Skillset and industry create UK's first ever TV skills strategy
The television industry is in a period of intense and unprecedented change. Digital broadcasting will change the way we watch TV forever. Very soon we will be able to enjoy the content we want, where we want, and when we want it - even on the move.
Such change presents major challenges and opportunities for training and skills development right across the TV industry. But employers report significant skills gaps and shortages which could threaten future success and international competitiveness unless they are addressed.
Skillset's new TV Skills Strategy (part of its Sector Skills Agreement with industry) is designed to make sure the industry has access to all the talented, skilled and trained people it needs both now and in the future.
Funding for the strategy will come from a range of sources including £1.5 million a year from the TV Freelance Fund, managed by Skillset and made up of contributions from the major broadcasters and cable and satellite companies, plus a voluntary and long-established levy on independent producers - the Independent Producers Training Fund.
A new training and skills regulatory body, set up jointly by Skillset, Ofcom and the industry, is a vital part of the TV skills strategy. The Broadcast Training and Skills Regulator (BTSR) will make sure that training is relevant to the industry's needs.
The Skillset TV Skills Strategy includes a comprehensive action plan designed to make sure that the objectives contained in the strategy are translated into real skills on the ground over the next ten years. Skillset, employers and education providers will work together to:
- Develop a new creative and media qualification for 14-19 year olds;
- Launch a network of Skillset Academies - centres of excellence for courses in TV and media in further and higher education;
- Create a UK-wide advice and guidance service for people looking to embark on or develop careers in television (so that people make decisions based on an up-to-date understanding of the skills needed by the industry);
- Develop industry recognised qualifications, particularly in areas where there are skills gaps and shortages;
- Increase the number of places on structured development courses for new entrants to the industry;
- Support targeted training and retraining of freelancers;
- Establish an industry-wide pooled fund to support the training of freelancers;
- Carry out a biennial survey of the size and shape of the workforce to obtain up-to-date information about skills gaps and shortages.
Shaun Woodward MP, Minister for Creative Industries and Tourism, said, "The new TV Skills Strategy will ensure that the broadcasting industry develops the talent and creativity of its workforce to maintain the UK's position on the global stage."
