British Broadcasting Union Leaders, Agents, and Mark Milsome Foundation Ask Government for Support to Prevent On-Set Injuries: A Call to Action for the Industry
EXCLUSIVE: Leaders from the British broadcasting union, along with a network of agents and anti-bullying advocates, have called on the government to enhance safety measures on film, television, and theater sets.
A coalition of 15 prominent industry figures has signed an open letter addressed to UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden. The letter was issued last night.
The signatories are advocating for a comprehensive “framework” aimed at promoting safety for cast and crew during production.
Organized by Tome Levi of the Injury Prevention Consultancy (IPC), this letter follows a pivotal IPC report that ignited discussions about critical safety issues in the industry. The report highlighted gaps in communication regarding the physical demands of acting roles and underscored the rising incidence of workplace injuries, expensive insurance claims, and the potential for severe mental health repercussions.
Since the release of the report, there has been notable frustration over the lack of action. Among those who signed the letter are Philippa Childs, head of the Bectu broadcasting union; Donna French and Kevin Brady, co-chairs of the Personal Managers’ Association; and Jen Smith from the Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority (CIISA). Also included is Andra Milsome, founder of the Mark Milsome Foundation, established in memory of her husband, who died on the set of the Netflix-BBC drama Black Earth Rising in 2017.
The coalition has requested a meeting with Nandy and McFadden in October to discuss necessary systemic changes.
The issue of safety on sets gained wider attention following the death of Milsome, deemed preventable in an inquest in 2020. This concern resurfaced after the tragic death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust, where a prop gun fired by Alec Baldwin discharged a live bullet. Recent cases of injuries on set include Sophie Turner on Tomb Raider, Henry Cavill on Highlander, and Ian McKellen on Player Kings.
Dear Secretaries of State,
We the undersigned are writing to bring to your attention the high rates of workplace injury in the UK’s film, television, and theatrical industries. This matter was highlighted last year when the IPC’s Impact of Injury (IOI24) report unveiled difficult yet urgent truths about the realities of working in production. In the wake of its publication, the findings sparked an industry-wide conversation about areas of production safety that have been historically overlooked and presented employers with a powerful case to ameliorate this state of play.
Our industry’s greatest asset is its people, and protecting their welfare is a responsibility we all share. We have heard the concerns of our colleagues and are committed to taking action to make things better.
We recognize that we are part of the systems we are asking to improve. The sectoral consultations and roundtables held in the wake of the IOI24 publication point to a solution that lies in improved education and enforced regulation in this space. As a broad coalition of industry stakeholders, we are committed to developing a framework that will encompass both and, in doing so, promote the safety of cast and crew at work. In order to actualize the degree of systemic change we want to see, we ask for the direct engagement of the addressed government departments to support the development and delivery of this framework. In view of this, we would welcome your commitment to meet with the signatories of this letter at our next meeting in October 2026.
In the Creative Industries Sector Plan in the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy, the Culture Secretary’s Ministerial foreword states: “By 2035, the UK will be recognized as the best place in the world to make and invest in film and TV, video games, music, performing and visual arts, and advertising and marketing.” Against the backdrop of this government’s stated aim, we ask the government to recognize that high job quality cannot coexist with high workplace injury rates and acknowledge the strong and clear alignment between these policy ambitions and the need for further robust, solution-led work to reduce the occurrence of workplace injury in this sector.
It is incumbent upon all stakeholders to recognize that the safety and welfare of our workforce is fundamental to safeguarding the world-class product that the British stage and screen sectors offer. We have called upon our industry to meet this moment and demonstrate a united front in calling for action to improve the safety of working conditions. We now call on this government to support us in making this action a reality.
