Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Introduction
The practice of being inclusive is only going to increase the workforce and add value to the industry. It can no longer come in our intentions, it has to come in our actions. It is evidenced that inclusive teams are over 35% more productive and diverse teams make better decisions 87% of the time (Cloverpop White Paper). Why would we as an industry not want that? Maybe we do, we just don’t have confidence to do it or live in unconscious bias. Whatever way we want to do this requires commitment, planning, patience and financial resources.
As a discipline, DEI is any policy, training or initiative designed to make people of various backgrounds feel welcome and ensure they have support to perform to the fullest of their abilities in the workplace. This kind of environment is created by following all three aspects of DEI.
Diversity is the presence of differences within a given setting. In the workplace, that can mean differences in race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, physical ability, age, socioeconomic class and whether a person has children.
Equity is the process of ensuring that practices and programmes are impartial, fair and provide equal possible outcomes for every individual.
Inclusion is the practice of ensuring that people feel a sense of belonging in the workplace. This means that every employee feels comfortable and supported by the production company when it comes to being their authentic selves.
Combining these three elements, DEI is an ethos that recognises the value of diverse voices and emphasises inclusivity and employee wellbeing as central facets of success. To bring those values to life, productions must implement initiatives that actively make them more diverse, equitable and inclusive.
This starts with advertising the role and recruiting from the widest possible talent pool. The overall aim is to ensure our companies and productions are crewed with appropriately qualified people at every level, and that our hiring process doesn’t exclude people from some parts of society.
Good intentions alone won’t affect change. Meaningful transformation requires positive action.
In this section you will find details of policies, training and initiatives to support and potentially add to the actions productions are already taking around DEI. There is also a directory of organisations who provide a platform to connect prospective employers and employees in the Bibliography and also the Directory section of this resource.
Policies, Guidelines & Best Practice
| Policy, Guidelines & Best Practice | Description |
|---|---|
| Inclusive Hiring Guidelines | Created by the company to circulate Producer, Line Producer, Director, HODs and supervisors to support them in their recruitment processes. |
| Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Policy for SPV |
To circulate to all cast and crew. This policy applies to all conduct in the workplace and also to conduct outside of the workplace that is related to the employees’ work (e.g. at meetings, social events and social interactions with colleagues) or which may impact on the SPV’s reputation (e.g. the expression of views on social media, contrary to the commitments expressed in this policy, that could be linked to SPV). |
| Acknowledge Religious Holidays (Guidelines) | While the likes of Christmas and Easter are acknowledged as bank holidays, guidelines should be in place to allow the opportunity for those cast or crew who practice other faiths to approach production about having cover on those days, or in the instance of Ramadan having a best practice approach to late breaks and eating on set. |
| Anti-Discrimination Policy for SPV |
All employees are legally protected from discrimination by the Equality Act 2010. Protection extends to individuals associated with someone who has a protected characteristic, such as a family member or friend. Additionally, you are protected if you have complained about discrimination or supported someone else's claim. If the company wishes to create a specific Anti-Discrimination Policy, it would aim to ensure that all employees are treated fairly and equitably, regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, disability, or other characteristics that might otherwise result in discrimination. The purpose of this policy is to prevent discrimination and harassment in the workplace and to create a safe and inclusive environment for all employees. Additionally, it promotes a more positive and productive work environment, reduces the risk of legal liability, and helps to attract and retain a diverse and talented workforce. |
| Job Share Guidelines |
Incorporate job sharing into the company culture and as an engagement option offered to the crew. Job sharing involves two (or more) employees splitting the responsibilities of one full-time role. Pay, benefits and leave entitlement for job sharing are allocated on a pro rata or proportional basis, divided approximately by hours worked, relative to a full-time salary. |
| Creating an Inclusive Production for Parents or Carers (Guidelines) | Guidelines, suggestions and ideas on how to make the full life-span of a Production fully inclusive for parents and/or carers. This is an area where there is a huge amount of support for transformation, however, unless at a studio, the desire for change has not been fully realised. The proposal would be that at the start of the production you look at what actions you could take, big or small, to create a more inclusive production for parents and carers. Active encouragement of suggestions from the parents or carers on actions and methods of support could lead to groundbreaking pilot schemes. |
| Trans Inclusive Policy for SVP (or integrated into other policies) | While this forms part of the Anti-Discrimination and Anti-Bullying Policy of the company, a specific policy or set of guidelines could be created, or specific areas from the policy extracted and displayed as part of the production’s Best Practice Documentation. |
| Working From Home/Flexible Working Guidelines | Including Working from Home/Flexible Working as part of the company guidelines and type of engagement offered. |
Training
The below listings are included in all the totals of the Example Tables of Indicative Allowances:
| Training | Description | Band 1 | Band 2 | Band 3 | Band 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
ScreenSkills Inclusive Hiring |
E-learning Module | Online ScreenSkills Module - Free of Charge (FOC) | |||
|
ScreenSkills Diversity, Equity and Inclusion |
This online module provides a basic introduction to diversity, equity and inclusion for working in the screen industries. | Online ScreenSkills Module FOC | |||
| ScreenSkills Neurodivergence and Inclusion in the Screen Industries: Leaders and Managers | This course focuses on the role that screen industry professionals can play to ensure inclusion for people from neurodivergent communities, in particular those professionals in management roles who can help shape company policies and practices. | Online ScreenSkills Module FOC | |||
| Deaf Awareness Training | For all HETV Freelancers. Training to be taken when appropriate. | Online ScreenSkills Module FOC | |||
| Disability Awareness for Hirers | Training to be taken annually by (at least) executives, script team, management, HODs and supervisors. | Online ScreenSkills Module FOC | |||
| Transforming Film: Supporting Trans Professionals Training |
Recommended for HODs/Supervisors, can be run for entire crew. Training for key decision-making roles on ensuring the set is a safe and welcoming space for trans professionals. One full day in-person training, followed by two online sessions. |
£700.00- £850.00 for 60-90min session Basic allowance of one online session. Indicative Range: £700.00 - £850.00 |
£700.00- £1000.00 for 60-90min session Basic allowance of one online session. Indicative Range: £700.00 - £1000.00 |
Complete package training for HOD’s and supervisors (up to 20 people) Indicative Range: •One full day in-person training |
|
Initiatives
The below listings are included in all the totals of the Example Tables of Indicative Allowances:
| Service | Description | Band 1 | Band 2 | Band 3 | Band 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HETV Skills Fund/Job Share | Allowance offered per job share pair to pay for the shared sixth cross over day. | Already included in Career Development and Trainee section under Make a Move Plus | |||
| Gender Neutral Toilets | Single trap, individual cubicles. | N/A: Contact suppliers for quotes | |||
| Inclusivity Risk Assessment (RA) | Would form part of a Wellbeing RA. | Indicative Range: £400.00 - £650.00 | |||
| Outreach/Positive Local Engagement near Production Base | As well as engaging with companies who recruit using positive action, productions could also advertise production opportunities on local online groups as well as recruiting in local youth/community centres. | Indicative Range: £500.00 - £1,500.00 | |||
| Recruitment Partners | Strategic partnerships for positive recruiting actions. These are companies who work within the community that the production is trying to engage with. By allowing a fee as part of their “finder” service it creates a more formal approach to recruitment. | Indicative Range: £500.00-1,000.00 | Indicative Range: £500.00 - £2,000.00 | ||
| Relocation Budget for Regional and Diverse Talent | Allowance to contribute towards travel, living and accommodation for diverse talent who do not live within commutable distance of cities where filming takes place. May also be opportunities through industry organisations for bursaries. | Indicative Range: £5,000.00 - £10,000.00 | |||
| SPV Bursary or Loan to Cast or Crew | For those who require support to initially take the role (e.g. travel expenses). This would be repayable from their weekly wage or as agreed locally by the Production. May also be opportunities through industry organisations for bursaries. | Indicative Range: £5,000.00 - £10,000.00 | |||
| Service | Info | Band 1 | Band 2 | Band 3 | Band 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transport Provisions | Minibus/Transport for locations not accessible by public transport/ bicycle. |
£240.00-270.00 Per Day Allow 2 days per week based on a 10 week shoot Indicative Range: £4,800.00 - £5,400.00 |
|||
The below listings are not included in the Example Table of Indicative Allowances as they are bespoke services.
| Service | Info | Band 1 | Band 2 | Band 3 | Band 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trans Buddy (Advocate) |
This is a role recommended if there are only one or two trans crew members on set. This role is there to support the trans professionals on set and allows them to get on with their job without having to advocate for themselves and other trans people on set on top of this. If you have a Wellbeing Facilitator on set, it may be that they are qualified to serve as an advocate. Indicative costs based on a 10 week shoot and rates vary depending on experience and requirements of production. |
£650.00 - £800.00 per week Allow for 5 Days prep, 10 week shoot and one day wrap Indicative Range: £7,280.00 - £8,960.00 |
£700.00 - £850.00 per week Allow for 5 Days prep, 10 week shoot and one day wrap Indicative Range: £7,840.00 - £9,520.00 |
£750.00 - £900.00 per week Allow for 5 Days prep, 10 week shoot and one day wrap Indicative Range: £8,400.00 - £10,080.00 |
|
| Childcare Staff and Services | Make an allowance in place to support parents/ caregivers. This allowance is there for productions to pilot ideas. While there are studio solutions to childcare, productions generally only currently have job sharing and flexible working as actions that acknowledge and work to accommodate parents working in the film and TV industry. |
Pilot Scheme/ Initiative Allowance: Indicative Range: £5,000.00 - £10,000.00 |
Pilot Scheme/ Initiative Allowance: Indicative Range: £10,000.00 - £25,000.00 |
||
| Gender Identity Consultant |
Recommended if project features trans cast or storylines. Recommended if any crew or cast is trans. |
Off set - Consultancy Indicative Range: £240.00 - £300.00 Onset - £680.00 -800.00 /day Indicative Range: £680.00 - £800.00 |
Off set - Consultancy Indicative Range: £240.00 - £300.00 Onset - £800.00 -900.00 /day Indicative Range: £800.00 - £900.00 |
Off set - Consultancy Indicative Range: £240.00 - £300.00 Indicative Range - £900.00 minimum Indicative Range: £900.00 + |
|
| Producer & Director Shadow Placement |
Positive Action re DEI. | N/A | Already included in Careers Development and Trainee Section | ||
| Work Experience |
Recruit from Non-Institutional Youth Organisations: local organisations, youth centres, organisations offering support to marginalised/ underrepresented/underprivileged youth. Advise taking two people at a time to operate a buddy system. |
Already included in Career Development and Trainee Section | |||
Please note: HETV Skills Fund training courses are regularly reviewed and new training programmes are commissioned each Spring following the convening of the 12 industry working groups and their discussions and recommendations based on the annual HETV Skills research. The details included in this resource about available ScreenSkills HETV courses should not be seen as definitive so please check with the HETV Skills Fund Team about training available for your production.
ScreenSkills delivers annual DEI training for productions and freelancers in line with industry need. Please check their Training and Opportunities page for the latest updates.