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Marlow Film Studios

World-leading, modern studios for the future of British filmmaking.

Supporting over 4,000 new creative sector and local jobs.

Generating economic growth and employment for Marlow,

High Wycombe, and wider Buckinghamshire.
Marlow Film Studios

World-leading, modern studios for the future of British filmmaking.

Supporting over 4,000 new creative sector and local jobs.

Generating economic growth and employment for Marlow, High Wycombe, and wider Buckinghamshire.
News Updates
Film and TV investment will enhance High Wycombe’s cultural heritage

Robert Laycock, CEO of Marlow Film Studios, gave a speech to the High Wycombe Society on Thursday 14 March – to celebrate and discuss the past, present and future of the local filmmaking industry and future possibilities for Marlow and High Wycombe.

The talk was timely – taking place in a week when Prime Minister Rishi Sunak praised “the UK’s success during awards season” and that this showed Britain’s “home grown talent is testament to the UK’s reputation as a film, TV and arts superpower.”

Robert highlighted the iconic creative history and culture of High Wycombe, particularly its tradition in crafts and design. He described this heritage as one of the reasons why Buckinghamshire has built such a powerful global reputation in film and TV production over many years, Robert set out the future opportunities for the UK film industry in Buckinghamshire. He pointed to local jobs, training and investment, and the chance for young people from the area to build fulfilling long-term careers in the creative sector. Bucks could be proud of what it has built over the years - and prouder of its potential future.

With other counties such as Hertfordshire capturing major new investment in their region, Robert was keen to emphasise the choice that Buckinghamshire and High Wycombe must make if they want to take advantage of these opportunities and provide the jobs that people want in the places they want them.

The plans for Marlow Film Studios have been developed to help fulfil this need and meet this challenge. The plans for the Studios include an on-site Education and Skills Academy to serve as a hub for both training on film productions, and for working with the outstanding local education institutions that are focused on this sector.

If you would like to support Marlow Film Studios, please click here
Robert
Our story
In 2015, the UK overtook California in terms of the contribution it makes to the global film industry. By 2022 total spending on film production was almost £2bn per year, and the visual arts contributes over £12bn to the UK economy.

By 2026, an additional 6 million sq/ft of purpose-built studio space is needed in the UK to meet the demand in the sector. The new world-class technical studio space and facilities at Marlow will be a unique opportunity to meet this demand while securing Buckinghamshire’s leading role in the creative economy.

Our studios will provide cutting-edge technology, will bring thousands of new local jobs, and will expand opportunities for Buckinghamshire and the wider UK’s growing community of creative professionals.
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03 Studio Hub View
Why Marlow?
75% of the UK’s film and TV economy and employment is delivered in the area to the west of London, centred on Buckinghamshire. This is the culmination of over 80 years of local investment and training, and the result is an unparalleled ‘industry cluster’ of creative and technical excellence.

Our proposed site, east of Marlow, would be at the heart of this cluster, turning former gravel quarries into a new home for British film-making, and generating over 4,000 high tech and creative jobs in the local area.

The new studios would be adjacent to the A404 dual carriageway, with excellent transport links to the local towns, as well as to Reading, Beaconsfield, Oxford, London, and Heathrow Airport.

The left hand map shows the distances from Marlow Film Studios

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The left hand map shows the distances from Marlow Film Studios

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High-quality design & environmental enhancement
This will be a significant new development. The designs for Marlow Film Studios have been developed by Jason Prior of Prior & Partners, masterplanner of the London 2012 Olympic Park, alongside double Stirling Prize-winning architects Wilkinson Eyre.

The buildings across the studios area will be of high quality, and will feature living roofs, green walls, and solar panels. On and around the site, we will retain more than 80% of the existing trees, and we will plan for over 300 more, helping the project to achieve a biodiversity net gain of 20 per cent.
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02 Studio Hub View
05 Soundstage Backlot
06 Workshop Street View
07 Creative Skills Academy
01 Entrance Hub
Improving traffic flows & investing local transport
The proposed site is well-connected, and our plans will improve the local transport network further. The studios will also fund the necessary improvements to the A404 access roads to Westhorpe roundabout into Marlow. These improvements will address the current safety risks from queues of traffic off the A404 at peak hours. The proposals put forward and funded by the Studios will improve traffic flows through widened roads and the use of smart traffic lights.

We will establish two new public bus services, linking up the Elizabeth Line at Maidenhead to High Wycombe, and offering local links between Marlow, Little Marlow, and Bourne End.

Additional local cycle routes will also be set up, and existing rights of way will be upgraded, all helping us to achieve our target cap of just 60% of single-occupant journeys to site being by car.

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Click to a video from Ian Dix, Senior Director of SLR Traffic Consultants, on the safety improvements proposed for the Westhorpe roundabout on the A404.

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Community & education
Marlow Film Studios will help to build the UK’s position as one of the world’s leading creative industry hubs – and will anchor this with investment in employment opportunities, reskilling, training and support for the local community.

We will provide expanded opportunities for the UK’s community of creative professionals, including a focus on growing diversity in the sector and supporting the local creative ecosystem through new training and education support initiatives.

We will work with local schools, colleges, and higher education bodies to support skills training and champion the wider creative sector in the region – and have already received support for our plans from Buckinghamshire’s leading education providers.

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Click to a video from Jenny Craig, CEO of Buckingshire College Group, on the skills and jobs opportunities that the studios represent for Bucks' young people

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Employment & skills
The local workforce is integral to the success of Buckinghamshire’s creative industry. The strength in talent and technical ability of the creative sector has developed alongside the studios in the area for more than eight decades.

Marlow Film Studios will foster new local employment opportunities - generating 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 through the provision of adjacent 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. We will 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.

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

Workers
Who we are
The Marlow Studios management team draws on decades of experience in the film and TV industry, as well as expertise across real estate, design and environmental management.

We are a local team, and are passionate about the success of the British film industry and expanding opportunities for local people in the growing creative sector.
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Our planning application
A detailed planning application for our proposals was submitted to Buckinghamshire Council in May 2022, and was considered by the Strategic Sites Committee in October 2023.

The Committee elected to defer a decision on the application, pending further material to be provided. The next meeting of the Strategic Sites Committee will now take place in May 2024.
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Marlow Maquette
Latest NEWS
CEO Robert Laycock reflects on the Prime Minister’s show of support for Buckinghamshire’s film and TV industry
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Rishi Sunak reacts to Marlow Film Studios as he promotes Buckinghamshire’s global film and TV prominence
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Britain's film industry is booming like never before
Read more
Clapper
Dear Sir/Madam,

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

I am writing in support of the planning application for Marlow Film Studios, a new film and television studio located on land adjacent to Marlow and the A404, within the parish of Little Marlow.

I understand and support the passion of residents around the protection of the Green Belt. But as the legislation makes clear, there are exceptional circumstances permitted under the legislation in which building on the Green Belt can make sense. In this case, the economic benefits are clear and help meet the requirements of ‘special circumstances’’.

I understand of course that any new buildings will have an impact on local residents. But it is also clear that the site itself will be built on a low quality, neglected land infill site overlooking the busy A404 dual carriageway. This is not unspoilt countryside. The buildings and the accompanying park land will be designed to mould into the landscape and provide additional recreational opportunities for walkers and cyclists. 25% of the site will be available for public enjoyment and wildlife. The site will provide a 20% biodiversity net gain in the natural environment within the local area.

The opportunities for local residents to enjoy public access to much of the studio area is set out clearly in the plans. The proposals put forward still offer local residents access to the countryside and nature and provide us with a sensitive landscaped area that we can enjoy. The buildings proposed are also exciting in design and will add a world-leading modernity to the area.

In addition to this, the economic case for permitting this development seems also clear. The recent British success in the Oscars has reinforced the world-class excellence of our creative sector. The Studios will help transform Buckinghamshire into a cultural and economic hub, sustaining its role as a global centre for film and television production.

The studios are forecast to generate up to 4,180 jobs, with 2000 in the local Marlow, High Wycombe, and surrounding communities. It will generate £338m of economic activity per year, which will flow through to economic opportunities for local businesses and residents. Around two-thirds of production budgets will be spent in the local economy.

I also support the education and skills commitments, including provision for traineeships, work experience and partnerships with local further and higher education institutes. The Studio is emphatic in its commitment to broaden diversity, access to the

industry, and support local education opportunities and training. It will also help retain our young people in the area, providing them with more job opportunities in the creative sector and other businesses.

The studios will also fund the necessary improvements on the A404 access roads to Westhorpe roundabout into Marlow. The queue of traffic off the A404 at peak hours is already presenting a major safety risk, and the proposals put forward and funded by the Studios to improve traffic flows through widened roads and providing smart traffic lights will address this. The transport plan, prepared in coordination with Buckinghamshire Council, will improve connectivity through the creation of a new transport hub and two new bus services, including a direct and half-hourly bus between Maidenhead and High Wycombe and a new half hourly hopper service around Marlow, Little Marlow, and Bourne End.

I understand that the Green Belt should only be built on when there are very special circumstances justifying it. In the case of the Marlow Film Studios I believe these circumstances are valid, and 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.