Since 2010, UK creative-economy policy has consistently focused on developing creative clusters to drive economic resilience and growth. Media Cymru, a £52m UKRI-funded creative industries growth programme in the Cardiff Capital Region, is one such public investment, combining R&D funding with a sustained commitment to equity-driven governance. Drawing on inclusive growth theory and cluster governance frameworks, this paper examines whether and how public investment in the creative industries can integrate equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) into its structural design, rather than treating diversity as a downstream outcome of economic success.
Using programme documentation, funding criteria, longitudinal diversity monitoring data, and interviews conducted between 2022 and 2026, the paper presents evidence from five years of embedded research. It finds that EDI can be meaningfully integrated into funding design, commissioning processes, and programme evaluation, producing measurable shifts in participation among underrepresented groups. However, the data also reveal significant volatility: diversity gains are fragile and contract under institutional pressure, particularly at moments of budget stress or competing growth demands. The paper argues that these tensions are not incidental but structural, generated by the simultaneous obligations of innovation, income generation, and public value that publicly funded creative programmes must navigate. In addressing these issues, the paper contributes to broader discussions on inclusive innovation, cluster governance, and the limits and possibilities of equity-oriented creative economy policy.

Authors:
Jessica Hoare, Cardiff University, United Kingdom

About the Presenter(s)
Dr Jess Hoare is a Research Associate at the Centre for the Creative Economy at Cardiff University. Jess current leads research on equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) within Media Cymru, a £50m UKRI-funded creative industries growth programme.

Connect on Linkedin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesshoare/

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