Children’s Content Crisis In The U.K. As Sky Kids Halts Original Commissions

Sky Kids, one of the U.K.’s most important children’s broadcasters, has announced plans to halt commissioning of original programming, sparking concern across the country’s children’s animation and live-action industries.

In a statement released today, Sky confirmed it will honor existing projects but shift away from original productions, moving towards an acquisitions-focused strategy. “With a strong pipeline of new original shows still to come, we now have a rich slate of content that allows us to evolve our strategy,” said Jamie Morris, Sky’s executive director of content strategy and performance. He emphasized that while “reviewing the number of roles required to deliver the next phase of our offer,” Sky Kids remains committed to offering “the very best in children’s entertainment to families across the U.K.”

Sky Kids’ pivot has been met with alarm, as the broadcaster was one of the country’s largest commissioners of children’s content. The company’s decision has further narrowed an already limited market for original U.K. kids’ programming.

The Children’s Media Foundation (CMF) reacted with alarm. In a statement, the organization described the decision as “a depressing and short-sighted decision, which will leave UK children less well-served.” The Foundation praised Sky Kids’ content as “high value, rich, thoughtful as well as fun,” arguing that such programming is especially important “in the face of competition for their attention from high volume, cheaply made content that dominates the YouTube offering.”

“We appreciate that the economics of children’s content are increasingly difficult in the face of competition from YouTube for attention,” the CMF said. “But giving up on young people is not the right option. This decision leaves the BBC and Five’s Milkshake! as the only significant commissioners of factual and entertainment content for children in the UK—not a position the public service broadcaster wishes to see, and not good for the audience. Healthy competition was provided by Sky, and healthier kids were the outcome of its program offering.”

In a direct appeal, the CMF urged Sky to rethink its strategy. “We urge Sky to reconsider its decision and maintain a level of original commissioning which will support the already badly hit children’s media industry and, importantly, would continue to support UK kids to experience their own stories and hear their own voices, as so much of Sky Kids’ content currently provides.”

CMF Director Greg Childs reiterated his earlier warning about the consequences of Sky’s withdrawal. “This is not the time to give up on great UK content for UK kids. Just as we are working with government and platforms like YouTube to help children and young people find more personally and socially valuable content on video-sharing platforms, Sky is walking away from its kids’ audience. What’s needed is fresh thinking about deals and partnerships that take their content to where kids are watching, not a knee-jerk cost-cutting spree, which will damage their relationship with their customers and certainly diminish the prospects of quality viewing time for children in their country.”