High-end TV Skills Fund supports funding for access bursaries

This year, the High-end TV Skills Fund supported an access funding scheme for deaf, disabled and/or neurodivergent (DDN) crew delivered by disabled-led organisation, TripleC.

The bursaries were available for deaf, disabled and/or neurodivergent off-screen freelance crew currently working or aspiring to work in high-end TV (HETV). This includes writers, directors and producers. Funding can be used to remove access barriers which stop freelancers from entering, progressing or returning to work in HETV.

The initiative aimed to cement ScreenSkills’ commitment to supporting everyone in the industry and remove potential obstacles that may prevent entry or progression within it.

Freelancers were able to apply for between £100 and £2,500 for the likes of training, aids, accommodation, travel, driving lessons, childcare, support to apply to Access to Work, software and equipment.

Those applying to receive bursaries came from across the UK with 87% of successful applicants coming from outside of London. Equipment and software proved the most popular support type applied for, accounting for 58% of the awarded funds. Driving lessons and training/coaching were the next most popular support types with 20% and 11% of applicants seeking funding in those areas.

Dr Laurence Clark from TripleC said: "TripleC are delighted to be running the Access Funding initiative for HETV DDN crew in partnership with ScreenSkills and the HETV Skills Fund. Deaf, disabled and/or neurodivergent crew face numerous barriers to working in HETV. These include barriers around attitudes, stereotypes and misconceptions, as well as barriers around bureaucracy and long waiting times associated with the government's Access to Work scheme. This bursary initiative has funded a wide range of support, including equipment, software, training, coaching, aids and driving lessons, which has enabled DDN crew to stay working in the industry." 

Director Owen Tooth was one of those to receive a bursary. He was given £1,943 to support equipment costs with his allowance going towards an iPad Pro with apple pencil and keyboard alongside damage cover and software apps.

Speaking about why he applied for the bursary, he said: “Earlier this year I was booked for my first solo TV directing credit. I’ve not been on a set where the director wasn’t holding an iPad, and speaking to a number of them about how they prepare, I could see just how important they’ve become in the work a director does. Apps like Scriptation are on every set, and the VUER app means that as a wheelchair user, I can watch multiple camera streams without being stuck behind monitor stands.”

He continued: "It’s been a huge help. My iPad was with me every step of the way through my first episode, I used it to scan and create 3D maps of every set where I could build my camera scripts and blocking, with a storyboard created with cameras I placed in the 3D world. I used layers in Scriptation to write technical, performance, and editing notes on my script without it getting at all messy and included photos of every actor I was working with to help me learn the names of everyone in my episode’s 30 speaking roles.

“It’s helped in ways that you might not even think of: I own a heavy laptop and it’s a real struggle, when it’s in my rucksack it can tip me over backwards when I go up even fairly gentle slopes like you’d get at pedestrian crossings all around London. Tonight I’m in a hotel room in Elstree ready to work on the mix of the episode tomorrow morning, and being able to bring my iPad to write this on made the trip not only easier, but safer too.”