Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to improve socio-economic diversity and representation in the creative industries.

A creative career should never be the preserve of a privileged few. The sector’s skilled and dynamic workforce is one of its key strengths, but more work still needs to be done so that, regardless of their background, people feel that a creative career is an option for them.

Making creative careers accessible for everyone is a key priority for the Government. That is why we are supporting creative apprenticeships and providing funding for partners including Screenskills and the BFI Film Academy to open pathways for young people, in particular those from underrepresented backgrounds.

The Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) is working with industry to deliver a UK-wide £9 million Creative Careers Service, which aims to build awareness of creative careers and provide specialist advice with a particular focus on priority areas where children face the greatest barriers to accessing creative opportunities.

In film and TV specifically, we announced in the Creative Industries Sector Plan that we will be investing £75 million in the UK’s film and TV industry over the next three years. This includes support for the next generation of filmmakers.

The Government is pleased to see industry initiatives to monitor and improve diversity in the creative industries such as Project Diamond and the TV Access Project. However, there clearly remains work to do and we want to see stronger efforts from industry to improve socio-economic diversity and representation in the creative industries.