ENCOURAGING A NEW
generation of talent
WE ALL KNOW THAT REPRESENTATION MATTERS. AT A TIME WHEN ‘DIVERSITY’ HAS NEVER BEEN A HOTTER TOPIC, YET PROGRESS AROUND INCREASING THE NUMBER OF DISABLED PEOPLE IN THE MEDIA IS STILL MOVING AT A SNAIL’S PACE, WHAT CAN BE DONE TO MOTIVATE YOUNG PEOPLE TO PURSUE AMBITIONS OF WORKING – AND SUCCEEDING – IN TV AND FILM?
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March 2022 report by the Creative Diversity Network shows that while there has been some marginal improvement in diversity representation, this doesn’t include senior roles – and that representation of people with
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disabilities remains poor. In fact, both on-screen and off-screen, the TV industry falls far short of the 18% of the UK population who identify as having a disability, and this extends across all genres, broadcasters and job roles. The report notes that there