Hertfordshire

About the region

The “jewel in the crown” of Britain’s film and TV industry, Hertfordshire offers myriad opportunities for creative businesses. Located to the north of London, the county is home to major players in the sector such as Elstree Studios, Warner Brothers, Sky and the BBC.

There are around 8,700 creative businesses in Hertfordshire, 2,500 of which are linked to the county’s booming film and TV industry. It’s estimated that the county’s creative sector employs some 33,000 people.

Working alongside partners Estu and the Royal College of Art, Exemplas and the University of Hertfordshire, the team are excited to connect Hertfordshire SMEs to opportunities in the film and TV sector. With a broad programme of support, they’re committed to helping creative businesses to meet the needs of this fast-paced and diverse industry. Whether it’s providing flowers for film sets or cutting-edge animation for box office sensations, the team has the experience and the contacts to help creatives succeed.

While Hertfordshire has been the national centre for film-making for a century, the county has plenty more to offer, particularly for businesses looking to break into supplying the sector. The gaming and digital media sectors are also thriving and the team are excited to connect businesses with opportunities in these areas, too.

Georgina Wark, Communications Manager for Hertfordshire LEP, says: “In this time of economic uncertainty, for businesses to have the support to be able to diversify their product and test it safely is just amazing. It just opens up the doors for so many businesses.”

Hertfordshire is Britain’s jewel in the crown for the film and TV industry, but we can’t rest on our laurels. We have to build on that and that’s where this programme fits in.

Tim Burton, Business Support Services Manager, Hertfordshire LEP

Objectives and delivery

The key objective of the Creative Growth Programme is to equip creative businesses with the skills, knowledge and contacts to access opportunities within the thriving film and TV industry in Hertfordshire. To achieve this, they’re delivering a film and TV sector plan and have piloted a supply chain initiative, which was trying to see how to better connect businesses to the opportunities within the film industry.

Supply chain innovation remains at the heart of the Hertfordshire assistance, bolstered by having access to additional support. Including investor readiness, providing workshops on topics such as debt finance, and accessing R&D tax credits. Mentoring will be available for businesses seeking active investment and Hertfordshire is looking to develop a local investor network.

The team are also connecting businesses to new product development support, including help on shaping commercialisation plans and where needed, access to research and facilities to test new product concepts.

Tim says, “Businesses are always looking to grow but they can be very internally focused, or they don’t have the contacts or know-how to actually approach these types of opportunities.”

Impact and response

While it’s still early days, the team has been helping businesses to understand where the key opportunities are within the TV and film industry in Hertfordshire. They’re also highlighting issues within the sector that creative businesses can help to solve.

Founders have had the opportunity to speak to key players from the film-making industry as part of initiatives such as the Supply Chain Innovation Programme. The eight-week programme, which ends with a finale event at Sky Studios, allows business owners to pitch and get critiqued by the procurement team at Sky.

Tim says, “The problem is that companies see the carrot of business within the TV and film industry but they either don’t know who to speak to or how to connect to them, or they don’t know how to pitch their proposition so that it actually meets the actual industry requirements. So the Supply Chain Innovation Programme is about looking at the propositions, refining them, and creating connections.”