Exploring the value of screen production funding in Wales

Wavehill delivered an impact study for Creative Wales, assessing 45 funded television, film, and games productions (including Sex Education, Dr Who, Havoc and Willow).

Our work established a consistent framework for evaluating economic, social, and cultural impacts and strengthened the evidence base for future funding decisions.

Approach

• Developed a structured impact framework to capture direct, indirect, and induced economic effects, as well as spillover impacts on studio development, skills, tourism, and cultural events.
• Combined economic modelling with sector evidence to connect financial inputs to activities across production, supply chains, and related sectors.
• Supported partners with practical monitoring tools and engaged stakeholders throughout delivery.

Outcomes

• £23.7 million in Creative Wales production funding, leveraged £263.9 million of production expenditure within Wales.
• Over 2,500 FTE jobs supported in Wales through funded productions.
• Total Gross Value Added (GVA) impact of £177.8 million for the Welsh economy.
• 425 trainee opportunities were delivered across 43 productions

Our study demonstrated how production funding drives wider benefits, stimulating tourism, enabling skills development, and expanding audience engagement through festivals and screenings. Studio investment and sector partnerships emerged as key catalysts for talent pipelines and further creative investment.
Wavehill’s structured evidence base gives Creative Wales a practical framework to inform future funding decisions and support the ongoing growth of Wales’s screen sector.

For full detail, see the published report.