Fewer than one in 10 arts workers in UK have working-class roots

‘The problem goes back 45 years and it’s getting worse,’ says Neil Griffiths of Arts Emergency. Photograph: Caiaimage/Martin Barraud/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Six in 10 of all arts and culture workers in the UK now come from middle-class backgrounds, compared with just over 42% of the wider workforce, according to new research.

And while 23% of the UK workforce is from a working-class background, working-class people are underrepresented in every area of arts and culture. They make up 8.4% of those working in film, TV, radio and photography, while in museums, archives and libraries, the proportion is only 5.2%.