About Creative Cardiff

Cardiff University’s Centre for the Creative Economy creates a space for much-needed research, innovation and engagement projects focused on the creative industries in Wales. Established in 2014, the Centre’s initial focus was on network building, launching the Creative Cardiff network in 2015 to engage with industry and encourage cross-sector collaboration and innovation. 

Creative Cardiff aims to deliver a vision of Cardiff as a connected, collaborative and inclusive capital of creativity.  

Creative Cardiff does this by: 

  • Bringing together people from across the Cardiff Capital Region’s creative economy to share ideas, information, resources and expertise.  
  • Promoting creative jobs and opportunities, encouraging new ways of working through partnership and collaboration.  
  • Fostering a culture of innovation, openness and ambition.  
  • Strengthening Cardiff’s creative sector and creative city identity, and the perception and recognition of Cardiff as a ‘creative capital’ across Wales, the UK and internationally.  
  • Supporting sector recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and building resilience.  
  • Embedding the role of the city’s creative sector in supporting the economic and social wellbeing of the Cardiff Capital Region.  

The network is open to anyone who works, or wants to work, in the creative industries within the Cardiff Capital Region.  

Events and engagement  

We programme regular engaging and inclusive events and activities under the Creative Cardiff brand, both in-person and digitally, to amplify connectivity and foster collaboration and innovation within the city – and region’s – creative industries.  

These include our monthly ‘Creative Cuppa’ networking events, biannual evening socials (summer and festive), ‘Creative Cardiff Classroom’ workshop-style events and numerous employability panels and lectures for Higher and Further Education students.  

Take a look at our list of live events.  

Space and infrastructure   

We want to help hardwire creativity into the fabric of the city, by ensuring that Cardiff remains attractive to creatives through preserving and investing in the right mix of secure, accessible and inclusive workspaces, community spaces and specialist and technical facilities that will amplify creative sector growth in the long-term. 

This includes mapping and promoting the range of creative spaces available in the city and the region, find out more. 

Student engagement and employability  

We actively engage with Cardiff University’s substantial student population, creating meaningful opportunities for students to experience working in the creative industries, gain valuable skills and connections and be encouraged and supported to remain in the city’s workforce post-graduation. 

We do this by delivering a range of placement opportunities, including On Campus Internships and Student Producer roles, we also deliver Student Futures panel events and various employability and skills-based lectures and workshops.  

Read about Devika and Eszter’s placement experience at Creative Cardiff.  

Enhancing impact and reach 

Creative Cardiff aims to increase the reach and impact of Cardiff’s creative sector growth across the Cardiff Capital Region and outside of the immediate city. We want to ensure that people from diverse communities across the region can access opportunities, supporting the development of thriving local economies with creativity at their heart. 

To that end, we have been working on the Creative Industries Cluster Hubs project, which established three pilot hubs in Newport, Monmouthshire and Rhondda Cynon Taf. Find out more. (LINK TO PROJECT PAGE) 

Facilitating best practice  

We aim to use the connectivity and influence of Creative Cardiff to broker fairer, more transparent and increased opportunities for local artists and makers to have work commissioned. We are exploring opportunities which positively impact on placemaking and the ‘look and feel’ of Cardiff as a diverse and inclusive creative capital’. 

In October 2023, we supported two emerging artists from Cardiff to take part in the Art School Plus programme in London In summer 2023, we commissioned eight artists from the Cardiff Capital Region to design posters which were on display at various locations across the city centre, find out more. 

Find out more and get in touch 

Get in touch by emailing creativecardiff@cardiff.ac.uk or phoning 02920 876188. 

View our latest campaigns and interviews by visiting our Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook.