PLAYCATALYST UK / POLICY SHAPED WITH THE PEOPLE WHO PLAY.
Serious about play. Ambitious for Britain.
PlayCatalyst UK is a new policy think tank championing the growth of games, esports and competitive play, including trading card games and organised play.
We work with the people who build, play and organise them to develop practical policies for jobs, skills, investment and the visitor economy that government can adopt to supercharge the organised play sector.
01 / OUR AMBITION
It's time to take play seriously.
Games and competitive play connect creative talent, technology, communities, events and global audiences. We believe the UK needs to do more to capture these opportunities, growing businesses, building skills and supporting towns and cities across the UK to reach their potential through gaming and competitive organised play.
VISITOR ECONOMY
Bringing tournaments to town centres
People travelling to a tournament need somewhere to stay, eat and spend time between matches. We want more towns and cities to see the value of hosting events, and help local shops and venues benefit.
CAREER PATHWAYS
Skills that lead to long-term employment
We should be creating stronger routes into creative, technical and event-based careers. We want education and employers to connect organised play participation & management with skills, apprenticeships and high-value work.
BUSINESS & REGIONAL GROWTH
Real growth in every postcode
Britain should be a place where games businesses can start, grow and stay. We focus on investment, entrepreneurship, UK-owned intellectual property and regional clusters beyond London.
02 / POLICY BETA
Policy should be tested before it ships.
Policy Beta will publish draft ideas early and invite the people affected to challenge, improve and test them. Final publications will show what changed through engagement. Consultations will be open soon.
03 / ON AIR
Take policy where the community already is.
PLAYCATALYST LIVE / TWITCH: PLAYCATALYSTUK
Live conversations, coming soon.
PlayCatalyst Live will bring developers, players, organisers, researchers and policymakers together on Twitch for serious, accessible conversations about growth, skills, events and the future of play. Session dates will be announced here.
04 / OUR PURPOSE
Playing for growth.
Competitive gaming brings people together physically as well as digitally. Esports majors, TCG tournaments and gaming events create demand for venues, hotels, transport, hospitality and local businesses.
We want to build a credible UK evidence base on competitive-play tourism: where attendees travel from, where they stay and how they spend time in host towns and cities.
Connecting play with government.
We bring the experience of players, businesses, organisers, educators and researchers into policy discussions across government. Our focus is practical: helping ministers, civil servants, mayors and councils understand what games and competitive play need to thrive.
From skills pathways and business investment to event infrastructure and regional growth, we develop evidence-led proposals with the people affected by them, connecting local opportunities with national policy.
05 / CONTACT US
Let’s move play forward.
An idea, a question, or something government needs to hear? We’d like to hear from you.
START A CONVERSATION