CIC relaunches with new industry members
Dec 16, 2025
The Creative Industries Council (CIC) has relaunched today with a new panel of more than 40 expert members, bringing together cultural institutions, trade bodies, creative businesses, regional leaders and sector representatives from across the UK’s creative industries.
The CIC is a forum for collaboration between the government and industry leaders on key industry issues. Our membership has been reshaped to improve representation across sub-sectors, regions and nations, including doubling representation outside London.
The move follows the publication of the Creative Industries Sector Plan last June, which set out the government’s strategy to boost investment and competitiveness. It aims to increase business investment in creative organisations from £17 billion to £31 billion by 2035, helping creative businesses scale and create jobs.
Our working parties
The Plan’s growth themes – innovation, finance, skills and trade – will underpin the CIC’s programme of work over the coming year, with four working groups developing and progressing plans in these four areas:
*Access to Finance (securing growth finance for creative start-ups and scale-ups). Led by Stephen Pegge OBE, Director UK Business Angels Association
*Workforce (building a resilient workforce fit for the future). Led by Sinead Rocks, Managing Director of Nations & Regions, Channel 4.
*Innovation (accelerating innovation-led growth). Led by Sara Pepper, Co-Director, Creative Economy Unit at Cardiff University.
*The Creative Industries Trade and Investment Board (CITIB) will continue to work on strengthening our international trading relationships, boosting exports and attracting inward investment to grow our economy. It will be co-chaired by Edinburgh International Festival’s Francesca Hegyi OBE and WPP’s Michael Frohlich.
Baroness Shriti Vadera and Sir Peter Bazalgette will continue to co-chair the CIC alongside Culture Secretary Lisa NandyandBusiness Secretary Peter Kyle.
Welcoming this newly formed CIC, Dids Macdonald OBE., Chairman of Anti Copying In Design (ACID) and Vice Chair of the Alliance for Intellectual Property said, “A fresh approach to achieve such ambitious objectives for the creative economy must include robust IP protection, AI transparency and a recognition that the UK’s intellectual capital, so entrenched within the creative industries, will not be eroded but enhanced through access to finance, building a workforce fit for the future, innovation-led delivery and broadening our international trade relations”.
The 12 month objectives of the CIC Group are as follows:
1. Oversight of progress on the implementation of the Sector Plan. The Creative Industries Sector Plan identifies the CIC as a key delivery partner responsible for “steering and tracking implementation of cross-industry commitments and monitoring progress”.
2. Support for the development of new policy proposals in areas where it was not possible to secure sufficient clarity in the Sector Plan, for example skills, or that are evolving rapidly, for example due to technological innovation.
3. Develop and more effectively use a unified sector economic narrative for the creative industries to ensure the sector is better understood by key policy makers and stakeholders – from parents to financiers – for the economic contribution it delivers (a separate paper is included with the meeting papers).
The Working Group structure has been changed to “Reflect the four “vertical” growth driving priorities in the Sector Plan. Working Group Chairs have been appointed by the CIC Chairs”
We’re also welcoming members from across government & the UK creative sector:
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