Spotlight Members to Access New Flexible Family Support Initiative
Spotlight and Equity announce their support of the ‘PIPA My Family Care Pilot’
Spotlight and Equity are delighted to announce their support of the ‘PIPA My Family Care Pilot’, a scheme launching in January 2019. Parents and Carers in Performing Arts (PIPA) have partnered with My Family Care, to offer a resolution for parents and carers working in the performing arts who require flexible family support, due to the unpredictable nature of their careers. My Family Care is the UK’s leader in delivering family-friendly solutions, to provide users with access to a wide range of resources, including UK wide ad hoc child and elder care.
About PIPA My Family Care Pilot
The ‘PIPA My Family Care Pilot’ will allow Equity and Spotlight members as well as referred individuals from PIPA Strategic Partners, to access a range of resources, services, and support.
These resources are ideal for working parents and carers and include:
● Flexible, Ad-Hoc Childcare
● School Holiday Cover
● Backup Adult & Eldercare
● Care Choices
● Being a Dad
● Speak to a Work+Family Expert
● Webinars
● Insider Guides
Backup Care
Via ‘PIPA My Family Care Pilot’, referred members of Equity, Spotlight and PIPA Strategic Partners will have access to Backup Care, when they are otherwise unable to fulfil their work commitments. Signing up to the pilot will allow users to access ad hoc nursery places, registered childminders, vetted nannies, school holiday cover and backup adult and eldercare all across the UK, even at the last minute.
Robert Ashby, Executive Director of Actors’ Children’s Trust said that "actor-parents are encouraged to contact ACT to see if they are eligible for childcare funding."
The scheme will run from 1st January 2019 till 31st of December 2019. To register interest Equity and Spotlight members need to email [email protected], with the subject title PIPA MFC Pilot,
as places are limited.
We have always placed great value in being a partner of PIPA, and supporting all parents and carers who work within our industry. We are especially delighted to be supporting this pilot scheme, giving our members the support they require to make the most of all work opportunities. We look forward to seeing how the scheme takes off in 2019.
PIPA research has highlighted the need for UK wide, ad-hoc, flexible care, without which the performing arts caring workforce will continue to struggle. The PIPA Balancing Act survey identified a workforce reliant on family and partners to provide ad-hoc childcare. Not only is this is unsustainable, for many it is unavailable and results in missed work opportunities. We are very excited to work with My Family Care, Equity and Spotlight, on making this invaluable resource, widely used by corporate employers, accessible to an industry with unsociable and unpredictable working patterns. We encourage as many eligible people to sign up to the trial as possible so we can get a clear understanding of the need and how the scheme can be developed further.
I am really proud to support the PIPA My Family Care Pilot- a potential game changer for our industry. Cast and crew work crazy hours, long, late and last minute, across the whole entertainment industry. Access to flexible childcare is crucial. PIPA's recent research identified that 8 out of 10 freelancers with caring responsibilities had to turn down work because of childcare issues. How many missed opportunities is that? Whilst there isn't a one-size-fits-all solution we've got to have options. If you don't have family nearby to parachute in at the last minute, for many, and especially mothers, it means you can't do the job. As an Equity member, I for one will be signing up for the trial.
About Equity:
We are a union of more than 43,000 performers and creative practitioners, united in the fight for fair terms and conditions in the workplace. We are actors, singers, dancers, designers, directors, stage managers, puppeteers, comedians, voice artists, and variety performers. We work on stage, on TV sets, on the catwalk, in film studios, in recording studios, in night clubs and in circus tents. Equity brings together entertainment professionals and ensures their demands are heard: whether these are for decent pay, better health and safety regulations, or more opportunities for all – regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexuality, disability or class.
About PIPA:
PIPA’s vision is of a world in which carers and parents are able to flourish in the Performing Arts at every stage in their career. The Industry benefits from maintaining a skilled, experienced and varied workforce. PIPA enables and empowers parents, carers and employers to achieve sustainable change in attitudes and practices in order to attract, support and retain a more diverse and flexible workforce. By working in partnership we raise awareness, find creative solutions and promote best practice in the UK Performing Arts.
About My Family Care:
My Family Care is the UK’s leading provider of family-friendly employer solutions. Our vision is to prove that the employee who combines career and family successfully can be a hugely engaged and productive member of any team. Our services include Consultancy & Training, online and offline leadership and transition Coaching, including maternity and paternity coaching. Our award winning Emergency Childcare, Care Choices and Backup Care Services are accessed via the unique Work+family Space, a customised portal site created for working parents and carers within client’s organisations, and the Parental Leave Toolkit can be integrated into the portal or provided as a standalone site.
About Spotlight:
Founded in 1927, Spotlight connects performers with roles in theatre, television and film productions. Casting professionals choose Spotlight to cast their projects because performers on Spotlight are recognised as the industry’s best. Everything we do at Spotlight helps talented performers find work. Whether we're developing new tools for each stage of the casting process or running events to connect professionals working in all areas of the industry, at Spotlight we are constantly developing new ways to support performers at every stage of their career. With studios in London’s famous West End, Dublin’s stylish Smithfields and a team of people across Europe, Spotlight is at the heart of the performing arts industry.
