An effective mental health strategy for your workplace means not only raising awareness but also developing skills and tools to implement a mentally healthy working environment for all at every level.
This means including training to address industry-specific factors which contribute to poor mental health, specific training for managers, better understanding of how mental health and related training works and its benefits, including the need for follow-on support and the integration of mental health training into other existing training and development programmes.
Mental health training raises awareness that everyone has mental health and highlights the issues of having poor mental health. This is important for everyone to understand on a personal level as well as across a team and those they manage.
Within accredited mental health training frameworks there is limited scope to deliver bespoke courses for an industry. Therefore, the training doesn’t tend to identify or address industry-specific factors which contribute to poor mental health in film and TV.
By understanding what these contributing factors are, how they directly impact an individual’s mental health and how you might address and mitigate against these factors, you can develop practical tools to benefit yourselves and others with better mental health. It is therefore important to include relevant training courses in mental health training plans.
Here we have identified some of the main factors in our industry working practices and culture which contribute to poor mental health and suggested how training might help to reduce or prevent the ill effects on workers.
Crew on productions are regularly expected to work 10+ hour days and often for more than five days in a row.
There can also be an expectation of exceeding agreed working hours, with pressure coming from producers and Heads of Department to operate in a culture of long hours.
Calls and emails received outside of working hours result in crew unable to switch off, as well as receiving last minute schedule changes. This impacts directly on people’s mental health and on their personal and family lives, further exacerbating issues.
Working long hours and irregular shifts also have potential risks to physical safety, including sleep and the ability or time to look after physical health such as regular exercise.
As well as long hours, the lack of control over one’s working hours has a severe detrimental effect. Consider how you can minimise last minute unnecessary shift changes, by including appropriate contingency into production schedules. Have your producers been trained to understand how to gain the best from your crew, such as shorter and more defined working days?
The unsociable working hours also cause isolation. The Film and TV Charity’s Looking Glass Report also indicated that this is a particular issue for carers, people from ethnic minority backgrounds and freelancers.
Peer support was identified as incredibly beneficial to help combat isolation in industry workers.
- What training can help and how?
- Manager and HOD training on effective working culture, practices and communication. E.g. not sending emails or calling people outside of their working hours, understanding how to give appropriate notice regarding schedule changes, inclusive cultures and how to communicate to avoid people feeling pressured by their manager, active bystander training to call out destructive behaviour
- Training for people with budget or schedule responsibilities. E.g. include a session on how to accommodate safer hours and days when training people on how to use budgeting or scheduling tools
- Culture change. For example, training for senior leaders in mental health awareness in order to feel knowledgeable about why and how to change the culture and implement more viable organisational practices
- Understanding different working options. E.g. job sharing
Links to relevant resources:
The following courses from ScreenSkills run periodically over the year so may not all be available at all times. Please check the training and opportunities directory for the latest information:
- E-learning - Introduction to mental health awareness
- Mental health first aid taster
- Mental health awareness for HoDs
- Creating a budget and schedule for unscripted TV
- Understanding budgets for editorial teams
- The guiding principles of departmental budgeting for HETV and film
Other resources:
- The Film and TV Charity’s Whole Picture Toolkit contains guidance on implementing a ‘media blackout’ to give crew uninterrupted rest periods
- Bectu is putting together a Welfare Policy to help implement safe working conditions. In the meantime, have a look at their information on managing stress and mental health
- Guidelines, suggestions and ideas on how to make the full lifespan of a production fully inclusive for parents and carers from Raising Films
It is an understanding in the industry that occasionally work requires being based far from home. Combined with long hours and consecutive working days, this can create stress and pressures leading to adverse effects on mental health.
Furthermore, many productions – especially those working in news or current affairs – involve working in hazardous environments. This is a massive concern for the individuals as well as their families. It is important to consider the impact and provide relevant support.
What training can help and how?
- Managing your own mental health. E.g. mental health awareness and other tools
- Provide on-site support. E.g. training for managers, first aiders or Wellbeing Facilitators
- Providing specific and relevant training or other mental health support as appropriate for the particular project. E.g. training for hazardous environments, individual or group psychotherapy, how to implement clear and robust communication channels
Links to relevant resources:
- ScreenSkills Introduction to Mental Health Awareness at Work
- ScreenSkills Mental Health Awareness for HoDs
- Film and TV Charity’s Freelancer Wellbeing Hub
- Wellbeing Facilitator, supported by the BFI and 6Ft from the Spotlight
- The Dart Centre for Journalism & Trauma has a number of resources, including training programmes and toolkits. This is the Europe hub
Bullying, racism and harassment can often go unchecked in production. This can create a negative working culture that permeates a crew and creates issues throughout a production or within a workplace. This culture of harassment has become normalised in the industry resulting in endemic poor mental health for crew.
This issue is exacerbated through power imbalances between team members. Directors, HODs and line producers can be rights holders or essential to the project creatively or financially which makes it difficult to hold them to account or be criticised for actions that can contribute to poor mental health on productions.
Meanwhile, more junior crew can be made to feel that they should be grateful for positions or in need of their first breaks in the industry, leaving them feeling that they must accept abuse. The potential of calling out abuse can compound poor mental health.
People who have a background that is underrepresented in the industry are at higher risk of bullying and harassment and therefore are more likely to suffer from poor mental health. This includes those from an ethnic minority background, women, people with a disability, neurodivergent people, those who identify as LGBTQI+ and anyone who feels different or alienated from the rest of the team.
If unhealthy working relationships and expectations continue, they are propagated through the industry as people are promoted without receiving appropriate training and support.
What training can help and how?
- Line manager training on managing difficult conversations, early intervention and mediation
- Anti-bullying and harassment
- How to be an active bystander
- Unconscious bias
- Inclusive cultures/diversity and inclusion
- How to be a wellbeing and safeguarding facilitator
- Psychological safety
Links to relevant resources:
- ScreenSkills Addressing unconscious bias
- ScreenSkills Tackling bullying and harassment at work
- ScreenSkills Anti bullying and harassment training
- ScreenSkills Unscripted / Bullying and harassment training
- Film and TV Charity’s Bullying Advice Service
- Spot, to record incidents of bullying
- Film and TV Charity’s Whole Picture Toolkit’s section on bullying, racism and harassment on productions
- BFI Principles & Guidance
- Bectu Bullying and Harassment Hub
- BIFA - Equality, diversity and inclusion training
- The Guardian’s “The TV industry – exposed” stories from women, people with a disability, people of colour and LGBTQI+ people working in TV
Late payment of invoices and salaries is a common issue in the industry. This puts undue burden on crew and contributes to stress outside of the production.
With the industry’s high reliance on freelancers, it is important to understand and mitigate against the stress that freelancers might feel about the lack of job security or regular pay. Even in longer-term contracts, there is often uncertainty about whether contracts will be renewed and a lack of timely communication.
What training can help and how?
- Line manager training
- HR / accounts training
- Communication skills
Links to relevant resources:
- Bectu training on finance for freelancers. They can also help members with late payments
- ScreenSkills Understanding budgets for editorial teams and the guiding principles of departmental budgeting for HETV and film
- The Film and TV Charity have partnered with financial support service MoneyHelper to offer a range of digital financial tools. They include a budget plannerand bills prioritiser to give users a better understanding of how they can manage their money and improve their finances. A savings calculator also means that users can get advice on how to plan and learn how to reach their financial targets
A lack of relevant and appropriate training on productions can lead to crew being expected to undertake tasks they are not qualified for or confident in.
This creates risk as well as a mental strain on crew opening themselves to potential hazards. For example, driving vehicles they are uncomfortable with, working at heights or with hazardous materials or using technology and tools such as harnesses and rigging without sufficient training have all been reported.
There is also an issue in the industry with lack of appropriate line management and people training. Those who are highly skilled or experienced in their craft are expected to step up with little or no formal support. Not only does this cause stress for the person stepping up, but there is also a risk of propagating poor working practices with no pause to reset.
What training can help and how?
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- Find out what skills are required for each role in your team and ensure the individuals are given appropriate training in advance
- Ensure anyone with line management responsibilities have received appropriate training and guidance
Links to relevant resources:
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- ScreenSkills training and opportunities directory
- Bursaries for training costs, equipment costs, driving lessons etc
- Contact ScreenSkills for more upcoming training courses on leadership essentials and mental health awareness for HODs
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Often people are hired on short term contracts with a weighting of power in the employers’ favour and with little communication or agreement on contract extensions. Some roles are also classed as trainee positions or internships or in some cases are uncontracted. This leaves crew at the mercy of many issues noted above and causes added stress of being easily replaced or fired.
This also makes it very difficult for freelancers to raise issues with bullying or harassment, to seek support for mental health or to express physical or mental illness including underlying conditions.
Crew often find they are unable to ask for time off work, even to visit a doctor. People at higher risk include carers, people with disabilities and neurodivergent people.
Employers are required by law to provide reasonable adjustments and the investment will help people work more effectively, with better job satisfaction and company loyalty.
What training can help and how?
- Understanding employment law
- Anti-bullying and harassment
- Inclusive cultures
Links to relevant resources:
Bectu has guidance on how to support people with different needs, backgrounds or potential vulnerabilities at work in their equality and diversity hub. This includes practical tips on making reasonable adjustments at work
The Looking Glass Report found that only 14% of those with experience of working on programmes with vulnerable contributors said they received sufficient support to manage their own mental health, and only 16% of those working with challenging or traumatic content said they received sufficient support to manage their own mental health.
Not only does this imply serious risks for individuals while they are working, but also has a lasting impact. For example, burn-out and post-traumatic stress disorder.
What training can help and how?
- Working with vulnerable contributors
- Trauma risk management
- Duty of care training
- Line management and communication skills
- Boundaries training, for example dealing with follow-on calls from contributors
- Responsibilities and policy regarding safeguarding
- Wellbeing and self-care
Links to relevant resources:
- Download Trauma & journalism: a practical guide from the Dart Centre. They also offer training for production teams working with distressing content
- Guidance from the Samaritans for journalists and programme makers covering suicide and self-harm
- The BBC runs an in-house TRiM programme for trauma risk management and lists other resources and options for support on their Safety site
- The Film and TV Charity’s Whole Picture Toolkit guidance on working with vulnerable contributors
- The Film and TV Charity’s support for mental wellbeing, with links to their support line and freelancer wellbeing hub
Barriers to entry include lack of understanding about people’s financial situations or those who are based outside of central production hubs such as London, Salford, Cardiff or Glasgow.
For example, an assumption that freelancers and staff can afford to transport themselves to location or accommodate themselves. There is often the expectation or requirement that people can drive or provide their own car.
There are particular barriers to progression due to lack of flexible working arrangements. This is causing many to leave the industry, for example parents and carers. Furthermore, there is a high risk of discriminatory behaviour in offering promotions due to unregulated or opaque recruitment practices.
What training can help and how?
- Fair and open recruitment and HR practices
- Diversity and inclusion training, such as unconscious bias
- How to run exit interviews
- Implementing open communications processes for timely feedback and improvement
Links to relevant resources:
- ScreenSkills training strand on Your life at work, including equality and inclusion, managing stress and stepping up
- Work Well series, comprised of 3 e-learning modules: addressing unconscious bias, tackling harassment and bullying, introduction to mental health awareness
- Inclusive hiring for the screen industries – e-learning module highlighting the importance and benefits of inclusive hiring practices, as well as practical actions you can take to improve the inclusivity
- Leadership and Management essentials - 3.5hr online course which can also be delivered in-house for specific companies or production teams. If you’d like to discuss this option please contact ScreenSkills for more information