Purpose

To discuss the Change Request setting out the Create Central delivery model for the period Oct 2026 - March 2029 on the passage to formal approval by the Interim Executive Director of Policy and Strategy, Employment, Skills, Health and Communities Strategy, Economy and Net-Zero, in consultation with the Section 151 Officer and Monitoring Officer (by written procedure)

Decision

(1)  The Change Request (“CR”) for the Create Central/BFI Skills Accelerator and the associated delivery model to support the continued delivery of the Create Central / BFI Skills Accelerator delivery model until 31st March 2027, noting that the deployment of the £50,000 of Local Innovation Partnership Funding (LIPF) in 2026/27 be approved.

(2)  The allocation of £166,500.00 of the BFI Skills Accelerator Funding and £56,000.00 of the 2026-27 Create Central Cluster funding (£222,500 in total) to be deployed in the period 1st October 2026 – 31 March 2027 to maintain the current delivery of the Create Central Cluster / BFI Skills Accelerator Programme be approved.

(3)  The allocation of the £150,000 of Local Innovation Partnership Funding (LIPF) to Create Central to support the delivery of the West Midlands CreaTech Innovation Scale-Up Lab (WM CISL) that has been offered to WMCA by UKRI (via the University of Warwick), subject to this funding offer being accepted by the Section 73 Officer and review and acceptance of the terms of the Grant Funding Agreement between WMCA and University of Warwick by Legal Services be approved.

(4)  The Interim Executive Director of Policy & Strategy in consultation with Legal Services, Procurement and Finance be delegated to take all necessary actions required to implement and deliver the Programme, including entering into the relevant legal agreement(s), provided that such actions do not materially alter the scope, objectives or approved budget of the Programme be approved.

(5)  WMCA officers will use the period between 1st October 2026 – 31 March 2027 to work with British Film Institute (BFI), the Create Central Advisory Board and West Midlands Growth Company (WMGC) to explore the potential of developing a new delivery model for the Create Central Cluster, BFI Skills Accelerator Programme and WM CISL which could see WMCA transferring discrete elements of the Create Central / BFI Skills Accelerator / LIPF CISL delivery to WMGC for the period 1 April 2027 – 31st March 2029 (with any decision to formally transfer any activity to the WMGC requiring WMGC Board approval and the submission of another WMCA change request, prior to any transfer happening) be noted.