Love Island announces new duty of care measures

ICONINSIDER — ‘Love Island’ bosses have announced a new set of duty of care measures for 2023.
The hit TV show – which is now hosted by Maya Jama – has previously been accused of failing to provide sufficient support for its contestants, and ITV has now announced a new set of “welfare measures”.
Dr Paul Litchfield – who reviews the measures with Dr Matthew Gould – said in a statement: “The duty of care arrangements for ‘Love Island’ continue to evolve in the light of advances in scientific knowledge and awareness of the pressures young people face in establishing healthy relationships.
“That culture of continuous improvement ensures that Islanders are well placed to benefit from their experience of participating in one of the UK’s most popular TV shows.”
Prior to entering the villa, the contestants will receive guidance and training around mutually respectful behaviour in relationships. They will also receive guidance about inclusive language around disability, sexuality, race and ethnicity, and microaggressions.
Dr Gould added: “The enhanced safeguards introduced for ‘Love Island’ 2023 demonstrate ITV’s commitment to evolve duty of care protocols to minimise harm, where possible.
“The bold decision to pause Islanders’ social media activity during the new series is testament to ITV’s serious intent, especially as this input provides both a benefit to the appeal of the programme and a potential source of mental health problems.
“Balancing this tight-rope requires both the identification of which safeguards have the greatest positive impact on participants’ wellbeing and the professional partnership, put in place by ITV, especially between producers and their welfare teams, and most importantly, the contributors themselves.”

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