Second Hartlepool Creative Business Week to be held

Organised by Hartlepool Borough Council’s Economic Growth Team, it will take place from Monday 20th May to Friday 24th May and be centred on The BIS in Whitby Street, the Council’s award-winning centre for companies operating in the creative sector.

Over the course of the week, a range of free advice and information sessions will be held for creative businesses, freelancers and/or creative practitioners.

The BIS is at the heart of an area in which the Council is proposing to develop a Production Village to complement and build on the high-quality facilities available at the Northern Film and TV Studios on the site of the Northern School of Art.

Caron Auckland, Hartlepool Borough Council’s Enterprise Manager, said: “Last year’s first ever Hartlepool Creative Business Week was well supported and we want to maintain the momentum.

“We believe Hartlepool’s already thriving creative sector has massive growth potential and could help to provide high-quality job opportunities for local residents.

“The advice sessions vary in nature, with some designed for established businesses looking to grow and expand their operations whilst others are aimed at people who have a business idea but don’t know where to start.”

The week will kick-off with an informal drop-in session at The BIS from 10am-6pm on Monday 20th May where people looking to turn their creative hobby into a business will be able to chat one-to-one with business start-up advisers from the Council’s Enterprise Team.

Other sessions will cover topics such as product and services design, understanding the fundamentals of intellectual property and its protection, how to advertise and market your business more creatively, money matters for artists and setting up a creative social enterprise.

More information, including where advance registration for a session is required, can be found at https://www.investinhartlepool.co.uk/hartlepool-creative-business-week-2024/