All Set West

The project includes:

• All Set West Hub: an online platform designed to help new entrants navigate the industry and to connect industry opportunities with diverse local talent
• All Set West training and placements: a free training programme that provides participants with the skills and knowledge to become ‘set-ready’ for a career in scripted film and TV production. They then work with productions filming locally to connect trainees up with placements, giving them their first important credit.

All Set West was inspired by the rapid growth of film and high end television production in the West of England, alongside clear evidence that local people were not proportionately benefiting from the resulting employment opportunities. Regional investment in the expansion of The Bottle Yard Studios, alongside increased inward investment, attracted a growing number of film and television productions to the area. However, entry level roles were frequently filled by crew from outside the region, revealing a gap between production growth and local workforce access. At the same time, regionally based talent without existing industry networks, along with education and skills partners, consistently highlighted the need for clearer, more accessible and better supported pathways into the screen industries. 

The project was shaped by learning from a successful 2024 pilot Workforce Development Programme, funded by the West of England Combined Authority’s Mayoral Priority Skills Fund and delivered at The Bottle Yard Studios. Project outcomes demonstrated both strong demand from local participants and tangible onward opportunities, with many trainees progressing into paid industry work. This evidence underscored the need for a longer term, structured and inclusive approach. 

All Set West was also motivated by a commitment to addressing longstanding barriers to entry into the screen industries, particularly for people from backgrounds underrepresented in the workforce. These barriers included limited industry knowledge, lack of professional networks, financial constraints and a perception that film and television careers were inaccessible. 

Funded through the BFI National Lottery Places Fund, All Set West was designed as a place based response, aligning skills development with regional growth. Its core ambition is to ensure that the expansion of the screen industry delivers lasting social and economic benefits for local communities by building a skilled, diverse and sustainable workforce rooted in the West of England.

Reflecting national trends identified in the BFI’s Skills Review (June 2022) and Olsberg’s Workforce Development Report (July 2023) commissioned by Bristol City Council and The Bottle Yard Studios to address screen sector skills gaps ; we had a drive to make the Film/TV sector workforce in the West of England region skilled and reflective of the population. This included more equitable and visible routes into the sector for people of all ages, and for people from under-represented groups across the region to access the support they need to develop their careers and skills in scripted TV and Film. 

Under-represented groups in our programme include people from the global majority, disabled/neurodivergent people and people with poor mental health, women, people from the LGBTQ+ community, carers and those experiencing/leaving care, and refugees and asylum seekers. 

Inclusion is at the heart of the programme and how we measure its success. Partners share our aspirations and are highly experienced in recruiting and supporting participants with multiple needs facing barriers to accessing training programmes. All participants are supported with a ring-fenced access budget and one to one wraparound support, plus signposting to services such as wellbeing support. We also ensured that trainers/mentors/role models have the same high standard of representation and are active advocates of diverse representation within the sector.

Year one of the project consisted of research into current provision for new entrants interested in Film/TV careers as well as consultation with community organisations and educators. The team also met with visiting productions to find out what skills they required from prospective crew and to understand more about how the Bottle Yard Studios/Bristol Film Office could support this. 

In year two we were awarded Mayoral Skills Priority Funds to develop a training programme for local people from underrepresented backgrounds*. We procured a local training provider who delivered a five-week programme (one day per week) that covered confidence building, set etiquette and work-readiness, communication skills and teamwork, wellbeing and resilience, as well financial literacy and how to work as a freelancer. We worked with local charities/community organisations as well as our council colleagues to promote the opportunity. We delivered the training three times in year one and worked with visiting productions to place the trainees into work experience on set. 

In 2025-26 we received funding from the British Film Institute’s Places fund to continue this work. In addition to two more rounds of the training, we also launched the All Set West Hub, an online platform that highlights resources, opportunities and events from the region that support new entrants to the industry: All Set West.

The results of year one of the programme were hugely positive with 77% of our participants going on to paid work experience within the Film and TV Industry. In year two, 13 of the 15 round one participants were placed with series two of a high profile HETV production based at the Bottle Yard Studios and four placed with a local short film. With 12 places secured for the participants of round two on both a returning comedy series, and a short film on location in the region. 

To date our All Set West Hub has approximately 50 ‘Industry Connectors’; people working in the industry with opportunities to share, and over 600 ‘Community Members’; people interested in a career in Film and Television. 

We are also strongly connected to community organisations in the region and the universities and FE Colleges; attending a number of education outreach events as well as hosting regular studio tours and careers talks. 

In 2025 we were awarded with the Best UK Industry Skills Initiative at the Broadcast Tech Awards raising the profile of the project nationally and highlighting the scheme as best practice in the industry: Winners - Broadcast Tech Innovation Awards. Judges praised All Set West as “a skills initiative that delivers real, measurable change, with its inclusive focus and innovative approach to building a new creative pipeline.”

A key learning from the project has been to ensure that our trainees receive pastoral support through the training, their early career and beyond. A community of new entrants has naturally formed from the programme, and this is something we will nurture as they continue their journey. 

It has become clear during the first couple of years of the project that continued support and training provision for mid-senior level crew will also ensure that skills gaps are filled and regional crew is retained across every career level. 

We have also learned how important outreach is to ensure that the project is open to all. Working with organisations that are already working with their communities means the project reaches more people from underrepresented backgrounds. As well as this, an Access Fund which allows people from lower socio-economic backgrounds to take part has been a crucial part of the programme.

In Year One we delivered training three times which meant we had a large number of trainees looking for opportunities which added more pressure. In Year Two we ran the training twice which meant we could provide opportunities to more of the participants. 

We also ran a Community Tour in Year Two that was really successful in bringing the project to different communities and different parts of the West of England region. In hindsight, this would have been good to deliver in Year One whilst setting up the project: On the road for our Community Tour - All Set West

Use the departments you have within the council; many of our referrals have been from other council projects working with people from diverse backgrounds. Also, understand what the industry you are working with really needs from trainees. Finally, continue the support for the trainees whilst they start their career journey and encourage them to form a community with other participants for peer-to-peer support.

The project has delivered strong and demonstrable results. By placing outreach at the heart of delivery, All Set West has successfully engaged people who would not historically have accessed opportunities in the screen industries. This approach has reduced barriers linked to lack of networks, industry knowledge and confidence, helping to widen participation and diversify the local talent pool. 

Close collaboration with production companies and other industry partners has been central to the programme’s success. Working directly with employers ensured that training was aligned with real workforce needs, equipping participants with the skills, behaviours and understanding required for entry level roles and supporting progression into paid employment. 

#Looking ahead, the ambition is to secure continued funding to sustain and expand the programme, including the introduction of training and upskilling for mid and senior level crew. This next phase will help retain talent in the region, strengthen progression routes, and support the long term resilience of the West of England’s screen workforce.

All Set West

Winners - Broadcast Tech Innovation Awards

On the road for our Community Tour - All Set West