Sector Profile - Creative Industries
August 31 2011
Essex is home to more than 3500 creative and media companies and a rich network of freelance specialists making it one of the highest concentrations of creative ventures in the east of England or areas surrounding London.
Not only is the sector continually growing, with over 12,000 people employed, but it is also broad with companies working in video, animation, audio-visual, publishing, advertising, design marketing and the arts, supported by an established supply chain and super-fast digital communications infrastructure.
Many world-class companies in this sector have made Essex their home, leading businesses such as:
• Pearson Education – a global world leading educational publisher
• Audio Network – a leading production music and sound effects provider for industry
• Plextek Ltd – provides design services to the communications, defence, automotive, industrial, scientific and medical (ISM) markets.
• Burrows – a creative, marketing communications company.
• Coast Digital – a full service digital marketing agency.
• Pixelwork – an award-winning creative digital agency.
Although London has been the traditional centre for creative and media jobs, the county’s super-fast digital communications and rapid transport links to UK and international clients means that employment opportunities are no longer limited to the capital.
Businesses locating in Essex are benefiting from operating costs up to two thirds less than the London average. The average salary for creative and media staff is approximately 41% lower than the London average, 13% lower than the east of England average and 32% lower than the UK average for the sector. These reduced costs, coupled with the close proximity and effective transport links means Essex offers a more affordable business solution.
“We had originally thought we would have to be based in London, but the fast rail connections mean we can visit clients easily, while we benefit form the lower overheads in Essex.”
says Lee Callaghan, Director, Pepagon
Key sites across the county
Essex has a wide choice of sites and accommodation for companies in the creative industries sector, from easily accessible business parks, to industrial facilities, to small serviced offices. The biggest clusters of companies in this sector are found in Chelmsford and Colchester. Major hubs in the sector are as follows:
• The High House Production Park in Purfleet – houses the Royal Opera House and will be home for the National Skills Academy for Creative & Cultural Skills
• Metal in Southend – a creative laboratory providing multi-disciplinary residency space for artists from the UK and overseas
• firstsite in Colchester (image shown left) – a leading venue for contemporary visual art with purpose-built gallery spaces for major international exhibitions.
Leading Research and Education
The University of Essex multimedia research laboratory has developed an international reputation for its research programme in the Department of Literature, Film and Theatre Studies and offers degrees in literature, film, drama and creative writing.
East 15 is one of the UK’s most innovative acting schools, providing professional training and study of performance for actors, directors, technical theatre specialists. The school has a campus in Southend.
Anglia Ruskin University offers courses in multimedia, gaming, animation and digital media.
For creative and media companies, the county’s skills, communications, infrastructure and proximity to London and Europe make Essex an ideal location for a studio or office, opening up an agency or consultancy, starting a new business or relocating a growing company. The creative industries are an incredibly dynamic aspect of Essex’s economy, growing and presenting huge opportunities for businesses in the county.
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