Creative economy

The culture and creative industries are a £108 billion a year success story and key to the UK's prosperity, identity and global influence. Creative practitioners are also a driver of innovation across the wider economy.

To achieve our ambitious goal of an extra £50 billion a year and one million jobs by 2030, the sector must address significant challenges in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and skills development, environmental sustainability and creative technologies' ethical and regulatory implications.

We blend traditional arts and humanities research with social, data, and environmental sciences. Partnering with arts organisations, policymakers, and creative industries SMEs, we drive impactful programmes. These initiatives amplify the sector's sustainable economic and social value  across the region, the UK and internationally.

We work with over 25 partners, including Google Arts and Culture, the Tate, Tech Exeter and the South West Heritage Trust.

Exeter Innovation in numbers

Top 100

Rated among the Top 100 Higher Education Institutions in the world for Arts and Humanities research, education and impact (QS University Rankings 2023). 

Special collections

We host a range of special collections, looking after the papers of Charles Causley, Agatha Christie, Ted Hughes, William Golding, Daphne du Maurier and others. Home to one of the largest collections of film memorabilia in the UK in the Bill Douglas Museum. 

Number 1

Our Drama department is the highest ranked in the UK (Times Good University Guide 2023 and Guardian University Guide 2023). 

The University works across the Arts within Exeter, Devon and Cornwall, as well as on a national and international scale. Our mission revolves around uniting creative practitioners and organisations with cutting-edge research.

We ensure that the sector’s voice is represented in strategic conversations and provide opportunities and guidance to support the development of a strong cultural ecology. 

Contact:  

Belinda Dillon
Programme Manager for Creative Arc
B.Dillon@exeter.ac.uk 

Culture-based programmes and projects bring innovation, vibrancy and identity to places, helping to transform the quality of life, health and well-being and environment for urban, rural and coastal communities.

We bring cultural and creative industry partners and communities together with academic expertise and policy makers to develop and support culture programmes that make a significant impact on places. Programmes include Exeter Culture and the successful application for Exeter to become a UNESCO Creative City, and a major innovation programme focussing on new housing developments.  

Contact:

Dom Jinks
Creative Places
D.J.Jinks2@exeter.ac.uk 
 

Working with regional, national and international heritage organisations, our researchers address pressing issues facing the sector, including the decolonisation of collections, preservation of cultural and natural heritage, and increasing and diversifying public access. Our cutting-edge archaeological and digital humanities labs work with industry to promote and enable digital research, preservation, and access.

Contact:

Dr Nadia Khalaf
Cultural Heritage
N.R.Khalaf@exeter.ac.uk 

We collaborate with screen, performance, communications and createch companies to understand the impact of digital content, distribution and createch applications on the workforce, audiences and environment.

Distance from London and rurality are significant barriers to inclusion in the creative industries. We work closely with regional partners to catalyse rural and semi-rural creative industries clusters that are key to the sector‘s sustainable growth. 

Contact:

Dr Nadia Khalaf 
Cultural Heritage 
N.R.Khalaf@exeter.ac.uk    

Dom Jinks
Creative Places 
D.J.Jinks2@exeter.ac.uk 

Insights and impact

Working with The Space to capture the value and impact of digital cultural content Our work with cultural agency, The Space, has developed a new way of measuring the impacts of online cultural content.
Learn more