A new Creative Digital Lab is coming to Croydon – have your say on what it offers!

Croydon Council is asking local creative businesses to give feedback on a planned digital initiative for the borough.

The Creative Digital Laboratory (CDL) would be open to all Croydon residents, businesses and visitors, and would offer the chance for them to explore and express their creative skills, using state of the art digital technology. Local businesses could also use the space to deliver training and support to learners.

Carol Squires, Head of Economic Development at Croydon Council, told Croydon Digital:

“The Creative Digital Laboratory will be an important addition to Croydon’s creative and tech sectors, helping local residents and businesses access advice, resources and support in order to harness the power of digital media to their advantage.

“We believe this will further strengthen Croydon’s position in South London as a key place to both start and expand a creative and tech business.”

The council would like to understand more about which services and facilities would be most valuable, and when and how much the laboratory might be used. Complete and share this survey to give your views.

Networking and knowledge sharing

The Creative Digital Lab will be used by the Croydon Creative Enterprise Zone, Croydon Music City, Croydon Culture Network, council staff, residents, businesses, schools, higher and further education institutions and anyone else who wants to get involved.

Marcus Harris from the Culture team at Croydon Council added: “We hope the CDL will build on existing initiatives such as the Creative Enterprise Zone by preparing the next generation of creatives for their careers, particularly in the music industry and wider creative industries.

“Croydon has a rich cultural heritage and the lab can help us to continue this legacy by serving as a place where new networks can be established, knowledge can be shared and ambitions can be realised. Not only in the more obvious creative careers, but also in the roles that surround them, such as designers, audiovisual engineers and 3D animators, to name but a few.”

All roads lead to London Borough of Culture 2023

The council aims to retain talent in the borough by providing services that will enable individuals and businesses to enhance their skills and develop digital assets and intellectual property, using industry-standard hardware and software on their doorstep.

This could help to both develop and identify “homegrown” talent who can play a role in the delivery of Croydon’s 2023 London Borough of Culture programme. This is particularly in relation to digital arts, building on the work of partners in the borough such as The Brit School, Croydon College, the Culture Network and the Creative Enterprise Zone Consortium.

And by providing opportunities to access advice, training and support connected to starting a business in the creative industries, the CDL could help those impacted by COVID-19 to explore new career options.

Looking further afield, Croydon also wants to attract businesses in the creative industries and related sectors to the borough, through the development and delivery of the services they require.

Initial funding for the project was awarded by the City of London Corporation as part of a wider initiative (South London Knowledge Exchange Programme), but the laboratory would become self-funding. For more information, please email marcus.harris@croydon.gov.uk.

Get involved and share your views on what the space could become

If you’re interested in creative or tech fields, don’t miss out on this chance to shape the perfect space for you in the Cronx.

Complete and share this survey to give your views. It closes at midnight, Friday 11 September 2020.

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