Making Productions Inclusive for Those with Caring Responsibilities

Written by Wellbeing Facilitator Carys Mol. Carys works as a WBF across film, drama, and unscripted TV and consults on a range of areas including vulnerable contributor care, company culture, and promoting wellbeing on productions.??

Long working days and time away from home are not just common on TV & Film productions, they’re routine. It's also not uncommon for crew and cast to spend weeks or months away from home. But what happens when you’re working on a production AND have caring responsibilities at home? Without the right support, all too often it can result in burnout or forced exit from the industry.???

We and many others feel that it shouldn’t have to be a choice between work and care. In this blog, we’ll look at the issues facing screen sector workers and how productions can support those with care responsibilities.??

What does it mean to have caring responsibilities???

Caring is often an invisible and undervalued labor. Whether you’re caring for a child, relative or friend, it can be emotionally and physically exhausting work. And just because you’re busy working on a production, the concern and responsibility doesn’t go away. A parent or carer may well find themselves juggling and planning support alongside work tasks, which can be worrisome and draining in an already demanding industry.??

The importance of inclusive productions??

It’s essential that productions are aware of the demands on parents/carers and take steps to make their workplaces inclusive. There’s a human and a business case for this - if workers are forced to juggle work and care responsibilities without the right support, they may well find it hard to be their best selves at work. This can result in decreased performance, lower job satisfaction, burnout and early departure - all of which can result in further costs for production.??

How is it looking? ?

The organisation Raising Films has done phenomenal work to survey and advocate for parents and carers in the UK screen sector since 2015. Their surveys Making It Possible (2016) and We Need to Talk About Caring (2019) were the first look at the impact of parenting and caring labour on Film and TV workers across the UK.???

Their data and testimonials reveal very clear barriers facing workers, and disproportionately female workers, with caring responsibilities. In one survey, 79% of respondents said, “their caring role has had a negative impact on their role within the industry” and 75% said “financial or in-kind assistance is somewhat or absolutely crucial to their ability to perform/develop their role in the industry.”???

With these statistics we can easily see how lacking financial and/or practical support can result in reduced wellbeing at work and increased departures from the industry. With 68% of respondents saying that they find accessing flexible childcare difficult, and the cost of this care being a significant issue, if productions don’t take steps to address this, we’re looking at a continuing loss of talent and diversity from the industry.??

So, what can productions do???

Raising Films have done (and continue to do) amazing work in this area. We encourage production companies to read and digest the stories and reports on their website, but also to make use of the range of resources available. They have clear guidance for making each step of the production process inclusive (from development to distribution) as well as handy industry checklists for recommended actions. No matter the scale or duration of your production, there’s something that can be done to make productions more inclusive.??

Example recommendations:??

• Normalise conversations about care and support needs and encourage workers to ask for what they need. Maybe a good phone signal is an absolute necessity for a parent’s peace of mind while at work - ask the questions, find out and consider what can be done to support them.??

• Make childcare a line in production budgets and clearly signpost workers to accessing this support. You might want to consider subsidising childcare costs or organising subsidised on-set childcare options. Start by talking to your workers and finding out what would be most useful for them.??

• Encourage flexible working, role-sharing and job-splits – these can work so well and help to retain talent and diversity within the industry. Raising Films have compiled great resources that explain and model how job sharing can be implemented.??

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Lastly, bringing a Wellbeing Facilitator onto your production can be an additional way to support the wider needs and concerns of crew and cast, including those with care responsibilities. Our trained WBFs are highly trained, independent and neutral presences on set and work to support the mental health and wellbeing of your cast and crew. They will advise and support producers on how to prevent stress and mental health issues and meet their legal duty of care to all workers, overall supporting the creation of mentally healthier productions for everyone.