Written evidence submitted by PLASA (GSB 03)

PLASA is the global trade association for the professional entertainment technology industry. PLASA members operate across the live events, entertainment and installation industries and we represent the leading providers of professional audio, AV, lighting, projection, staging, special effects and related disciplines. PLASA has over 1,200 members internationally, half of which are based in the UK, and many of which were responsible for the most spectacular elements of the London Olympics Opening Ceremony, including creating the Olympic Rings. The Entertainment Technology sector is a vital part of the UK Creative Industries, today worth £71.4 billion and employing over 1.7 million people, which relies on the lighting, sound, special effects and other entertainment technologies that our members provide in order to produce their high quality content.

Executive Summary

• PLASA welcomes the opportunity to engage with the Business, Innovation and Skills Select Committee during its inquiry into support for business. We hope that this inquiry will provide an opportunity for the significance of the Live Events and Entertainment Technology sector to be recognised and for thought to be given to how government can better support it. 

• PLASA feels that SMEs are at a significant disadvantage when trying to engage with government; larger companies have the financial and administrative capacity to make themselves heard in a way which is often beyond SMEs, even when part of a trade association. This in turn means that government bodies begin to rely on consultation with large, well-known companies with whom they have a history of dialogue. This cycle leads to the development of policies which are particularly suited to large organisations and businesses.

• PLASA suggests that one solution is to make trade bodies such as PLASA into industry hubs. These trade bodies form a natural gateway through which Government and training providers can understand the needs of an entire sector. In addition, they can provide guidance and support for their members to combat any concerns regarding the funding, resourcing or administrative burden that an SME may face.

• PLASA calls on government to increase support for SMEs to maximise their export potential. PLASA suggests that trade associations should form a crucial part of trade delegations, in order to disperse the information on overseas markets to the widest possible audience.

• Additionally, PLASA feels that the government does not offer adequate support for industry SMEs wishing to take on apprentices. We do not feel that the apprenticeship schemes currently on offer provide students with the specialised knowledge needed in our industry. We would welcome greater dialogue between the government and our sector as to how appropriate training can be provided.

• PLASA asks that a programme of tax reliefs is considered as a way to provide detailed and focused support for SMEs in the Entertainment Technology sector; as a key component of the Creative Economy, growth in the sector could be promoted through the same tax relief as the theatre or video game industry.

1. Introduction
2. The Entertainment Technology sector is vital to the operation of the UK Creative Industries, covering a range of elements including lighting, sound, staging, rigging, special effects and set design. In many ways, the companies represented by PLASA form the backbone of the UK’s thriving Creative Economy. For example, PLASA members may be responsible for producing political conferences, global music tours, international sporting events, West End musicals or large-scale music festivals, all of which necessitate deployment of very varied technical knowledge and skills. PLASA’s members include riggers, lighting and video technicians, sound engineers, set designers and manufacturers of high specification equipment. Despite this obvious social, cultural and economic contribution to the UK, PLASA is concerned that the Government has not fully recognised the significance of entertainment technology, despite its involvement in some of the prodigious recent celebrations in the United Kingdom.

3. This lack of recognition has resulted in a lack of support from government for the sector. PLASA warmly welcomes the Business, Innovation and Skills Select Committee’s Inquiry into Government Support for Business and hope that practical help for our members might emerge from your recommendations. This help would focus on ensuring that a steady supply of talented and properly trained individuals enter the industry and that the sector can grow its reach, success and reputation across the world. For this to be achieved, however, the government must ensure that it is paying enough attention to the voices and needs of small businesses.

4. Making the Voice of SMEs Heard
5. PLASA members are mainly SMEs which lack the financial, administrative and human resources to invest in sustained engagement with political policy. In contrast, larger businesses have the personnel, resources and time available to make themselves regularly available for government consultation on industry issues.

6. This produces a cyclical effect, in which the government consults with those with whom it has previously engaged and those businesses and organisations which are best placed to provide advice – large businesses and those who represent them. This means that SMEs often face the consequences of policy change without having had the opportunity to really engage with the process of developing it. There is also a sense within PLASA’s membership that the creative industries, and the Entertainment Technology sector in particular, fall between Departments.

7. PLASA asks the committee to consider how best to ensure that the voice of SMEs can be amplified to ensure that their unique perspective is reflected in the process of creating policy. PLASA believes that one solution would be for Government to place greater focus on using trade associations, such as PLASA, as hubs for dialogue.

8. Trade bodies representing SMEs already have a relationship with employers, meaning government will be able to establish a single point of contact with an industry. This will reduce the burdens facing employers who often do not have the time to develop these sorts of contacts at the same time as running their business. Trade associations can act as hubs, spreading information and creating connections between the industry and government.

9. The advantage of creating such hubs using trade associations is that they will offer a unique industry point of view which could not be gained from speaking to individual companies. For example, the technical nature of our industry means that small and medium size enterprises which ostensibly fall within the same sector actually perform a wide variety of functions. Therefore even those from within the same industry may have differing requirements, making it impossible for any individual professional to inform the government as to where funding and support is most needed. Trade bodies can also work to monitor changes in best practice within the industry; small companies do not have the resources or range to collate enough information to grasp trends. In contrast, centralised hubs such as like PLASA can take a holistic approach and marshal a full range of opinions.

10. PLASA has already had experience of working as a coordination point, having created the National Rigging Certificate qualification.  This is designed to give professional riggers recognition for their skills, knowledge and expertise, and can be used to demonstrate that recipients have attained a professional standard within their discipline. Although this is a different field to exports, the principle of acting as a reliable, informed source of guidance and information for member companies remains the same.

11. The benefits of taking this approach can readily demonstrated across two areas: exports and apprenticeships.

12. Exports

13. The skills and products of PLASA members are in demand across the world, with British companies as market leaders in the Live Events and Entertainment Technology sector. However, many of our members are ill equipped to take advantage of this demand, suffering from a lack of readily available support from the government and UKTI. PLASA notes that UKTI highlights “creative and media” as one of twenty key sectors on its website. Yet, the description only actually refers to games and mobile content.

14. Many of PLASA’s members do not have the financial or administrative capacity to keep up to date with the export support available, despite PLASA’s best efforts to help with a flow of information. Even when the schemes available are designed to assist SMEs, a lack of a bridge between individual businesses and the government can result in a minimal take up. This connection can be made through the use of trade bodies and associations and so we urge government to make better use of associations such as PLASA to assist SMEs to export.

15. For example, if a specific effort was made to include professional associations in the process of organising trade delegations, the benefit of that overseas knowledge would be felt by an entire network of potential exporters, rather than one individual company.

16. PLASA is perfectly placed to assist with ventures such as trade delegations as many of our member companies are already extremely successful in the global market. Our industry has proven its ability to succeed overseas, but some PLASA members still lack the support from government to follow their more established colleagues.

17. We would support an increase in trade missions organised by UKTI and the UK Government which incorporate companies within the creative industries, providing them with support to travel overseas and an opportunity to attend events designed to help them sell.  These valuable UK manufacturing companies need assistance to build their international profile further and providing a helping hand to a growing industry.  Currently, government is failing to provide this.

18. Apprenticeships

19. Another major concern for PLASA members is the difficulty of accessing support for apprenticeship and training schemes. These schemes are often shrouded in bureaucracy and administration, which immediately dissuade a SME from engaging in the apprenticeship process.

20. For example, in a recent survey PLASA members expressed a lack of awareness about potential government funding for apprenticeship schemes. Closer ties between trade bodies and government, as previously discussed in this submission, would remove this barrier. A trade association hub would be a simple, direct source of knowledge and companies would be confident that any funding or assistance offered would be completely applicable to their industry.

21. In the case of the Live Events and Entertainment Technology sector, the creation of appropriate training schemes is more complex than it first appears. All of PLASA’s members rely on highly trained employees, but each requires a different skillset and knowledge base, despite being part of the same industry sector. It is therefore almost impossible for any individual professional to inform the government as to where apprenticeship reform is most needed. A hub would allow the government full access to this variety of thought and requirement.

22. In reality, the needs of the live events industry are numerous and are often not catered for by the kind of apprenticeships and vocational training currently available. These offer generic, theoretical knowledge which has very little value in the industry workplace. For example, learning the classroom concept of how to light a stage has little to do with the reality of working at the O2 Arena. We are aware that this will result in apprentices learning niche skills, but we strongly believe that this is necessary to produce a readiness to work. It is the only way to safeguard the future of key industry skills and maintain the standard of PLASA’s members’ contribution to the UK economy. Britain is currently a world leader in the live events field, but this cannot continue without new talent.

23. An additional problem is that some colleges are reluctant to invest in the expensive equipment required to run appropriate training schemes for apprentices. Clearly, a lack of providers, or a lack of willingness to invest in up-to-date training delivery mechanisms, is an obstacle to enough young people being trained to work in the live events and entertainment technology sector.  There is also a danger that providers would run courses, but attempt to pass on additional costs to employers or apprentices. This would naturally act as an obstacle to the participation of both groups.

24. Therefore, we would welcome a means by which industries such as ours can be supported to ensure that apprenticeship training is current and fit for purpose. PLASA asks the committee to consider how this might be achieved, and suggests tax reliefs or subsidies for colleges willing to invest in training for the creative industries, or funding to help employers or trade associations deliver and support apprenticeships to the standards required by the industry. As an important sector in its own right, and its vital role in maintaining the current success of the creative industries, it is important that the Entertainment Technology and Live Events sector is properly supported by Government to train new talent.

25. Tax reliefs that extended beyond vocational training providers would encourage even more growth in the industry. A programme of tax reliefs would not only remedy many of the issues expressed in this submission, but would complement the recent tax reliefs already introduced for the creative sector. 2014 has seen the introduction of a tax relief for the Video Gaming Industry, and, more recently, one for theatres. PLASA members are absolutely key to any theatre production; lighting and sound are necessary to create the immersive experience of successful shows, but the companies which provide it are currently not eligible for the tax relief given to the sector. PLASA urges the Committee to consider the viability of a tax relief for the lighting and sound sector, thereby giving companies the ability redirect their profit into apprenticeship or export schemes and expanding the creative economy.

Matthew Griffiths

Chief Executive Officer of PLASA

16 October 2014