potential to spearhead the next generation of regional creative businesses with high scaling potential. This is where capacity building schemes, like DCMS’ Create Growth Programme, can help improve regional investors’ understanding of the benefits of investing in the creative industries.  

For example, through the Create Growth Programme each region delivers bespoke support that responds to the specific needs of their local creative businesses. This means where regions specialise in certain subsectors, such as fashion and textiles in Yorkshire, place-based creative hubs begin to flourish where networks of mentors and regional creative pipelines establish conditions conducive to sustained socioeconomic growth. It also means these businesses are supported to grow at a pace and scale they might not otherwise be able to – with great returns on this investment.  

The direction of travel is promising and through the Industrial Strategy there is a growing appreciation for the immense benefits the creative, cultural and heritage sectors bring to people’s lives. The English Devolution Bill, too, represents an opportunity to take this even further: empowering local authorities across the country to put culture and creativity centre-stage, supporting local place-based development in ways that drive regional economic growth, contribute to community cohesion and reduce social exclusion.