It was created to bridge the gap between industry, education and the government, as well as to give employers an effective influence over education and the skills developed in the U.K. Its founder was Tony Hall, Baron Hall of Birkenhead (2004–2009), and the founder Chief Executive was Tom Bewick (2004–2010) who, as a special adviser to the Labour Government, designed the policy for establishing SSCs across the UK industrial economy.
Creative & Cultural Skills' registered office is The Backstage Centre, High House Purfleet, Essex which it built and opened in 2013.
In Autumn 2010, for example, the Academy delivered 25 career events across the nation which featured practical and informative day programmes focusing on backstage, technical, and administrative roles in the industry.
Additionally, NSA Founder Colleges and Industry Members collaborate to provide teenagers with the opportunity to get a taste of what goes on behind the scenes of the world’s biggest events, as well as giving them the chance to tackle professionally set challenges as part of their course work.
These spaces offer access to a wide variety of technical performance media and support the transferability of skills and knowledge.