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Home > Music Growth Package and UK Government’s commitment to key PRS Foundation programmes welcomed

Music Growth Package and UK Government’s commitment to key PRS Foundation programmes welcomed

  • PRS Foundation to play a key role in the delivery of the Music Growth Package
  • Early Career Promoter Fund extended
  • Support for the International Showcase Fund is scaled up after 20 years of bolstering UK music globally

The UK Government has announced the details of the £45 million Music Growth Package and revealed the vital role PRS Foundation will play in delivering in key opportunities through Early Career Promoter Fund and International Showcase Fund partnerships.

Managed by PRS Foundation and supported by Arts Council England and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), the Early Career Promoter Fund recognises the vital role independent promoters play in supporting the talent pipeline across England, and offers grants of up to £3,500 and capacity building support, with the aim of bolstering the local, regional and national ecosystems.

The Music Growth Package news means this impactful initiative is extended into 2027 having already supported 273 early career promoters who organised almost 705 grassroots music shows, booking over 5,000 music creators, artists and DJs with over £202,000 going directly to grassroots music venues.

For over 20 years, PRS Foundation’s International Showcase Fund (ISF) has been supporting UK-based artists, bands and songwriters to take their first steps into international careers once via vital international showcase events and conferences or songwriting camps. Increased funding from Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade will enable initiative to help a larger number of artists, songwriters and their supporting businesses to break into global markets – a key mutual aim of the Music Growth Package.

The International Showcase Fund – which generated £6.7 million for the UK economy between 2019 – 2024 – is managed by PRS Foundation in partnership with Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade, PPL, British Underground, British Council, The Musicians’ Union, Arts Council England, Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Creative Scotland and Wales Arts International. Artists and creators to have received ISF support since its inception include Sam Fender, Little Simz, Nova Twins, Dave, Wolf Alice, Fergus McCreadie, Kae Tempest, Anna Meredith, Chalk, Glass Animals, Panic Shack and Grammy-winning songwriter, Lostboy.

With the new Music Growth Package investment, ISF partners will be announcing changes to the fund including an increase in the maximum grant amount available where rising costs and mobility barriers are otherwise preventing UK based creators from seizing global opportunities.

Following the launch of the Creative Industries Sector Plan, the £45 million Music Growth Package is a major Government commitment to develop music infrastructure, support domestic touring and boost international exports, promoting sustainable and inclusive growth across the sector.

The Music Growth Package will fund over 2,000 projects over the next 3 years through funding strands including the Sector Bodies Programme, Music Growth Fund and Music Creators Growth Fund, and the PRS Foundation’s Early Career Promoter Fund and International Showcase Fund.

 

 

Find out more about the Music Growth Package

 

Joe Frankland, CEO at PRS Foundation said,

“We welcome the new Music Growth Package and the new funding strands available through the Arts Council England-managed Music Growth Package.  With input from the wider sector, it’s exciting to see the ambition announced recently being followed up by a combination of bolstering existing impactful initiatives and the launch of new funds – including opening up public funding to new parts of the sector to stimulate growth.

At PRS Foundation, we invest in the future of music by backing talent and through collaboration – connecting the dots between music creators, industry professionals and organisations to tackle head on the increasingly complex barriers music creators face when trying to sustain careers and break through regionally, nationally and internationally.

We have been inspired by the dedication and passion of the grantees of our Early Career Promoter Fund who are stimulating growth in their scenes up and down England alongside our International Showcase Fund and it’s impressive 20-year track-record for helping music creators from all backgrounds and all parts of the UK to do business internationally, to reach global audiences and to bolster UK music abroad. We are delighted that the Early Career Promoter Fund will be extended with support from Arts Council England and DCMS, and that the International Showcase Fund through DBT, Arts Council England and industry partners such as PPL will continue helping UK music creators reach global audiences for at least the next three years.”

Claire Mera-Nelson, Director, Music, Arts Council England, said,

“Arts Council England is delighted to support the Early Career Promoter Fund and the International Showcase Fund, working alongside PRS Foundation and other partners to enable exceptional music talent, promoters and organisations to thrive. These highly valued programmes have proven impact, strengthening grassroots music, creating opportunities for early career promoters, and supporting music creators to develop careers, reaching audiences across the UK and beyond.

As key strands of the broader Music Growth Package, these vital funds complement Arts Council England’s wider investment in talent development and the music sector, and our work to support a more sustainable, ambitious and inclusive industry across the UK.”

Industry Minister Blair McDougall from Department for Business, Innovation, Science & Trade, said,

“British music is one of our greatest success stories, and expanding the International Showcase Fund will help the next generation launch their careers in new markets.

As a key growth sector in our Modern Industrial Strategy, the creative industries are central to our economic future – this is why we are backing the sector with a £45 million Music Growth Package to support talent and drive growth across the UK.”