Last Updated on 02/11/2023 by Emma Purcell
One year on from its launch at the Edinburgh TV Festival 2022, The TV Access Project (TAP) is celebrating the progress made to date by the alliance, marking this year’s Festival with key initiatives and events, and crucially laying out the work still to be done to reach its target of creating full inclusion for Deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent talent by 2030.
In Phase One of its roadmap, TAP has delivered 20 sustainable, tangible solutions towards its vision of full inclusion for Deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent talent by 2030, including 5As Guidelines and widespread training on inclusivity in production, an Access to Work pilot scheme, TAP Activator commitments for Production Spaces, and more.
What is the TV Access Project?
The TV Access Project (TAP) was formed in response to the campaign by Underlying Health Condition (UHC), which was set up by Disabled creatives Genevieve Barr, Katie Player and Holly Lubran along with screenwriter Jack Thorne, following his impassioned MacTaggart Lecture at the Edinburgh TV Festival in 2021. TAP is supported by 15 partners who are Disabled-led disability interest groups and other not-for-profits, including Deaf & Disabled People in TV (DDPTV) and TripleC / DANC (Disabled Artists Networking Community), as well as pan-industry organisations such as Creative Diversity Network, PACT and ScreenSkills.
It is an alliance of ten of the UK’s biggest broadcasters and streamers who have pledged to work together to create a substantive and permanent structural shift in the TV industry to ensure access provision for Disabled talent.
Its vision is to see full inclusion by 2030 – that is to say, a television industry where no Disabled talent is ever excluded because barriers have been removed and equity created.
At the heart, this is an ambitious co-creation between disabled people and the wider industry to deliver sustainable solutions with buy-in for and from everyone.
This alliance is supported by many other associate members and partners within the TV business – in total, the work to date has been led by over 150 people working across the industry, to create sustainable solutions.
TAP has already announced its pilot talent programme, TAPstars, supporting Deaf, Disabled and/or Neurodivergent off-screen talent to take part in this year’s Festival, and a key Festival session on Thursday 24th August – The 6.5% Club: TAP’s All-Star Gameshow Mash-up.
In this event, hosted by former Paralympian Ade Adepitan, two teams of industry executives, captained by comedians Rosie Jones and Shaparak Khorsandi, will test each other’s knowledge on how to build a truly inclusive broadcasting industry by 2030.
Join us for a session like no other, The 6.5% Club: TAP’s All-Star Gameshow Mash Up! ⭐️📺
Our teams of TV big wigs, comedy stars & creatives test their knowhow on building a truly inclusive industry by 2030 via rounds that we’ve… ‘borrowed’ from existing hit shows. pic.twitter.com/6GYp9VJvg4
— Edinburgh TV Festival (@EdinburghTVFest) August 7, 2023
TAP milestone achievements
Over the past 12 months, TAP has delivered the following 20 sustainable, tangible solutions towards its vision for full inclusion by 2030. These include:
In terms of funding access costs…
1. a commitment from all TAP members to fund necessary access costs not covered by Access to Work, over and above the production budget.
2. a proposed core universal process for delivering on this commitment, subject to further consultation in Autumn 2023
Regarding Access to Work…
3. an Access To Work pilot launching in Autumn 2023 working with a third-party organisation to fast-track applications and access provision for freelancers, and oversee reimbursements from Access to Work; the first pilot productions are confirmed as Channel 4’s Hollyoaks and ITV’s Code of Silence
4. a written statement of what Access To Work funding covers within TV productions and which access costs need to be covered by productions.
When it comes to industry best practice guidance…
5. The 5As: Guidelines For Disability Inclusion In UK Television Production
6. 82 Commissioning Editors and senior leaders from across TAP members have now received fundamental 5As training from CDN.
7. free off-the-shelf 5As training materials available via Screenskills from September, for including in any existing training courses
8. a commitment to pilot an evaluation framework for organisations who have adopted The 5As, to mark and monitor their progress.
9. short VTs, featuring talents such as Rosie Jones, Lost Voice Guy Lee Ridley and Tanni Grey-Thompson, which bring the 5As to life for programme-makers in the key areas of leadership, hiring and casting, available on the CDN website.
For introducing and establishing access roles…
10. an outline of key access-related roles & responsibilities across productions and commissioning to be adopted, including – alongside Access Coordinators – Access Champions at every broadcaster and streamer, Access Funding Contacts for every commission, and Access Links on all productions.
11. a TAP Access Coordinator job overview and job description.
12. an Access Coordinator 360-degree evaluation process.
Looking at talent retention & progression…
13. launch of the TAPstar programme, providing early-level Disabled talent with the opportunity to come to the Edinburgh TV Festival 2023, with additional support and networking.
14. developing proposals for long-term interventions on talent retention & progression, delivering by the end of 2023.
Working in partnership with 70+ Production Spaces companies, including…
15. 19 Production Space companies have already signed up to a set of TAP Activator commitments, including publishing their own roadmap for ongoing improvements to enable full inclusion in 2030.
16. developing TAP Audit Checklists for Production Spaces, to enable businesses to self-assess the key accessibility features that can represent a barrier to some Deaf, Disabled and/or Neurodivergent people.
17. developing locations-specific and Outside Broadcast-specific versions of these checklists.
18. developing TAP Self-Assessment Templates providing a simple breakdown for companies to create personalised access statements for their websites so users can understand what access is available.
19. a TAP Blueprint for Accessible Location Facility Vehicles.
20. developing a searchable digital database for all Production Spaces to publicly share their access status and information.
Screenwriter Jack Thorne said: “Through the commitment and hard work of TAP’s members and partners, and its central team, tangible progress is being made, which will lead to a real difference for disability inclusion in the industry. There are now tools and resources in place, and processes for organisations to make commitments and be accountable. We feel strongly that the reason for this progress is because for the first time, the industry and its most senior leaders have come together – with Disabled people at the heart of the idea generation, and driving the agenda. But there is still so much more to be done, and we call on our members, partners and the entire TV business to remain focused on our target of full inclusion for Deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent people across the broadcast industry by 2030.”
Next steps for TAP
TAP has also produced a Roadmap to Full Inclusion by 2030 outlining the anticipated next steps and milestones, as Phase 2 begins under new project leadership and moves towards seeing disability inclusion folded into standard industry practice by 2030.
This includes:
- 2024: a focus on people and pipelines
- 2025: embedding TAP within industry partners
- 2026-2028: maintaining and monitoring progress
- 2029: assessing progress and addressing any gaps in achieving full inclusion by 2030 and considering expanding into other creative industries
- 2030: celebrating success
This document also identifies what full inclusion by 2030 looks like, including:
- no Disabled talent excluded from the TV industry because of their impairment or condition
- consistency of practice to ensure that access needs are always asked about and provided for, for all
- adequate and consistent funding for any necessary access costs
- a healthy talent pipeline and Disabled people in senior, decision-making roles
- accountability for broadcasters, streamers, production companies and other industry organisations to achieve and maintain high standards for disability inclusion
- in line with the Equality Act 2010, ableism, prejudice and discrimination are considered unacceptable and not tolerated
- a culture where disability is accepted and celebrated, and Disabled talent feel safe to disclose
- a workforce which reflects the working-age Disabled population of the UK
For more information on the TV Access Project, visit the Creative Diversity Network website.
Have you noticed an increase in disability representation on and off screen over the past year? Let us know in the comments box or on social media.
