The UK’s creative industries combine creativity, technology and intellectual property to drive innovation and growth.
Businesses across the creative sector are increasingly developing sophisticated technologies to deliver new products and experiences across a broad range of specialisms, from advertising to immersive experiences.
Many of these activities require resolving technological challenges and limitations – making them eligible for innovation incentives such as R&D tax relief and grant funding.
ForrestBrown helps creative businesses unlock the full value of these incentives with robust, compliant claims.
The value of R&D tax relief in creative industries
R&D tax relief supports companies undertaking projects that seek an advance in science or technology through the resolution of technological uncertainty.
In the creative sector, this most often arises in software, data and platform development, rather than the creative output itself. Activities must seek to resolve technological uncertainty not readily resolvable by a competent professional in software engineering or computer science. For example, routine optimisation or UI/UX work will not qualify. Creative or artistic projects may often be using existing technologies and tools without necessarily having any scientific or technological foundation. As the guidelines on the meaning of R&D for tax purposes set out, ‘cosmetic and aesthetic qualities are not of themselves science or technology, and so work to improve the cosmetic or aesthetic appeal of a process, material, device, product or service would not in itself be R&D.’
We will help you identify where genuine R&D sits within broader creative projects, ensuring claims are robust and compliant.
Opportunities for innovation
Innovation in the creative industries is typically driven by solving complex technological challenges within digital environments. Examples of activity that could qualify include:
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Web AR and real-time rendering
Combining multiple web technologies to deliver photorealistic augmented reality experiences on mobile devices despite constraints around processing power, rendering performance and inconsistent hardware capabilities. -
Cross-platform immersive experiences
Developing browser-based 3D or AR environments that perform consistently across different devices and network conditions, requiring advances in rendering pipelines and asset streaming. -
Privacy-first data engineering
Designing new approaches to analytics and attribution in response to cookie deprecation and evolving regulation, balancing data utility, consent and technical feasibility. -
Game engines, simulation and VR
Developing new architectures or input handling systems within engines (e.g. Unity) to enable complex simulation, automation or testing where existing frameworks fall short.
What typically doesn’t qualify
Activities that may fall outside the definition of R&D for tax purposes include:
- UI and UX design work, where the focus is aesthetic or behavioural rather than technical.
- Routine optimisation or configuration using existing tools and capabilities.
- Technology selection or general research without attempts to resolve technical uncertainty.
How ForrestBrown can help
Creative businesses often sit at the intersection of technology and creativity, meaning it can sometimes be challenging to identify and evidence qualifying R&D activity.
Our creative industries specialists understand how innovation happens across digital platforms, production pipelines and data-driven environments. We work closely with your teams to identify where technological advancement sits within your projects, while ensuring claims are robust, compliant and aligned to HMRC expectations.
Our approach is practical and tailored to your business, combining technical tax expertise with a deep understanding of how innovation is delivered in creative environments.
Robert Lutken MSc
Technical Manager
Robert Lutken MSc
Technical Manager
- Communicates our clients’ scientific and technological projects to HMRC in technical reports.
- Experienced full stack software engineer.
- Masters in computer games development.
Expertise & specialisms
- AR and VR
- App and game development
- Cloud Architecture
- IoT
Rob is an expert software engineer in our sector specialist team. He plays an invaluable role in translating our clients’ highly technical scientific R&D activity into reports for HMRC.
After graduating with a master’s degree in computer games development from the University of South Wales, he worked for a number of years as a full stack software developer for an award-winning digital agency.
With a passion for AR, VR, game and mobile app development, Rob acts as a conduit between our clients’ technical teams and our tax specialists, enabling us to communicate our clients’ complex R&D projects effectively to HMRC.
Rob is always keen to share his knowledge and has delivered Learning Lab presentations to the wider business on a range of topics.
Ben Wyatt LLB
Senior Technical Manager
Ben Wyatt LLB
Senior Technical Manager
- Expert in a huge range of developer and cloud technologies.
- Over 15 years agency experience working across many sectors.
- A dedicated resource at ForrestBrown for uncovering digital innovation.
Expertise & specialisms
- Web design and development
- Cloud technologies
- Digital awareness
- UK law
Ben is a digital expert at the forefront of tech trends. A digital sector specialist at ForrestBrown, his extensive knowledge is invaluable to our clients who are pushing the boundaries of innovation.
He began his career as a law and philosophy graduate in publishing, but quickly developed a keen interest in web development and software engineering. At the time he was working for family law publisher, Jordan Publishing, but subsequently moved from there into the world of digital agencies.
Since then, Ben has amassed more than 15 years of digital agency experience, some at general agencies; others specialising in sectors such as travel and product development. These include 3Sixty, Bray Leino, Cognizant and AKQA.
With experience as a full-stack developer and technology director, Ben has mastered a wide range of development frameworks and tools. He has worked extensively with content management systems, modern web technologies, and responsive design principles.
Ben has also developed expertise in cloud platforms and infrastructure as these technologies have emerged. In his senior roles he has led teams of developers and been involved in wider business management.
His extensive experience at agencies has led him to work across many sectors, including legal, transport infrastructure, entertainment, homebuilding and ecommerce.
Ben’s expertise is tremendously valuable to our clients at the cutting edge of digital innovation. He works directly with them and our R&D tax practice to uncover all qualifying innovations for robust R&D tax credit claims.
Phil Smith CTA
Technical Lead
Phil Smith CTA
Technical Lead
- Qualified chartered tax adviser (CTA).
- Advised hundreds of businesses on R&D tax relief.
- Provides a range of specialist R&D tax advice.
Expertise & specialisms
- UK taxation
- Breaking down complex concepts
- Manufacturing & engineering
With a growing interest in innovation, Phil joined ForrestBrown in 2014 to work with our manufacturing and engineering clients. He trained at Cooper Parry in Nottingham and qualified as a chartered tax adviser in 2009. Phil then moved to Burton Sweet and later Hazlewoods, where he advised owner-managed businesses on personal and corporate taxation.
Phil brings two decades of taxation experience to our team, where he supports ForrestBrown’s consulting clients. He writes regularly on topics including compliance, dispute strategy and risk management for business titles including Taxation and FT Adviser. His insights on the impact of R&D enquiries recently featured in the Financial Times.
Tom Jones ATT
Director
Tom Jones ATT
Director
- Leads client-facing teams in ForrestBrown’s R&D tax practice.
- Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) qualified.
- More than 15 years’ experience in tax and trained at a Big Four firm.
Expertise & specialisms
- Changes to R&D tax relief
- Team leadership and talent development
- Compliance risks with overseas staff
Tom is an ATT qualified tax professional who trained at a Big Four firm and brings more than a decade of experience to the team. He leads client-facing teams in ForrestBrown’s R&D tax practice.
Before joining us in 2016, Tom was part of the global mobility team at PwC where he worked with a range of clients from fast-growth SMEs to large multinationals. He also helped organisations manage tax and compliance risks when sending staff overseas or into the UK.
Tom originally joined us as a tax manager, before progressing to director in 2022. One of the first people to graduate from the ForrestBrown Learning Lab, Tom now leads teams that support companies in preparing robust R&D tax relief claims to achieve the full benefit in line with HMRC’s compliance measures.
As well as leading a team of qualified tax advisers and accountants, Tom can also call on sector specialists with industry experience to ensure effective project descriptions are provided.
Tom builds long-term relationships with clients to understand their innovation and how it contributes to business objectives. This enables him to provide clear, practical and timely advice to clients, optimising R&D investment while reducing financial risk.
Laura Eastman CTA
Tax Manager
Laura Eastman CTA
Tax Manager
- Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA) qualified.
- Background in financial recruitment.
- University of Southampton maths and economics graduate.
Laura joined ForrestBrown as a tax associate in 2020 and supports our clients on R&D tax relief and Patent Box claims.
Laura is a MORSE (maths, operational research, statistics, economics) graduate from the University of Southampton. She began her career in recruitment, specialising in accounting and finance, working for a firm in Gloucestershire for several years.
At ForrestBrown, Laura enjoys working closely with businesses and learning about innovative projects. She is motivated by being able to help our clients grow and reinvest in their innovation through R&D tax incentives. Laura supports a broad range of clients through the claim process, ensuring that all receive our superior client service and technical support.
Kelly Smith MSc
Assistant Project Manager
Kelly Smith MSc
Assistant Project Manager
- Complex claim management.
- MSc in international business management.
- Background in marketing with digital agencies.
Kelly is an experienced account manager, committed to nurturing relationships with our clients and ensuring they receive a superior level of service.
Kelly supports our R&D tax practice on complex cases by helping them to manage stakeholder relationships and set clear timelines. Coupled with Kelly’s great communication throughout the claim process and beyond she helps to ensure the smooth running of each engagement.
After completing an MSc in International Business Management at UWE, Kelly worked as an account manager in digital agencies and a marketing manager for a restaurant chain, before joining ForrestBrown in 2019.
R&D tax relief for creative industries
R&D tax relief can be a valuable source of funding for creative businesses, but identifying where it applies is often more complex than in other sectors.
Projects are rarely standalone R&D initiatives. Instead, qualifying activity is typically embedded within wider commercial work such as digital campaigns, production pipelines or platform development, making it more challenging to separate and evidence.
For many businesses, this creates three key challenges:
- Distinguishing technological work from creative delivery
Eligibility depends on the underlying technology, not the creative outcome, requiring a clear understanding of where genuine technological advancement has been made.
- Navigating delivery and contracting models
The use of freelancers, agencies and subcontractors can directly impact eligibility, particularly where R&D is undertaken as part of client work.
- Meeting HMRC’s compliance expectations
As scrutiny increases, clear documentation and structured claims are essential to demonstrate qualifying activity and reduce risk.
We help you address these challenges by taking a structured, practical approach:
- Uncovering R&D within complex projects
Identifying where technological uncertainty arises within broader creative or commercial delivery.
- Mapping activity and costs accurately
Reflecting how your projects are actually delivered, including team structures and third-party involvement.
- Building robust, audit-ready claims
Translating complex work into clear, defensible narratives aligned with HMRC guidance.
Patent Box
Patent Box rewards businesses that successfully develop and commercialise patented intellectual property, reducing Corporation Tax to an effective rate of 10% on qualifying profits.
For creative businesses, Patent Box may be relevant where innovation leads to protectable technical solutions, such as:
- Software frameworks or processing technologies.
- Rendering, streaming or data platforms.
- AI or machine learning technologies.
While not applicable to all creative businesses, Patent Box can play an important role for those developing proprietary technology alongside creative output. We can help you:
- Assess whether your technology is eligible for patent protection.
- Align R&D activity with future Patent Box claims.
- Identify and calculate qualifying profits.
- Ensure a clear link between development activity and IP.
R&D tax relief and Patent Box work together across the innovation lifecycle – supporting both development and long-term commercialisation.
Creative industry tax reliefs
Alongside R&D tax relief, a range of creative sector tax reliefs can provide valuable support for businesses producing cultural and creative content. These include reliefs for film, high-end television, animation, video games, theatre, orchestras and museums and galleries exhibitions.
These regimes are designed to encourage the production of culturally significant content in the UK by offering additional tax deductions or payable tax credits on qualifying expenditure. In many cases, relief is linked to meeting specific cultural and production criteria, with certification required from the British Film Institute (BFI) or relevant bodies.
While these reliefs are distinct from R&D tax relief, there can be overlap in businesses that combine creative production with technology development, for example in gaming, immersive experiences or digital content platforms.
Understanding how these incentives interact is key to ensuring claims are both optimised and compliant.
We help creative businesses navigate the full landscape of innovation incentives, identifying where different reliefs apply, how they work together, and how to structure claims to maximise value while meeting HMRC’s requirements
Examples of creative industry firms advised by ForrestBrown
Digital experience platform developer
This creative technology business was developing a client-facing digital experience platform to enable brands to deliver personalised, high-performance web and mobile applications. This required development of reusable front-end frameworks, complex API integrations and performance optimisation techniques, alongside new approaches to managing content delivery, personalisation logic and cross-device compatibility within a unified architecture.
Benefit: £300k
Data-driven marketing technology agency
This creative marketing technology business was enhancing its capability to deliver highly personalised, data-driven campaigns across multiple digital channels. Seeking to integrate artificial intelligence into campaign development required the creation of systems capable of analysing large volumes of customer and media data, generating optimised creative assets and automating decision-making processes, alongside new methods for connecting disparate marketing platforms.
Benefit: £300k
Digital product and engagement specialist
This digital agency was developing bespoke platforms and applications to support large-scale customer engagement and brand interaction. Seeking to deliver interactive, content-rich digital experiences required advances in real-time rendering, complex system integrations and dynamic content management, including the development of scalable back-end services and new techniques for handling high user volumes while maintaining performance and reliability.
Benefit: £65k
Ready to discuss your funding strategy?
Whether you’re delivering creative projects or developing proprietary technology, understanding how innovation incentives apply can unlock significant value. Speak to our creative industries specialists to explore how R&D tax relief and related incentives align with your projects – and how to access them with confidence.
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- 0117 926 9022
- hello@forrestbrown.co.uk