Screen Skills Plan launched to support local talent and create new opportunities

MDX partners with Barnet Council to grow jobs in the creative industries

A new Screen Skills Plan was launched by Barnet Council this week, setting out a strategy to establish the borough as a key centre for the UK’s film, TV, gaming and digital media industries. The plan aims to help residents, young people and graduates gain the skills and experience needed for jobs in these growing sectors.

Developed in partnership with Middlesex University, Barnet and Southgate College, Troubadour Studios and local industry leaders, the plan sets out a road map for how the council will work with education providers and employers to provide clearer routes into screen-sector jobs and training. London Higher, ScreenSkills, training providers, employers, Barnet small businesses, students, and graduates from within the borough and beyond, all fed into the plan.

The goal is to promote local opportunities to residents, students and businesses and support entry into careers through skills training, mentoring and work experience.

The Barnet Screen Skills Plan focuses on four key pillars to deliver its aims:

• Education – strengthening pathways from schools into higher education and industry-ready training
• Entrepreneurship – supporting freelancers, start-ups and creative businesses
• Environment – ensuring Barnet has the right physical and digital infrastructure for production
• Equal access – expanding opportunities for residents and students from all backgrounds

"We have excellent facilities, educators and industry professionals in Barnet. The Barnet Screen Skills Plan will help consolidate and build on this expertise to create and develop an environment that is more visible and brings more talent and investment to the screen industries in and around the borough."

Dr Helen Bendon, Head of the School of Film at Middlesex University and the plan’s lead author

Barnet is already home to major studio facilities including Middlesex University’s MDX Studios, Troubadour Brent Cross Studios and London North Studios alongside several community theatres and performing arts venues such as Arts Depot and HighRise Theatre.

With screen production on the rise, the demand for local talent, training and creative infrastructure is growing.

There has already been some progress with the plan’s aims, such as the transformed state-of-the-art screen and media facilities at MDX Studios, new pathways into work through Skills Bootcamps, placements, and inclusive recruitment, and a Screen Innovation Hub to support enterprise and tech integration.

Find out more about Screen London Barnet and the Screen Skills Plan. 

Read Helen Bendon's blog about the plan on MDX Voices.

Find out more about studying for creative degrees at Middlesex University.