Wales Creative Sector Support Scheme

If you are using this scheme to provide awards of subsidy, you must inform the Subsidy Control Unit – email: scu@gov.wales.

Wales

Wales Creative Sector Support Scheme (WCSSS)

Powers of the Welsh Ministers which allow the Welsh Government to support enterprises under the scheme are contained in:

• The Welsh Development Agency Act 1975 (section 1) (as amended)
• The Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 (section 126)
• The Industrial Development Act 1982 (section 7), and
• The Government of Wales Act 2006 (sections 58A, 60 70 and 71(1))

The scheme intends to support transformational change within the sector with 2 schedules for support:

1. Development funding

Developing and growing the cultural and creative economies in Wales remains a priority. This scheme will provide support to the cultural and creative sectors in Wales in particular the following subsectors:

• screen, HETV, film
• audio visual
• gaming development
• transmedia
• music
• publishing
• creative skills and talent development

2. Production funding

To provide support for scriptwriting, development, production, distribution and promotion of audio-visual works, games and transmedia. The scheme will further develop and maintain a high-quality audio-visual infrastructure in Wales, through supporting and promoting Welsh productions and attracting major foreign productions to Wales. This will provide a vehicle through which Welsh facilities, talent and culture can be promoted and contribute to the overall economic growth of the sector.

It will:

• help protect sustainable organisations and protect jobs in the culture and creative sectors enabling it to remain vibrant, viable and sustainable in the future
• support the development of cultural and creative activities through transformational change.
• provide support for creative development such as scriptwriting, production, distribution and promotion of audio-visual works as well as sector development support to publishing, music, games and transmedia sectors. The scheme will further develop and maintain a high-quality audio-visual infrastructure in Wales, through supporting and promoting Welsh productions and attracting major foreign productions to Wales. This will provide a vehicle through which Welsh facilities, talent and culture can be promoted and contribute to the overall economic growth of the sector.

Categories of enterprise that are eligible:

The scheme will be open to the following:

• screen/TV, film, game and transmedia production companies
• music venues
• publishing, media and journalism organisations
• independent cinemas, and
• events of a creative, cultural or heritage nature
• any other organisations to deliver eligible activities in the creative and cultural sectors in Wales

Terms and conditions for eligibility:

The amounts involved will be the minimum necessary to make the project happen and proportionate to the size and location of the business/project. Each request for funding will clearly have to evidence a secure finance package and that the grant requested is needed.

Applications will also have to evidence that the project demonstrate one or more of the following criteria for funding including:

1. strategic fit
2. mobility
3. financial constraint, or
4. acceleration/additionality

The limits involved in this subsidy are in line with the previous limits of this type of support in order to ensure continuity and therefore certainty in the sector. Consideration will be given for every individual award made under this scheme to minimise the potential for negative distortion.

All funding will based on a payment profile and as a default in arrears. Staged payment profiles can be included where the need is demonstrated as long as the associated output have been delivered in line with the terms of the fund and offer letter.

Basis for the calculation of subsidies under the scheme:

Direct subsidies are considered an appropriate measure to meet market failure with regard to the above sectors investment that would not occur without the subsidy and wider benefits to the Welsh Creative and Cultural economies. Subsidies will be awarded only for companies who can evidence that support is necessary for either, financial constraint, mobility and acceleration/ additionality which directly address the market failures in the sector. As part of the process, applicants are required to demonstrate there is a funding gap, or that the price differential between developing in Wales versus developing it elsewhere.

Welsh Government

The scheme will be open to the following:

• Screen/TV, film, game and transmedia production companies
• music venues
• publishing, media and journalism organisations
• independent cinemas, and
• events of a creative, cultural or heritage nature
• any other organisations to deliver eligible activities in the creative and cultural sectors in Wales.

Arts, entertainment and recreation

1 April 2025 to 31 March 2034

£80,000,000

Direct grant

The amounts involved will be the minimum necessary to make the project happen and proportionate to the size and location of the business/project. Each request for funding will clearly have to evidence a secure finance package and that the grant requested is needed.

Applications will also have to evidence that the project demonstrate one or more of the following criteria for funding including:

1. strategic fit
2. mobility
3. financial constraint, or
4. acceleration/additionality

The limits involved in this subsidy are in line with the previous limits of this type of support in order to ensure continuity and therefore certainty in the sector. Consideration will be given for every individual award made under this scheme to minimise the potential for negative distortion.

All funding will based on a payment profile and as a default in arrears. Staged payment profiles can be included where the need is demonstrated as long as the associated output have been delivered in line with the terms of the fund and offer letter.

Direct subsidies are considered an appropriate measure to meet market failure with regard to the above sectors investment that would not occur without the subsidy and wider benefits to the Welsh Creative and Cultural economies.

Subsidies will be awarded only for companies who can evidence that support is necessary for either, financial constraint, mobility and acceleration/ additionality which directly address the market failures in the sector. As part of the process, applicants are required to demonstrate there is a funding gap, or that the price differential between developing in Wales versus developing it elsewhere.

£999,000

For more information about applying for support under this scheme, please contact CreativeWalesFundingSupport@gov.wales

For more information about this scheme’s compliance with the Subsidy Control Act 2022, please contact: