Key Points
- PiPA Wales 2026 is a new stage of work which aims to support parents and carers in the Wales’s performing arts sector.
- It is based on the research conducted in 2024-2025 with the support of the Arts Council of Wales.
- PiPA is updating the PiPA Wales Toolkit to make it more useful for the Welsh sector.
- The toolkit feedback will be collected via the toolkit questionnaire, two online consultations and touring roundtables.
- The updated toolkit is due to be launched later this year.
- The project follows an intersectional approach and concentrates on the barriers to family-friendly touring in Wales.
- The online consultations will take place on 10 March, from 12:30 to 13:30, and 18 March, from 13:00 to 14:00.
- Touring roundtables will take place on 6 May in Theatr Cymru, Yr Egin, Carmarthen, and on 2 June at the Creu Cymru Conference in Theatr Clwyd.
- PiPA claims that they have a limited budget to provide financial compensation for freelancers who attend the Carmarthen roundtable.
- Simultaneous translation in the Welsh language will be provided at the online consultations, and British Sign Language interpretation will be arranged upon request.
Wales (Wales Times) November 2026 — Parents and carers working in Wales’s performing arts sector are being asked to help shape an updated set of practical resources designed to address the barriers they face in touring, employment and career progression.
As reported by Arts Council of Wales, PiPA Wales 2026 is described as “the next step” in the organisation’s work to support parents and carers in the Welsh performing arts sector. The programme builds on research conducted during 2024–2025, which was funded by Arts Council of Wales, and will lead to a refreshed PiPA Wales Toolkit later this year.
What is PiPA Wales 2026?
PiPA Wales 2026 is a sector-wide initiative led by PiPA, the Parents and Carers in Performing Arts campaign. Its central aim is to ensure that the needs of parents and carers are reflected in the way Wales’s performing arts organisations, venues, funders and touring companies operate.
According to the announcement published by Arts Council of Wales, PiPA is updating the PiPA Wales Toolkit “to make it even more practical and effective”. The organisation says the revision will be informed directly by people working across the sector, including freelancers, companies, venues, funders and local authorities.
The initiative is not limited to a single art form or role. PiPA says it wants to bring together “previous collaborators and new voices” from across the performing arts, with a particular focus on those whose caring responsibilities affect their ability to take part in touring work.
Why is the toolkit being updated?
The existing PiPA Wales Toolkit was developed following the 2024–2025 research programme. PiPA says that research identified “significant barriers to family friendly touring in Wales”, prompting the organisation to examine how those obstacles can be reduced through practical, collaborative measures.
The updated toolkit is intended to respond to those findings. Rather than producing guidance in isolation, PiPA is gathering evidence through a feedback questionnaire, online discussions and in-person roundtables. The organisation says all of this input will feed into the revised resource.
PiPA states that the review will use an “intersectional lens”. This means the work will consider how caring responsibilities interact with other factors that can affect access to work, including disability, language, geography, employment status and the structures of the touring industry.
How can people take part?
There are several ways for parents, carers and sector professionals to contribute to PiPA Wales 2026.
PiPA has opened a toolkit feedback questionnaire for people who want to comment on the current resource and identify what needs to change. The organisation says the questionnaire is available through its website.
In addition, two one-hour online consultations have been scheduled to explore the feedback in greater depth. PiPA says attendees may speak Welsh if they wish, and simultaneous translation will be available. British Sign Language interpretation can also be requested.
The online sessions are scheduled as follows:
- 10 March, 12:30–13:30
- 18 March, 13:00–14:00
Registration for both consultations is free through the PiPA Wales webpage.
What are the touring roundtables?
A major part of PiPA Wales 2026 is a series of Touring Focused Roundtables. These sessions are designed to identify the specific difficulties faced by parents and carers when working in touring productions, and to develop practical resources for the updated toolkit.
PiPA says the roundtables will take an intersectional approach and will involve freelancers, performing arts companies and venues, as well as funders and local authorities. The organisation says it wants both existing collaborators and new participants to take part.
Two roundtable dates have been announced:
- 6 May, 10:30–13:30, at the home of Theatr Cymru, Yr Egin, Carmarthen.
- 2 June, at the Creu Cymru Conference, Theatr Clwyd.
PiPA says there is a limited budget to provide financial compensation for PiPA Wales freelancers attending the Carmarthen roundtable. This is significant because unpaid participation can itself be a barrier for freelancers, particularly those balancing caring responsibilities with irregular income.
Who is supporting the work?
PiPA Wales 2026 is being delivered with support from a range of Welsh cultural organisations. According to the Arts Council of Wales announcement, the partners and funders are:
- Arts Council of Wales
- Creu Cymru
- Theatr Clwyd
- Theatr Cymru
- Arad Goch
- Disability Arts Cymru
- Our Voice Network
The involvement of venues, touring organisations and disability-led cultural bodies suggests that the initiative is intended to reach beyond individual parents and carers and encourage structural change across the sector.
How can people access the current toolkit?
Before the revised version is published, the existing PiPA Wales Toolkit remains available to download. PiPA says people can also join the PiPA Wales network free of charge, complete the toolkit questionnaire and register for the announced events through the PiPA website.
For questions about the programme, PiPA has asked people to contact admin@pipacampaign.com, placing “PiPA Wales” in the subject line.
Background of the development
PiPA Wales 2026 follows research carried out between 2024 and 2025 with funding from Arts Council of Wales. That research examined family-friendly touring in Wales and found substantial barriers for parents and carers working in the performing arts.
The new phase responds to those findings by revisiting the PiPA Wales Toolkit and expanding the evidence base through consultation. By combining a questionnaire, online sessions and in-person roundtables, PiPA is seeking input from people with different experiences of the sector, including those who may not be able to attend events in person.
The focus on touring reflects a long-standing challenge in performing arts work: tours can involve irregular hours, travel away from home, short notice schedules and limited control over working arrangements. For parents and carers, these conditions can make otherwise available work difficult to accept.
Prediction: What could this mean for Welsh performers?
For parents and carers in Wales’s performing arts sector, PiPA Wales 2026 could lead to clearer, more usable guidance for employers, venues and touring companies. If the updated toolkit reflects the experiences gathered through the consultations and roundtables, it may help organisations identify practical changes to scheduling, communication, travel planning and support for freelancers.
For freelancers, the most immediate benefit may be the opportunity to influence the resource directly and, in limited cases, receive compensation for participating in the Carmarthen roundtable. For venues and companies, the initiative may provide a shared framework for making family-friendly touring more realistic rather than treating it as an individual worker’s problem.
The wider effect will depend on whether the updated toolkit is adopted across the sector. If organisations use it to review their touring practices, parents and carers in Wales could see more consistent expectations around flexibility, accessibility and support. If uptake is limited, the initiative may still raise awareness of the barriers identified in the 2024–2025 research, but practical change is likely to remain uneven.
