40% of UK's small independent TV producers at risk of closure, warns IndieLab

According to an analysis of Companies House filings by IndieLab, 40% of the UK's small independent television production companies are at risk of closure within two years.

The analysis tracked net assets – the financial reserves a company can draw on to survive a gap in income – across three years of accounts for 203 active small indie producers.

It found that 114 companies (56%) saw their reserves fall over the period. Within that group, the declines were often severe: 83 companies (40% of the panel) lost more than 30% of their reserves, and 63 (31%) lost more than half.

4. IndieLab.jpg — According to IndieLab, the typical (median) small indie now holds just £42,000 in reservesSkreidzeleu.

The typical (median) small indie now holds just £42,000 in reserves. Indielab said that buffer would not cover the cost of a single delayed commission, a production overrun, or a series put on hold after delivery.

Indielab stressed that “not all of the picture is bleak”: 42% of the panel (85 companies) grew their reserves over the same period, by a median of 63%.

The analysis follows the recent Oliver & Ohlbaum (O&O) report for Everyone TV, which found that 76% of all indie groups commissioned by the UK's public service broadcasters (PSBs) in 2025 were small producers and warned of a “spiral of decline” in UK production if PSB commissioning continues to fall.

4. Indielab.Victoria Powell.jpg — Victoria Powell, Founder, IndielabIndielab

Indielab, the growth accelerator and support network for the indie sector, was founded in 2015 by Victoria Powell.

Powell said: “The picture is stark. Small producers are the most exposed part of the ecosystem: when commissioning spend falls, they feel it first and hardest, and our data shows the sector's health is being eroded, year on year.

“What distinguishes [the companies that grew their reserves] is not luck; they've built resilient business models suited to today's market. The question for the sector is how to help more companies get there, and that requires sustained investment in the skills, knowledge, and support that enable small producers to build for the long term.”

Film and high-end television production spend in the UK stood at £6.8bn in 2025, a 22% increase from 2024 and the third highest annual spend on record, according to the BFI’s Research and Statistics Unit. Discover more here.