Production Access Funding
Information for this section was primarily sourced from the TAP Toolkit, hosted on PACT’s website.
One of the recommendations made to production companies to make their film and TV projects more neuro-inclusive is to ensure a line for flexible accessibility support that is ring-fenced within your finance plan, agreed in advance with funders. Where production budgets are always already incredibly tight, this can feel like an additional burden.
But, thanks in large part to the incredible work of the TV Access Project (TAP)*, ensuring that there is sufficient access funding above and beyond the production budget is now a reality for many productions.
Members of TAP are committed to covering access, inclusion, and adjustment costs (whether they can be anticipated at the start or arise at a later date) not covered by Access to Work for scripted and unscripted productions via an Access Funding Request.
While each individual Broadcaster or Streamer has their own processes, they have all committed to the below approach:
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Each TAP member will have an Access Funding Contact (AFC) assigned to each production
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Productions should scope projects and must agree anticipated access costs with the Broadcaster or Streamer when planning the budget
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The production fills in an Access Funding Request Application form for the agreed amount (additional requests can be submitted using the same process)
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Broadcasters or Streamers will aim to respond quickly to Access Funding Applications - aiming to approve them at the same time as the initial budget or, when submitted later than that, within 2 weeks
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There is no cap or time limit on submissions of requests, as TAP members recognise that unexpected access costs can arise at any time on a production
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If a TAP member is funding most of the budget on a production, it will be agreed which company pays for access - if it is co-funded with non-TAP members or overseas partners, every effort will be made to come to an agreement over funding access (though recognising that this may not be possible)
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Productions will be expected to pay back any unspent funding at the end of the project
Examples of access costs that may be incurred by productions but may not covered by Access to Work:
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Making cast and crew callouts more accessible (e.g. a redesign or a BSL version of a job flyer)
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Redesigning an established set to make it more accessible
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Neurodiversity training for production crew
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Hiring accessible facilities (e.g. additional trailer for quiet zones, or one that is wheelchair accessible)
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- Paying for access and adjustments for Disabled contributors participating in the production who are not employed by the company - and therefore not eligible for Access to Work
Production companies would make an Access Funding Request to the Broadcaster or Streamer where these costs can not be accommodated by the existing production budget.
For more information on Access Funding Requests, check out:
Spotlight On: TV Access Project (TAP)
Launched in 2022, the TV Access Project (TAP) 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 Deaf, Disabled, and/or Neurodivergent talent.
Its vision is to see full inclusion by 2030 - that is to say, a TV industry where no Disabled talent is ever excluded because barriers have been removed and equity created.
At its 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.
For more information on TAP and their incredible work, and how you can engage with it, check out: