The Creative Growth project was initiated by the Östergötland region (SE) and is based on previous experiences and needs among the partners for successful cluster development of the creative sector.The aim of the project is to contribute to European competitiveness and accelerate regional economic growth through the development of the creative sector as a new business sector and influence policy development on regional and local level by mainstreaming new knowledge and good practice into the policy making process.The following objectives will be achieved: 1.Improved and more effective policies on regional and local level through evidence-based policy making 2.Improved business support services and solutions for the creative sector 3. Increased knowledge on how creativity can be a catalyst for increased regional competitiveness.The partnership consists of 11 partners from SE, DK, UK, LT, HU, ES, IT, RO and BG.The activities in the project are divided into 3 parts: Part 1 - A limitedmapping of the creative sector carried out in each region by using a joint set of standards and a joint interregional analysis carried out with comparisons between the regions based on the regional mapping. Part 2 - Benchmarking on business support services and solutions through exchange of experiences in thematic working groups on topics such as access to finance, support structures, cluster development, incubator facilities etc. Part 3 - Interregional thematic seminars hosted by different partner regions- focusing on creativity as a catalyst for increased regional competitiveness.A very limited part of the project consists of three pilot cases where business support solutions with three different approaches will be tested in a new way by pooling joint experiences ("traditional" business support services,virtual incubator and physical environments for SMEs).The main result of the project will be improved policy making processes on regional and local level by adopting evidence-basedpolicy making (i.e. policy making based on new facts, knowledge and exchange of experiences), the creation of a European Network of Creative regions for long-term collaboration, and increased knowledge about the sector among key stakeholders. The project will also result in increased numbers of business support services and solutions tailor made for SMEs in the creative sector and higher quality of the services provided by business support actors. The project will generate a wide range of activities for exchange of good practice and dissemination, such as conferences, seminars, working groups, joint training sessions, workshops, reports and recommendations for regional/local activity plans for each partner region in order to take the next step in boosting the creative sector.The interregional exchange of experiences, joint learning and dissemination of good practice is the interregional added value and the project result will contribute to increased European competitiveness. Achievements: The overall aim of the Creative growth project is to contribute to European competitiveness and accelerate regional economic growth through the development of the creative sector as a new business sector and key driver of regional growth. The Creative Growth project started in september 2008. More officially the project was successfully launched with a Kick-Off conference in Brussels in January 2009. An important first step has been to perform regional mappings of the creative sector in the regions to get background information and awareness of its status in each region. These regional mappings have been carried out in 8 regions during January - June 2009. To make statistical comparisons between different regions in Europe has showed to be a complex task and the lack of joint set of standards and european definitions has been a great challenge. The regional mappings were followed by a joint analysis to describe the impact and potential of the creative sector as an important sector in the growing knowledge economy. This report was presented in September 2009 and is available on the project's website. The conclusions of this analyis shows that the creative sector is rapidly growing and plays an important role in the participating regions. The mapping phase is followed by a number of benchmarking activities to further explore the impact and potential of the creative sector. This is made by regional partnership meetings, interviews, studyvisits, thematic working groups and interregional seminars to share and experience best practise. During this period the first interregional seminar was hosted by Edinburgh-Napier University(UK) on the theme Successful knowledgetransfer in the creative industries showcasing good exampes and transnational exchange of experience. 4 thematic working groups have been launced on the themes: "Incubators", "Access to Finance", "Business Networks" and "Science and Industry" having their first meetings in December 2009. Regional partnerships have been set up in the partner regions with a number of meetings and regional activities. In five regions interviews have been made with SME's within the sector. The interest for the project has been high and the project has been presented at a high number of different national and international events. The Creative Growth interm conference took place in Brussels in December 2009. We chose to use the interim conference as a platform for the exchange of experience amongst EU projects and for show casing different projects’ work on the creative sector. The conference was organised around 2 round table session each presenting progress and results of 3 IVC funded projects CITIES, CREATIVE METROPOLES and CREATIVE GROWTH. Speakers from the EC and European Parliament set the scene for the round tables with presentations on the EU institutions work and position towards the creative sector. This was a successful event with some 60 participants. A project website www.creativegrowth.eu is available and updated regularely, here one can read about the development of the project, download newsletters and all other materials produced within the project. A project movie to show the potential of the creative sector has been produced and is also avalable on the website. 2 editions of the CG newsletter has been published. A leaflet with general information about the project has been produced and published in 8 languages and a joint analysis report. Efficient management has been secured and four steering group meetings, 3 mapping seminars, 1 interregional seminar, four thematic working group meetings and a total of 26 regional meetings have been organised so far.