Create Growth Programme
Helping businesses in England convert their creative potential into creative growth.
Develop your creative potential
The Create Growth Programme was set up in 2022 by the Department for Culture, Media, and Sports (DCMS), with £17.5 million investment in an initial six regions, of which £7m was provided to Innovate UK to invest via a series of awarded competitions. In July 2023 DCMS added £10.9 million to support an additional six regions, plus a further £6.92m of investment into grant funded competitions to be delivered by Innovate UK.
A regional approach
Delivered by teams in each of the regions, creative businesses with high-growth potential received support to help them prepare for investment and grow their business. Each region had its own distinct approach and bespoke programme, tailored to the businesses in its cohorts. Some regions specialise in certain sub sectors, whereas others pride themselves on a broad range of talent.
The programme offered targeted support to eligible businesses to help unlock their growth potential. Each region is delivered bespoke support that fit the specific needs of their local creative businesses.
Regions were selected via open competitions run by DCMS. Each region was led by the local council, partnership or combined authority, and comprises several areas, towns and cities.
Find an investor
Innovate UK Business Connect developed a curated list of investors with a focus on specific creative sub-sectors, helping founders and others in the creative start-up ecosystem better understand the funding landscape and prepare to engage with investors effectively.
This initiative aims to close the funding gap for early-stage creative businesses by improving visibility, relevance, and access to aligned investors. It is designed for founders, ecosystem builders, and advisors navigating the UK creative investment landscape.
Find an investor
Impact
The collaboration between DCMS, Investor Networks, Regional Partners and Innovate UK has delivered £21 million in grant funding to over 430 creative businesses across all of the regions. This grant public investment has been used to leverage more than £5 million in private investment.
Businesses supported through this programme have seen successes as a result of this investment: read about some of the businesses we’ve supported in our case studies.
Related Case Studies
Game on: Beam XR’s secures grant funding and private backing with Innovate UK support
Innovate UK grant funding drives growth for Beam XR’s revolutionary live streaming software for the gaming industry, attracting private investment.
Prorizon is lifting the weight of sports performance with Innovate UK support
Grant funding from Innovate UK has powered Prorizon’s scale-up and entry into creative industries.
De-risking Net-Zu’s vision to revolutionise creative talent sourcing with Innovate UK support
The Create Growth Programme funding has enabled Net-Zu to de-risk their start-up idea, unlocking the creative industries as an investable sector.
Our Experts
Related Opportunities
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Various closing dates from Sep 2026 to Sep 2027
Topics available under cluster 2, with €3m-€5m available for most calls.
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