Employment & skills | Marlow Film

New creative opportunities and training the next generation

The UK’s creative workforce is the principle reason why we lead the world in the film and TV production. The sector in the UK supports over 86,000 jobs, and the majority of these people live in the area to the west of London, within commutable distance from Marlow.

This workforce is integral to the success of the West London Cluster. The strength in talent and technical ability of the crewbase has developed alongside the studios in the area for more than eight decade.

Marlow Film Studios will build on this, helping to foster new local employment opportunities. The plans will generate over 4,000 new jobs. 2,000 of these will be technical and production roles, and another 2,000 will be created in the wider economy – as filmmaking budgets require a broad range of supporting services and goods.

In the first ten years of the studios it is expected that the site will generate £3.5bn of new investment in film and TV production, of which £1.5bn will be spent locally. One key result of this will be the ability to invest in training for the next generation of creative talent, helping to secure the future of Buckinghamshire’s leading role in the global film and TV industry, and offering inspiring and rewarding opportunities for local people to build careers in the sector.

Click to a video from Colin McGregor-Paterson, discussing opportunities for new jobs and levelling up among Bucks' disadvantaged communities

Marlow Film Studios will provide:
• An 11,700 sq ft Culture and Skills Academy for on-site training
• 60 fully funded training places, worth over £104k, per year
• £105k in bursaries each year to promote broader access
• 650+ school children visiting a year: enough for every child in Marlow
• A skills oversight board of relevant experts and community members
• Skills coordinators to implement the skills plan
• Dedicated liaison with Buckinghamshire Skills Advisory Panel

Marlow Film Studios will provide:
• An 11,700 sq ft Culture and Skills Academy for on-site training
• 60 fully funded training places, worth over £104k, per year
• £105k in bursaries each year to promote broader access
• 650+ school children visiting a year: enough for every child in Marlow
• A skills oversight board of relevant experts and community members
• Skills coordinators to implement the skills plan
• Dedicated liaison with Buckinghamshire Skills Advisory Panel

MoreLess

Culture And Skills Building

Dear Sir/Madam,

Re: Marlow Film Studios (ref: 22/06443/FULEA).

I am writing in support of the application for Marlow Film Studios, a film studio planned on former landfill next to the A404, within the parish of Little Marlow.

Despite the poor condition of the site, it is in the Metropolitan Green Belt. I understand that because of this designation, special reasons are needed for planning permission to be granted on this site. Looking objectively, I believe the positive benefits substantially overcome any negative issues.

Jobs and Careers

Providing sustainable jobs and careers are important for the long-term prosperity of any community. For local people, this should be a key determinant in judging the appropriateness of this application.

This project stands to be one of Bucks’ most meaningful investments in employment and local infrastructure. It is also a key to unlocking the potential in the local creative economy. Many of today’s young people are drawn to employment in this sector. This will be an iconic, world-leading facility that will attract other businesses to the area. For local people, particularly those of employment age, this project offers real hope for the longer term in providing investment into the local community.

Bucks’ global role

Marlow Film Studios will give Bucks and the UK a continuing competitive advantage, supported by local jobs and talent. The UK Government have recently reinforced this with a £10m contribution to the expansion to the National Film & Television School in Beaconsfield.

Bucks can truly lay claim to global leadership in the creative economy. But to underpin this, we need to develop the pipeline of local creative talent to tackle the skills shortage that the industry needs to address, particularly in technology. The Studios have made clear and costed commitments as part of their application. Embedded in their plans are strong links to the local educational community, bridging the industry, local talent, and the creative sector.

Diversity

For local people, the Studios will also be close to one of the more culturally diverse parts of Buckinghamshire. Around 25% of High Wycombe’s population is from the non-White British community, including those of Indian, Afro-Caribbean, Pakistani heritage. The Studios’ partnerships with institutions such as Buckinghamshire College Group will provide access points to the creative economy for an under-represented diverse community as part of Wycombe’s regeneration challenge.

Environment and design

As to the buildings themselves, the Marlow Film Studios’ design puts great emphasis on providing a well-designed and landscaped environment with new cycle and walking routes. In the last 80 years, the site has seen considerable degradation from being a prisoner of war camp, mineral workings, the A404 construction, to the disposal of thousands of tons of landfill waste. The creation of new spaces improving wildlife and plant diversity is an exciting opportunity as part of this project.

Traffic and Transport

Being immediately off the A404 Westhorpe roundabout, the Studios also represent a rare chance to fund necessary upgrades to local transport constraints. The way the 50-year-old Westhorpe interchange operates causes increasing jams on the high-speed road with dangerous consequences. The Westhorpe improvements offered by the Studios will provide a better operating, safer network.

The transport proposals, prepared in discussion with Buckinghamshire Council, also improve connectivity. The creation of a new hub for fully funded new public bus services link to the Elizabeth Line and Wycombe for longer-distance journeys.

Conclusion

I accept that the construction of any major global facility comes with pluses and minuses, but in the case of the Marlow Film Studios I believe the strong benefits robustly and significantly outweigh the negative considerations, and so I strongly support the planning application.

What will happen to your details: When you click “send” on this form, you will be added to our campaign and we will generate the a letter of support in the form linked above in your name for the Marlow Film Studios planning application. We will share this letter with Buckinghamshire Council councillors and officers, Buckinghamshire Parish Council councillors, Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), and Members of Parliament. These organisations may upload this letter publicly on their planning portals and/or website and will adhere with their Privacy Policies. In particular, we are requesting that Buckinghamshire Council upload these letters to their Public Access website for our application. Any processing of data by Buckinghamshire Council will be in accordance with their Privacy Policy.

You may also submit comments or letters of support directly on the Public Access website.