Celebrating a diverse workforce

If you want to make a lasting difference, you have to embrace difference. People, faces, accents, backgrounds.

One of the commitments that the BBC made when it established a new creative base here in the North of England was to be as accessible and as close to our audiences as possible.

Part of this is ensuring accurate and honest portrayal in everything from news and current affairs to drama, comedy and entertainment. It reflects the reality of life to the audience and adds a vital dimension to story-telling and reporting.

BBC Children's has always been at the leading edge of change for the BBC. For years it has worked with adults and children who have a disability including presenters Ade Adepitan and actors Cara Readle and Chris Slater and Newsround’s lovely Rosie, who presented that award-winning programme on autism. Each and every one of them brought a fresh perspective and point of view to the stories they were involved in.

But portrayal is only as accurate and honest as the knowledge and experience on which it is based. So just as important are the people behind the camera in supporting roles.

This week we have been celebrating these people – often the unsung heroes - who help make the programmes that our audiences love. When you watch this film made here at BBC North you are immediately struck by the passion the contributors have for what they do and what they make. It was put together by BBC Learning with the help of BBC North’s eleven Extendees who are on six month placements as part of a BBC-wide scheme for people with disabilities. It is their story in their words.

In Salford recently we also delivered a talent masterclass for those working with deaf contributors, presenters and actors. Hosted by North West Tonight's Roger Johnson and featuring speakers including Four Weddings And A Funeral actor David Bower and producers from our own production teams, it looked at working creatively with people with a hearing impairment including on radio drama and BBC Children’s programmes as well as how a classic format such as Mastermind could be adapted to make richer content for all our audiences.

Much of our recent inspiration has been through great disability sport and Dame Tanni Grey Thompson was the bedrock of BBC Radio 5 live's Paralympics coverage. To mark that big event, in partnership with Manchester City’s community disability sports coaches, we hosted a Paralympic School Sports Day here on the piazza for schools in Greater Manchester. On the day young people had the chance to try wheelchair rugby and football, athletics and precision ball sport boccia.

Of course diversity is much broader than just disability.

Our North Young Ambassador and Apprentices schemes, launched in our own backyard nearly two years ago, were central to creating opportunities for people who might never have considered that working for the BBC was an option. Today some of those ambassadors are employed at the BBC, others have gone to college or on to further training or employment elsewhere and we have twenty apprentices getting on the job training and mentoring across the site. We support them - and they enhance our work here too - and we will continue to offer these valuable opportunities.

Next up, at the beginning of May we will host an Expert Women’s Day here in Salford with the BBC Academy. This is part of a concerted effort with the rest of the Corporation to develop on-air talent and help boost the representation of women with a particular focus on sport; politics, economics and business; Islam; science; gadgets and consumer tech; crime and security. It promises to be a rich, fun, stimulating event - and very practical.

I have always said that BBC North should be a filter not a fortress. This remains even more important a commitment today than two years ago – when the first staff moved in - both in front of and behind the camera.

Peter Salmon is Director of BBC North.