Executive Summary
This response focuses on young people’s aspirations to establish careers in the cultural and creative industries, and the barriers they face in doing so. This emphasis is important because the creative industries have been identified as one of the eight sectors in the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy. The evidence and insight used to respond to this Call for Evidence comes from the Unexpected Enterprises project funded by Enterprise Educators UK.
This submission suggests the following policy recommendations:
- Employers and careers guidance bodies review existing cultural and creative industries guidance and resources to reimagine how young people can understand and pursue entrepreneurial opportunities through multiple starting points.
- Employers invest in skills training for freelancers and SMEs that they work with (as well as employees) to benefit creative production and content creation more widely and encourage and enable entrepreneurship and collaboration in innovation.
- Employers and careers guidance bodies review existing cultural and creative industries guidance and resources to explore opportunities for and constraints of generating self-narratives.
- Employers and careers guidance bodies explore the use of creative methods to capture and share a diverse range of young people's stories and experiences that are relevant, meaningful and engaging.
Contributors:
Dr Emma Agustia, Senior Lecturer in Cultural Industries, specialising in Digital Media, Culture and Communications at the University of the West of England.
Professor Daniel Ashton, Professor of Cultural and Creative Industries at the University of Southampton.
