Through the North East Culture and Creative Investment Programme, funded by the North East Combined Authority, we are investing £750,000 in loans in the region’s cultural and creative industries.
We are looking for commercially viable, growth-minded businesses that are innovative, operate in the creative sectors, and are able to deliver meaningful impact in the region.
Who can apply? What are the eligibility criteria?
To be eligible to apply, businesses must:
- Post-revenue, with an annual turnover of at least £100k
- Operating in the North East Combined Authority region (Newcastle, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Sunderland, Gateshead, County Durham and Northumberland)
- Operating in the cultural or creative industries
- Registered on Companies House with at least one year of filed accounts
- Investment ready – able to provide management accounts, a business plan, an integrated financial model and other application materials
- Able to demonstrate ability to service the loan
- Able to demonstrate a case for meeting the wider aims of the programme
Can businesses outside the North East area apply?
We are primarily looking to invest in businesses that are registered and trading in the North East region and contributing to the local creative and cultural economy.
However, we will also consider investment into businesses:
- that are looking to relocate to the region and can demonstrate a committed timeframe to do so, and a strong case for economic, creative and cultural impact
- who are registered outside the region, but their main business/trading activity takes place in the North East area and can demonstrate that the investment will drive significant economic, creative and cultural benefit to the region.
What do we mean by the ‘Cultural and Creative Industries?’
We mean businesses working in the Visuals arts, Performing arts, Music, Film, TV, Media, Immersive and Video Games, Advertising & Marketing, Digital & Creative Tech, Creative Software Solutions, Fashion, Architecture, Heritage, Publishing, Museums, Libraries and Galleries.
How much is available?
Through the North East Culture and Creative Investment Programme we are investing a total of £750k in loans in the North East’s cultural and creative industries. Loans for individual businesses will generally range from £50,000 – £150,000, although we may consider investment amounts outside this in exceptional cases.
What can the investment be used towards?
We are interested in commercially viable, growth-minded businesses that are innovative, operate in the creative and cultural sector, and able to deliver meaningful impact in the region.
In line with this, permitted use of funds are:
- Developing revenue-generating products and services
- Developing or diversifying into new business models
- Other general expenditures that enable business growth such as recruitment, marketing and equipment costs etc.
What are the rates of interest?
Interest rates are at 5-10%, based on risk profile
What are the repayment terms?
Repayment terms can be up to a maximum of 5 years, payable monthly. In some cases we may provide capital repayment holidays at the outset of the investment.
What are the fees?
No management fees or early repayment charges.
Please note that the 0% management fees and any favourable difference in interest payments compared to the open market would count towards government subsidy control limits. It would be a successful loan recipient’s responsibility to declare and adhere to these limits. Please see government guidance for information on these limits.
Guidance on the UK’s international subsidy control commitments –
GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Are the loans secured through Personal Guarantee?
We do not ask for Personal Guarantees as a standard, we secure our loans through a debenture against the business. Although if you wish to discuss a Personal Guarantee with us, please include that in your application.
How do I apply?
1.Expression of Interest (EOI)
Applicants need to register on our online system and submit an EOI explaining what the company does and why they want investment. You will need to provide some top-line financial information to help us understand the financial health of your business and whether your business can service the loan.
Click here to submit a Loan EOI form.
2.Full Application
We will review EOI submissions and eligible applicants will be sent a link enabling them to apply via our online system.
Applicants will need to tell us:
- what it is your company does and how it makes money
- about your company’s output within the creative industries
- what is the proposed use of investment?
- what products and services do you provide?
- what is the USP relative to the competitive landscape?
- about your board make-up and outline key staff, their responsibilities and experience
- about any risks and mitigations
Applicants will need to provide:
- your sales pipeline
- information on your existing client base
- an integrated financial forecast model with 12 months of monthly actuals and 24 months of forecasts across P&L, balance sheet and cash flows
- company bank statements from previous three months
- annual company accounts filed at Companies House from previous year
- latest management accounts (produced in the last 2 months)
We will also ask how the proposed activity meets the wider aims of Culture and Creative Investment Programme.
What is the decision process?
We will complete a comprehensive due diligence of the business and undertake an assessment of the company’s management and governance structure, commerciality and finances. This process can take several weeks, and we might contact you with queries and may request additional information after full application has been received.
All final investment decisions are made by an independent Investment Committee who will consider the proposal/business in terms of financial viability and investment potential. We are expecting more demand for this programme than we have resources available. The Investment Committee will also consider a range of additional balancing criteria to ensure we are achieving the right spread of investment.
How long does the process take?
Once we receive your full application, we might contact you with queries and may request additional information. Once we have the required information, we will aim to give you a decision in within 6-8 weeks.
What are the wider aims of the programme?
The wider aims of the North East Culture and Creative Investment Programme are as follows:
- Creating news jobs in the region
- Safeguarding jobs in the region
- Creating new products
It’s great to have Creative UK on board as a strategic investor, supporting Venture Stream’s award-winning e-commerce and digital marketing business. With their support, we’re now able to expand our commitment to people-first strategies. Our team has always been at the heart of our business, and we look forward to continuing our journey with the financial support of Creative UK, one of the leading backers of talent and innovation in the creative and digital economy.
