Stephen Graham and Hannah Walters of Matriarch Productions and Phil Temple of Birdie Pictures have teamed up to establish a new initiative to help UK writers from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds kickstart their careers and gain proper access to the TV industry.  

The winner of the Grass Routes writing competition will receive a prize of £5,000 and a further amount to option the script. The writer will then develop their project before pitching it to different buyers.  

Full details here.

The deadline is 8th January 2024.