Screen Alliance North

What Screen Alliance North does

Screen Alliance North is a BFI Skills Cluster founded in 2023 and headquartered in Leeds, United Kingdom, operating as the collective skills body for the North of England's screen sector. It was created through a partnership of four regional screen agencies — Liverpool Film Office, North East Screen, Screen Manchester, and Screen Yorkshire — with financial backing from the British Film Institute (BFI) using National Lottery funding. The organisation delivers five interconnected programmes covering the full career lifecycle in film, television, and digital production: Connected Access (community engagement and outreach to underrepresented groups), Connected Campus (higher and further education partnerships), Connected Pathways (industry-led production, craft, and technical training), Connected Development (career progression and leadership development), and Connected North (workforce intelligence and data alignment across production hubs).

The underlying technology footprint is modest: a WordPress-based public website (screenalliancenorth.co.uk) supplemented by Google Analytics for audience and user-behaviour tracking. There are no commercial APIs, SDKs, mobile applications, or proprietary technology products in the source data. Service delivery is conducted through partner-agency networks, in-person training, industry events, and direct coordination between the cluster's small team and its Industry Advisory Group, which includes senior stakeholders from the BBC, ITV Academy, Netflix, Film 4, Pact, Bectu, Warner Bros. Discovery's Crew HQ, the National Film School Leeds, and the Film and TV Charity.

Screen Alliance North does not operate a commercial pricing model or sell products or services in a conventional sense. Its revenue model is grant-based, anchored by BFI National Lottery funding as the primary stream, supplemented by programme sponsorship (e.g., Sunbelt Rentals). It serves four principal segments: individuals seeking to enter or progress in screen careers (with a deliberate focus on underrepresented communities and lower socio-economic backgrounds), screen industry employers, education providers, and community organisations. The organisation reports outcomes of hundreds of people supported into training and work over a three-year period. Management is led by Penny Hall (Skills Cluster Partnership Lead) and Victoria Glass (Marketing and Communications).

Name

Screen Alliance North

Legal name

Screen Alliance North

Website

https://screenalliancenorth.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Screen Alliance North is a BFI Skills Cluster, founded in 2023, that delivers workforce training, career development and skills programmes for the North of England's screen sector. It serves individuals, employers, educators, and community organisations through five Connected programmes funded primarily by BFI National Lottery grants.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Screen Industry Workforce Development and Training Services

akta.pro primary industry

Employer-Led Workforce Partnerships & Sector Strategies (EDAAAOAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Technical & Vocational Education & Training (TVET) (BPADAKAD)

Keywords

• Screen industry training
• Workforce development programs
• Film television skills
• Production training services
• Talent development cluster

Headquarters

HQ city

Leeds

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. BFI National Lottery Funding: Core funding from the British Film Institute, which awards National Lottery funding, to support skills development and workforce training across the North of England's screen sector.
2. Programme Sponsorship: Corporate sponsorship from programme sponsors such as Sunbelt Rentals, supporting sustainability initiatives and specific programme activities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Screen Alliance North is a BFI Skills Cluster that delivers workforce development and training programmes for the North of England's film, television and digital production sector. It coordinates five connected programmes covering community engagement, education partnerships, industry-led craft training, career progression, and workforce data intelligence, delivered through four regional partner screen agencies. The organisation is grant-funded by the British Film Institute via National Lottery funding and does not charge for its services.

Product overview

Screen Alliance North is a collective skills body for the North of England's screen sector, operating as a BFI Skills Cluster. The organization functions as a unified platform delivering five interconnected programmes: Connected Access (community engagement), Connected Campus (education partnerships), Connected Pathways (industry training), Connected Development (career progression), and Connected North (workforce intelligence). These programmes work together to support the entire career lifecycle from initial community engagement through to leadership development, addressing skills gaps and building an inclusive, sustainable screen workforce across Northern England.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Connected Access
• Connected Campus
• Connected Pathways
• Connected Development
• Connected North

Quantifiable outcome

• Hundreds of people supported into training and work over three years

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Liverpool Film OfficecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of four founding partner screen agencies that created Screen Alliance North as a BFI Skills Cluster. Covers the Liverpool and Merseyside region.
• North East ScreencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of four founding partner screen agencies that created Screen Alliance North as a BFI Skills Cluster. Covers the North East of England.
• Screen ManchestercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of four founding partner screen agencies that created Screen Alliance North as a BFI Skills Cluster. Covers the Manchester region.
• Screen YorkshirecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of four founding partner screen agencies that created Screen Alliance North as a BFI Skills Cluster. Covers the Yorkshire region. Hosts the Screen Alliance North postal address.
• Sunbelt RentalsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProgramme sponsor whose sponsorship is helping to advance sustainability initiatives. Also facilitates the Sustainability Working Group peer network.
• Picture ZeromajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFacilitates the Sustainability Working Group, a peer-to-peer space for professionals leading green practices across northern productions.
• BBCminorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.
• ITV AcademyminorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.
• National Film School LeedsminorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.
• Film and TV CharityminorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.
• NetflixminorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.
• PactminorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.
• Film 4minorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.
• BectuminorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.
• Crew HQ (Warner Bros. Discovery)minorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.
• Sara Putt AssociatesminorOthersContributes to the Industry Advisory Group helping shape Screen Alliance North's priorities.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• National Film and Television School (NFTS): UK's leading postgraduate film and television school. Comparable as a screen-focused training provider but operating at higher-education level rather than regional workforce development.
• MetFilm School: Private film school offering industry-focused training programmes. Comparable in training the screen workforce but via fee-paying education rather than publicly-funded skills cluster delivery.
• London Film School: International film school offering craft and technical training for screen careers. Comparable as a skills pipeline for the UK screen industry but focused on postgraduate craft education.

Regional players

• Ffilm Cymru Wales: Wales's screen sector body delivering skills, talent development, and workforce initiatives. Direct functional equivalent to Screen Alliance North at the Welsh national level.
• Northern Ireland Screen: National screen agency for Northern Ireland delivering skills, funding, and workforce development programmes. Comparable mission and structure to Screen Alliance North's partner agencies, serving a different UK region.
• Screen Ireland: Ireland's national screen agency funding skills, talent, and workforce development. Similar remit to Screen Alliance North's partner agencies but focused on the Irish market.
• Film London: London's regional screen agency with workforce development, talent programmes, and production support functions. Directly comparable as a regional screen agency with skills and training remits, but operating in a different geography.

Direct peers

• ScreenSkills: The UK-wide sector skills body for the screen industries. Screen Alliance North operates as a regional BFI Skills Cluster that is part of the broader ScreenSkills-led skills architecture, making ScreenSkills the closest functional peer at national level.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/screen-alliance-north

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Screen Alliance North