SWS transfers all projects and activities into Creative England

by Tara_Milne on 16-Dec-11 12:08

We are pleased to announce today that of all of South West Screen's projects and activities have now been transferred into the new agency Creative England.

Creative England opened in October to support film, TV, games, digital and creative services in the English regions outside London, building on work of the regional screen agencies outside the capital over the last decade.  South West Screen’s first stage of transfer into the new agency took place in September, when its responsibilities to distribute Lottery funds from the BFI for film support passed to Creative England. 

South West Screen has now undertaken all the necessary steps to complete the second and final phase of transfer, and from today, Creative England becomes ‘sole member’ of the agency, and will oversee all of its contracts and services. South West Screen staff have now transferred into Creative England and will continue to work out of the same Bristol office. 

South West Screen Chairman Kip Meek said: “The past 18 months presented some of the biggest challenges to South West Screen since its formation a decade ago, and we have been confident from an early stage that the best route forward for supporting the South West industry is to become fully part of Creative England.

“The range of talented individuals, companies and projects that South West Screen has supported over the years, illustrates the vibrancy of this sector and the draw of the region for the creative community. In the last financial year, the agency leveraged over £3 million in match funding, and generated £56 million in inward investment. It’s this kind of success that we are confident that Creative England will build on.

“We have ensured that the resources that South West Screen has built up over many years – skilled staff, good relationships in the region and carefully husbanded reserves – are protected in the transition to Creative England, so that the South West‘s creative industries continue to be well represented, supported and championed.”

Creative England Chairman John Newbigin, said: “The importance of keeping a local focus at the heart of Creative England’s delivery cannot be overstated. We are extremely pleased to take on these exemplary projects, along with the knowledge and relationships that have been forged by South West Screen over the years. I can assure the industry that this will be built on to provide relevant and targeted support for the South West in the future.”

Projects and activities that have been transferred to Creative England are: 

• The Creative Industries iNet: a funding programme designed to support creative businesses across the South West, part of Solutions for Business and funded by the European Regional Development Fund;
• The Bottle Yard: a production facility in Hengrove, South Bristol, delivered in partnership with Bristol City Council and the Homes and Communities Agency;
• iFeatures: a microbudget filmmaking initiative delivered in partnership with BBC Films, Bristol City Council, Skillset and other partners, which has produced three feature films due for cinema release in 2012 (Alastair Siddons’s In the Dark Half, Mark Simon Hewis’s Eight Minutes Idle and Kasia Klimkiewicz’s Flying Blind);
• White Horse Pictures: the rural cinema  pilot scheme for Wiltshire and the Test Valley funded by the BFI (previously the UK Film Council) and Wiltshire Council and delivered by a consortium of local organisations in the county; and
• The European Creative Business Network (an alliance of 11 European partners working together to establish the EU as a more accessible, effective and rewarding single market for cultural and creative entrepreneurs).