Channel 4 has selected Leeds as the location of its new national HQ, while Bristol and Glasgow will be the locations of its two new creative hubs.<\/p>\n
The new national HQ and creative hubs will be home to 300 Channel 4 jobs when fully established, including key creative decision makers responsible for commissioning Channel 4 content and programs from producers across the U.K. The new bases are at the core of a “4 All the UK” plan to ensure that Channel 4 better represents all the U.K., on- and off-screen, and they will help catalyze the increased Nations and Regions production spend.<\/p>\n
Channel 4 Chief Executive Alex Mahon said: \u201cDiversity and inclusion have always been at the heart of Channel 4\u2019s mission and the launch of our 4 All the UK plan is the biggest and most exciting change in the organization\u2019s 36-year history\u2014as we open up Channel 4 to people from across the U.K. and supercharge the impact we have in all parts of the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will be spending up to \u00a3250 million more on programming produced in the Nations and Regions and to catalyze that spend I\u2019m delighted to confirm that we will be establishing a new national HQ in Leeds and new creative hubs in Bristol and Glasgow.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe undertook a rigorous process over the last seven months and the caliber\u00a0of all the pitches meant those were incredibly difficult decisions to make. However, I know that Leeds, Bristol and Glasgow will best deliver our objectives to grow the production sector across the U.K., build the pipeline of creative talent outside London and support our increased investment in programming produced across the Nations and Regions.<\/p>\n
\u201cLeeds put forward a compelling and ambitious strategy for how they could work alongside Channel 4 to further build the strong independent production sector in the city and develop new diverse talent from across the region. Locating our national HQ in Leeds enables us to capitalize on a strong and fast-growing independent production sector in cities across the North of England\u2014and also has the potential to unlock growth in the North East and East of the country, an area without a major presence from other national broadcasters.<\/p>\n
\u201cEstablishing a creative hub in Bristol gives Channel 4 the opportunity to build on thriving production communities in the city and to partner with Cardiff and harness the power of the wider creative industry across the South West and Wales. The city also put forward exciting social mobility proposals to develop talent across the wider region.<\/p>\n
\u201cGlasgow has a well-established production sector across multiple genres, and locating a creative hub in the city will give Channel 4 the opportunity to tap into the rich cultural diversity of Scotland and also allow us to exploit the city\u2019s strong connectivity with Belfast and the Northern Ireland production sector.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe quality of pitches from all the cities involved in the final stage of the process was exceptionally high and I\u2019d like to take the opportunity to thank all those involved for the effort and passion they put in\u2014particularly Andy Street for Birmingham, Huw Thomas in Cardiff, and Sir Richard Leese in Greater Manchester. I hope we can continue discussions with all of them about how we can develop new partnerships with each of their cities\u2014particularly since we will be spending up to \u00a3250 million more in the Nations and Regions over the next five years and want to work with producers and talent in all of these areas.\u201d<\/p>\n
Channel 4 Chair Charles Gurassa added: \u201cI\u2019m delighted that the Channel 4 Board has today unanimously agreed that Channel 4 will establish its new national HQ in Leeds and two new creative hubs in Bristol and Glasgow.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were very impressed by the high quality of all the pitches delivered by the shortlisted cities and I\u2019d like to extend my thanks to all the many people involved. The board reviewed and was satisfied that the selection process was carried out in a thorough and rigorous manner with the appropriate level of external assurance.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are very much looking forward to working with our new regional partners and more broadly with the production communities across the U.K. to further enhance our creative contribution nationwide.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Channel 4 has selected Leeds as the location of its new national HQ, while Bristol and Glasgow will be the locations of its two new creative hubs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":350,"featured_media":8840,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[117],"class_list":["post-8839","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-top-stories","tag-channel-4"],"yoast_head":"\n