Yorkshire media and marketing projects face severe cuts
Creative Sheffield and Marketing Leeds will be among those hit after Yorkshire Forward proposed cutting more than £2m of funding set aside for media and marketing.
The worst hit will be Creative Sheffield, which will lose £600,000 earmarked for its operational costs, and Welcome to Yorkshire, which had £750,000 set aside to improve the image of the region through a programme of events.
A planned investment of more than £771,600 into Channel 4's 4IP Digital Fund, to provide funding to upcoming digital and media businesses, will also be culled.
Other proposed cuts include:
£250,000 for Yorkshire Forward's own marketing, including promotion of projects and products and investment in its web presence
£100,000 funding for Marketing Leeds, the city's promotional body
£100,000 for Braford Regeneration marketing and programme management
£55,000 for running costs at Bradford Digital Media Centre
£50,000 sponsorship of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race to promote Hull and Humber
Yorkshire Forward says it is now working with partners across Yorkshire and Humber to ensure that these proposed outline cuts are discussed and agreed over the coming weeks. This will involve both delaying work and stopping some schemes and initiatives altogether.
"We will look to minimise the impact on our partners through this difficult period," said Yorkshire Forward’s chair, Terry Hodgkinson.