Key Points
- The Wigan Council Film Fund showcased itself at the Leeds International Film Festival.
- According to the council, the Film Fund allows reinvesting of filming fees on council sites into the development of local opportunities.
- It was initiated last year, according to the Borough Life Winter 2026 edition of the Wigan Council.
- The first fund investment was derived from the fee collected when filming BBC production ‘The Split Up’ at the Leigh Town Hall.
- Wigan Council joined forces with Northern Heart Films for a bootcamp series for ten young people.
- They developed, filmed and edited their documentaries.
- Some of them got industry work-experience placements, two of them were offered paid runner positions.
- Councillor Keith Cunliffe, Deputy Leader of the Wigan Council said that the purpose of the fund was to ensure that local people could take direct advantage of filming in the borough.
- The Leeds International Film Festival took place from 29 October to 15 November 2026 as its 40th anniversary.
- The news from Wigan Council was published on 13 November 2026.
Wigan (Manchester Mirror) November 13, 2026 — Wigan Council has showcased its Film Fund at the Leeds International Film Festival, highlighting a scheme that reinvests location-filming fees into creative-industry opportunities for young people in Wigan Borough.
As reported by Wigan Council, the local authority was invited to present the fund at the recent Leeds International Film Festival, where it outlined how income from screen productions can be redirected into training, experience and employment pathways for borough residents.
What is Wigan Council’s Film Fund?
Wigan Council’s Film Fund was established last year to ensure that the economic benefits of filming in the borough are shared with local communities, according to the council’s Borough Life Winter 2026 publication.
Under the scheme, fees generated from location shoots at council-owned sites are reinvested into opportunities for people seeking to enter the television and film industries. The council describes this as part of its wider “Film Friendly Borough” approach, which involves working with organisations including Filming in England to promote Wigan Borough locations to production companies.
The fund’s first contribution came from the fee generated by the BBC’s production of The Split Up, a prime-time legal drama filmed on location at Leigh Town Hall. The programme aired in September, according to the council’s publication.
How did the fund support young people?
Wigan Council says it worked with Northern Heart Films, an independent production company, to deliver a bootcamp series for 10 young people from across the borough.
Participants gained practical experience in developing, filming and editing their own documentaries. The council says the next phase of the programme enabled selected participants to take up work-experience placements within the industry.
Two of those opportunities were paid employment positions as “runners”, roles that support television production teams. The council has not published further details in the available announcement about the number of placements, the organisations involved or the duration of the work experience.
Why was it showcased in Leeds?
The Leeds International Film Festival is organised by the Leeds Film team at Leeds City Council and is principally funded through the British Film Institute’s Audience Projects Fund. Its 40th edition ran from 29 October to 15 November 2026.
Wigan Council says it was invited to showcase the Film Fund at the festival, although the council’s published announcement does not specify the date, venue or format of the presentation. The festival presents more than 250 features and shorts each year and receives more than 5,000 submissions annually from more than 120 countries, according to Leeds Film.
The council’s participation places its local skills programme alongside a festival that presents new and diverse filmmaking talent, including work that may not otherwise receive a UK platform.
What did Wigan Council say?
Councillor Keith Cunliffe, deputy leader of Wigan Council, said the fund was created to ensure that the benefits of filming in the borough are experienced directly by local people.
As quoted by Wigan Council, Councillor Cunliffe said:
“Our Film Fund was created to ensure that the benefits of filming in our borough are experienced directly by local people, and it’s fantastic to see the impact it’s already having.”
He added that the council had been able to create opportunities for young people to gain hands-on experience, develop new skills and build connections in the film and screen industry.
“This programme has helped open doors for local talent and shows that exciting creative careers can start right here in Wigan Borough,”
Councillor Cunliffe said, according to the council.
What happens next?
Wigan Council says filming fees generated from location shoots at local-authority-owned sites will continue to be reinvested into the Film Fund. The council has directed people seeking further information to its Filming in Wigan Borough webpage.
The announcement does not state how much money has been raised through location fees, how much has been allocated to the fund, or which future productions may contribute to it. It also does not identify the young people who took part in the bootcamp or the employers that provided the work placements.
Background of the development
Wigan Council’s Film Fund was launched last year as a mechanism to channel income from screen production into local creative-sector opportunities. The council’s Borough Life Winter 2026 publication says the initial funding was generated by the BBC’s filming of The Split Up at Leigh Town Hall.
The scheme forms part of the council’s Film Friendly Borough approach, which seeks to promote borough locations to television and film producers through partnerships including Filming in England. The Leeds International Film Festival, where the fund was showcased, is one of the UK’s long-running film festivals and marked its 40th edition in 2026.
Prediction: impact on local creative talent
For young people in Wigan Borough, the fund’s continued reinvestment of filming fees could provide a practical route into screen-industry work through training, portfolio-building and early employment experience. The council’s existing programme has already included documentary production, work placements and paid runner roles.
For local filmmakers and production companies, the council’s promotion of the fund at an international festival may increase awareness of Wigan Borough as a filming location. The availability of council-owned sites for shoots, alongside a stated commitment to reinvest associated fees locally, could make the borough more visible to producers seeking locations and local crew support.
For Wigan residents, the development may mean that future filming activity has a clearer local benefit beyond location fees, provided the fund continues to support accessible training and employment opportunities. The council says it intends to keep reinvesting those fees into the Film Fund.
