UK Publishing Workforce: Diversity, inclusion and belonging in 2024

UK Publishing Workforce: Diversity, inclusion and belonging in 2024 is a report based on responses from 9,707 people working in 52 publishing companies.  

Key findings from the 2024 survey include: 

• Significant increase in staff living outside of London. The proportion of respondents living in London has decreased by 10 percentage points, now accounting for 35%. Meanwhile, the South East has seen a rise in respondents, increasing from 21% to 27% between 2022 and 2024. 

• Female representation remains high. Just over two in three respondents identify as female (68%), a slight increase since 2022 (66%). 

• LGB+ representation remains high. The publishing industry continues to foster a diverse workforce in terms of LGB+, with 16% of respondents identifying as LGB+ (15% in 2022), as compared to the general UK population (3%). 

• Ethnic minority representation has reduced by 2 percentage points, with a specific decline in numbers of Asian and British Asian staff. Ethnic minority representation in publishing has increased in London from 17% to 23%.  

• Representation from lower socio-economic backgrounds remains an area for improvement. Two thirds of respondents (65%) came from professional backgrounds – on a par with the 2022 results (66%).