ITV Academy Original Voices

Programme · 2026Prestige 68/100

Three paid months inside Coronation Street or Emmerdale, learning how continuing drama actually works.

Deadlines & fees

Closed for this cycle

The 2026 round opened on 11 June 2026 and closed at 11:59pm on 2 July 2026, with no timezone published. IMPORTANT: this is not an annual scheme, despite being long-standing. Evidenced cycles ran in October 2021, August and September 2023, and June and July 2026, and ITV's own run-count confirms no cycle in 2022, 2024 or 2025. The window has moved from October to late August to mid June across those three rounds, with two and three year gaps between them. Do not diarise against it.

Dates and fees checked against the official site 9 Aug 2026.

Key facts

Formats: TV Pilot
Open to: United Kingdom
Required materials: A short creative task: the press release describes writing consecutive scenes from a provided story arc, while the careers listing asked for a one-page outline for a character-led storyline suitable for Coronation Street or Emmerdale · Applied through ITV's careers site as a job application

Applicants need at least one paid experience writing for film, television, audio drama, theatre or online content, a strong interest in continuing drama storytelling, and the ability to work to deadlines and respond to editorial feedback. Identity criteria are encouragement rather than a gate: the initiative particularly welcomes applications from People of Colour, Deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent people and those from working-class backgrounds, and ITV operates a Disability Confident guarantee to progress disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria. No residency or right-to-work requirement is published, which is a genuine gap for a paid UK employment contract. The role is hybrid but based at either Coronation Street in Manchester or Emmerdale in Leeds. Note the two official sources describe different application tasks: the press release says applicants write consecutive scenes from a provided story arc, while the careers listing asked for a one-page outline for a character-led storyline.

Prizes

This is a paid three-month full-time fixed-term contract, and ITV states no numeric rate anywhere. The only pay statement published is a floor: ITV is an accredited Living Wage employer and will pay no less than the Living Wage for any role. Because weekly hours are not published either, no total placement value can be calculated, and we have deliberately not estimated one. The fee for the shadow script commission is also unpublished. Standard ITV employment benefits are listed, including holiday, an annual bonus opportunity and pension contribution. RIGHTS: nothing is published. No option, first refusal, first look or exclusivity clause appears in the announcement or the archived listing, and there is no terms document. The engagement is a fixed-term employment contract, which ordinarily vests output in the employer, but since ITV publishes nothing on the point this should be treated as unverified rather than absent.

Judging

Applications ran through ITV's careers site as a job application rather than a competition, and that listing now returns a 404. No selectors are named for 2026. Mentoring comes from the Script Producer, Script Editors and the writer whose episode the placement follows. The 2023 cycle drew more than five hundred submissions for four places. Named alumni include David Proud, who joined Coronation Street in 2020, and Yassmin Abdel-Magied, who joined Emmerdale in 2024. Note that the 2023 cycle promised a further twelve months of mentoring after the initiative closed, and the 2026 announcement drops that.

The PreList verdict

Three paid months inside the story and script departments of Coronation Street or Emmerdale is about as close to a real apprenticeship as British television offers a writer. You spend a month in the story office learning how long arcs are actually built, then four weeks in the script department following a single episode all the way through with the Script Producer and Script Editors, mentored by the writer whose episode you are shadowing. Continuing drama is the most reliable paid staffing route in UK television, and this is the front door to it. Alumni have gone on to write for both shows.

The honest part is that ITV publishes almost nothing about the money. It is unambiguously a paid full-time fixed-term contract, but the only pay statement anywhere is that ITV is an accredited Living Wage employer and will pay no less than the Living Wage for any role. Weekly hours are not published either, so there is no way to work out what the placement is worth, and we have not guessed. The fee for the shadow script, if it is commissioned, is also unpublished. And the careers listing that carried what detail there was now returns a 404.

Two other things worth knowing. The two official sources disagree about what you actually submit: the press release describes writing consecutive scenes from a provided story arc, the job listing asked for a one-page outline. And this is not annual. Cycles ran in 2021, 2023 and 2026, with ITV's own numbering confirming nothing in 2022, 2024 or 2025, and the window has walked from October to August to June. Treat it as an opportunity to watch for, not one to plan around.

Dylian Salvatore, Founder of The PreList · Updated 9 Aug 2026

Frequently asked questions

How much does it pay?

ITV does not publish a rate. The only statement is that ITV is an accredited Living Wage employer and will pay no less than the Living Wage for any role. Weekly hours are not published either, so no total value can be worked out, and we have not estimated one. The shadow script commission fee is also unpublished.

What do I have to submit?

The two official sources disagree. ITV's press release describes a creative task writing consecutive scenes from a provided story arc; the careers listing asked for a one-page outline for a character-led storyline suitable for either soap. Check the live listing when the next round opens.

Is it annual?

No, despite its profile. Cycles ran in October 2021, August 2023 and June 2026, and ITV's own run-count confirms no round in 2022, 2024 or 2025. The window has also moved substantially each time, so there is no pattern to plan against.

What do I need to apply?

At least one paid experience writing for film, television, audio drama, theatre or online content, a strong interest in continuing drama, and the ability to work to deadlines and take editorial feedback. Applications from People of Colour, Deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent people and those from working-class backgrounds are particularly welcomed.

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