Coral Manton
Dr Coral Manton, Senior Lecturer in Creative Computing.
The Centre for Creative Technology is a research, innovation, and skills development hub based in the School of Design at Bath Spa University.
Photography: Ibi Feher
We exist to address the growing importance of creative technology skills — and the significant skills gaps — across education, industry, and the creative economy, particularly as emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence reshape how work, culture, and knowledge are produced.
At the core of the Centre is a commitment to Creative Technologists: hybrid practitioners who combine computing expertise with creative and cultural insight. These roles are increasingly essential across the creative industries and beyond, yet remain under-defined, under-supported, and often misunderstood. CCT exists to change that.
We are not about “using tools” — we are about building, shaping, and critically engaging with technology.
The UK’s creative industries are one of its fastest-growing sectors, driven by advances in artificial intelligence, immersive technologies, digital culture, and computational design. Yet growth is increasingly constrained by a lack of people who can lead technological work with confidence, responsibility, and creative ambition.
Across universities, cultural organisations, and industry, common challenges persist:
• Creative Technology decisions made without technical leadership
• Investment in tools and infrastructure without investment in appropriate skills to activate them
• Creative Technologists positioned outside strategic decision-making
• Fragmented career pathways and poor retention, particularly at mid-career level
CCT responds directly to these challenges by embedding computing-first expertise within creative, human-centred practice, treating Creative Technology as a discipline and centralising the role of the Creative Technologist.
Our work aligns with the UK Industrial Strategy and the Creative Industries Sector Plan, addressing advanced computing and Createch skills gaps while strengthening long-term workforce capacity.
We prioritise deep computing expertise and technical authorship, and Creative Technologists as leaders in the Createch sector. Creative Technologists at CCT lead the design, development, and deployment of technological systems — from research through to real-world application.
Our work is grounded in creative practice, making, and experimentation. Technology is treated as a creative medium, not a neutral tool.
We embed critical, ethical, and social thinking into all aspects of our work — from AI and data-driven systems to digital culture and sustainability.
Our aim is to improve access to technical skills across the creative industries, to create new and equitable/accessible opportunities for people to access well paid jobs.
CCT operates across four connected areas:
These activities are designed to reinforce one another — ensuring research informs skills development, industry engagement informs education, and sector insight informs policy and strategy. We are building long-term capacity rather than short-term interventions.
To advance creative technology as a critical driver of innovation in research, education, and the creative economy through technical excellence, collaborative practice, and socially responsible innovation.
A future where Creative Technologists are recognised as essential leaders shaping culture, industry, and the future of work — locally, nationally, and internationally.
To build skills, partnerships, and research capacity that enable Creative Technologists to thrive, and to ensure creative technology plays a central role in addressing societal, cultural, and economic challenges.
Dr Coral Manton, Senior Lecturer in Creative Computing.
Dave Webb is a lecturer in Creative Computing at Bath Spa University, where he also works as a creative technologist and researcher. He has also lectured in Digital Marketing for a bootcamp and is a practicing creative technologist.