A SHOT in the arm is set to be administered to creative industries in Bury looking to come out of the pandemic fighting.

An estimated 8,500 firms across Greater Manchester are part of a scene which was thriving before the Covid-19 outbreak.

And now an initiative designed to foster growth is being relaunched to help such outfits flourish after the coronavirus crisis has passed.

Companies such as Engage Hub, People’s History Museum, Creative Tourist, Buffalo 7, Prospect Games and Beatstream Media have each benefitted from the Creative Scale-up scheme.

Promoters of the programme say they are aiming to tackle gaps in investment and growth in the creative sector, while empowering creative businesses to realise their full growth potential through training and upskilling.

The initiative has been adapted to help firms tackle current challenges they are facing due to Covid-19 while positioning them to bounce back via a recovery phase and target new growth.

Rob Masterson, managing director of festival and events specialists Mustard Media, another scheme beneficiary, said: “It’s been fantastic having a senior advisor available to update us individually and help us navigate the coronavirus crisis, which has unfortunately had an adverse impact on the live music and festival industry.

“It’s been great having the comprehensive training modules with a range of tools needed to scale up.

“The breadth of the modules and the fact they’ve been available as webinars has been really helpful to educate the team and has allowed us to be flexible with attending during an uncertain period.

“We’re looking forward to applying the sales and marketing and IP knowledge to future innovation projects.”

Sam Whitear, Creative Scale-Up programme project manager, said: “The creative industries in Greater Manchester have thrived in recent years.

“But there is no doubt that Covid-19 has seen a lot of projects come to a halt and left these businesses facing all-new and unexpected challenges.”

Businesses can still sign up for the few remaining places by June 12 at businessgrowthhub.com/creative-scale-up-programme.