Why thriving, vibrant creative communities matter to us all.

In the UK, the creative sector is currently growing faster then the economy as a whole, which in our current economic climate is a great driver for providing employment.

It's a real UK success story. According to the Creative Industries Economic Estimates report 2010 produced by DCMS, the creative industries in all their diverse forms represented 5.14% of the UK's employment total, 10.6% of exports and 2.89% of GVA (Gross Added Value). According to Wikipedia, the manufacturing sector accounted for 8.2% of the workforce and 12% of the national output. That's a pretty incredible statistic! In terms of the benefit to local communities, the creative sector firstly has a lot to offer local businesses. There's a creative heartbeat in every successful business – take Apple as the prime example. For creatives, taking risks and pushing boundaries are part of the norm, and this is what drives fresh new ideas and innovations.

Brands are now well established as a key component of a businesses ability to compete, and creatives are at the very centre of building successful brands. Secondly a thriving and vibrant local creative community enriches all our lives and makes our community a much more interesting place to live in and to experience. How can commercial creative businesses such as ours help? By giving our creative sector a Voice to the local business community and local community as a whole – commercial creative companies are in the business of effective communication. We also have a responsibility to help nurture the creative talent of tomorrow which keeps our sector strong and competitive.

Creative businesses can do this in many ways – engaging with art and design students on projects, mentoring, work experience, apprenticeships, part employment so they can afford to pursue university degrees in this difficult economic climate, etc… And we can build a clear and persuasive case for greater investment by Government and private business. We need to prove the indispensability of the creative and cultural industries to business and society as a whole.

However it seems clear that today the creative sector can no longer rely on Government for generous grants and subsidies alone to survive and flourish. It has to learn to operate commercially – and that's where commercial creative companies can provide direction. Mathew Taylor, CEO of the RSA says: "With substantial cuts in public funding and very little sign that private philanthropy is filling the gap we have no choice but to refresh the case for the importance of the arts and develop innovative business models which enable arts organisations to flourish in this difficult environment."

This can and should be a liberating experience – empowering artists, creative practitioners of all disciplines and non-commercial creative organisations to take financial control of their own destiny rather than relying on subsidy, through acquiring commercial business practice tools. I've recently been invited to join a steering group for the Creative Sector in Bedfordshire. I'm really looking forward to exploring how eat with your eyes can make a contribution as a commercial creative company to the Bedfordshire creative community sector.

The opportunity is to align the commercial and public arts scenes much more closely together, so the benefits to both can be reciprocated, and so we can speak more loudly and coherently as one strong voice.
I'll keep you posted on progress, and welcome any ideas anyone has as I undertake this journey.

Tony