Creative Diversity Network (CDN) has published its latest annual report analysing data gathered through the Diamond workforce monitoring and reporting platform.
The report found that past increases in the representation of Black creatives off-screen following the Black Lives Matter movement have “stalled”, with Black representation even declining in some areas. “This suggests that initial commitments did not lead to embedded, structural change.”
The report, covering the period from 1 January to 31 December 2025, found that off-screen representation of disabled people grew across almost every genre from 8.9% to 10.9%, while on-screen representation climbed from 9.3% to 11.3%.
Over a five-year period, contributions from female writers rose from 33.4% to 40.7%, and contributions from Black, Asian, and minority ethnic writers significantly expanded from 6.5% to 21.3%.
For Black writers specifically, contributions peaked at nearly 9% in 2024 after a fourfold increase from 2022; while this figure fell to 6.1% in 2025, “screenwriting is one of the few off-screen areas where Black representation exceeds the national workforce estimate.”
However, the data also shows areas where progress has “stalled or drifted backwards” including past increases in the representation of Black creatives off-screen.
Women remain underrepresented in senior creative roles; while female writers have seen gains, the proportion of female directors has stagnated over the last five years.
The data also shows that while disability representation has seen “transformative advances over the last few years,” disabled creatives remain significantly underrepresented and representation is not keeping pace with the growing number of disabled people in the population. The report found that the rise in disabled creatives has been predominantly driven by increased contributions from people with learning and cognitive disabilities or mental health conditions. Contributions by individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have musculoskeletal conditions have remained flat for five years, “suggesting more targeted work is urgently required.”
Paul Moore, Chair of Creative Diversity Network and Group Communications and Corporate Affairs Director, ITV Plc said: “As Chair of CDN, I am deeply encouraged by the industry’s continued resolve to drive progress, create fairer pathways for development, and build a stronger, more inclusive future for us all. This latest report spotlights that even during a period of profound structural change across the UK television landscape, evidence-based action is yielding results, such as the increase in disabled representation, higher numbers of female writers and a significant expansion of contributions by black, Asian and ethnic minority writers.”
“However, the real power of Diamond lies in its ability to look beyond headlines and track changes over time to expose where progress has stalled or drifted backward. For example, the recent decline in Black representation suggests that initial commitments made following the Black Lives Matter movement did not lead to embedded, structural change. The proportion of female directors has stagnated over the last five years, and contributions by individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have musculoskeletal conditions has remained flat for the same period.
“Diamond shows us the risks of complacency, of assuming the job is done when we see initial improvements and then shifting our gaze rather than maintaining momentum. At CDN we will continue to work with our partners across the industry to remain focused on ensuring the UK television workforce truly reflects the richness of our society.”
CDN has announced 30th September as the ‘go live date’ for the new, enhanced and improved iteration of Diamond, developed in partnership with the UK’s main broadcasters and following consultation with the UK television sector. Reporting using data gathered under the new system will start in 2027/8. Until then, CDN will continue to report on data gathered under the existing Diamond data system.
CDN will also be publishing deep dives into data covering socio-economic status and religion and belief for the first time, later this year.
Headline findings for this period, covering 1 January to 31 December 2025:
Age (Over 50s)
Since 2021 representation by over-50s has been increasing both on and off-screen. On-screen representation (33%) is low compared to national population estimates (47%). Off-screen, over-50s now make 28% of contributions, almost on a par with national workforce estimates (29.1%).
Comedy has the highest proportion of contributions by over-50s, with around half of all cast and crew contributions coming from this age group.
Off-screen, over-50s are represented at the lowest levels in Current Affairs (16%) and Factual programmes (22%).
Although over-50s make up almost half of the national population (47%), on-screen they make only around one third of non-scripted contributions and around one fifth of scripted appearances.
Disability
Both on and off-screen, there has been steady progress in representation year-on-year, however disabled people remain under-represented both off-screen (10.9%) and on-screen (11.3%) compared to the national workforce (16.9%).
Since 2019, the proportion of contributions made by disabled people has at least doubled across many senior roles. Series Producer is the only role that has seen little change. Disabled people remain worst represented in Executive Producer (8%) and Commissioning Editor (9%) roles.
The increase in disabled representation off-screen is mainly driven by increases in the proportion of contributions now being made by people with learning and cognitive disabilities, a long-term illness or a mental health condition, or ‘other’ impairment/condition.
There has been no change in the proportion of off-screen contributions made by people who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have musculoskeletal conditions. The proportion of contributions made by people who are blind or visually impaired remains the lowest.
Ethnicity
The proportion of contributions made by Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups decreased in 2025 both on and off-screen. Despite a few years of increased representation across cast and crew between 2021 and 2024, off-screen representation is now the same as it was in 2021 (13%).
The proportion of contributions made by Black people has decreased from 4% in 2022 to 2.7% in 2025 and remains below the national workforce benchmark (5.2%).
Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups are well represented on-screen, making 23% of contributions in 2025, higher than national population estimates (17.5%).
On-screen representation is much higher in scripted (36%) than in non-scripted (20%) roles.
Off-screen representation in drama has increased for each of the past five years – from a very low 5.9% in 2020 to 18% in 2025. There has been little change or a downward trend in other genres. Comedy and Factual Entertainment programmes had the lowest representation in 2025 (both around 11% of contributions).
Gender
Women remain well represented in off-screen roles (53.6%). However, women are less well represented on-screen (49.6%), a decrease from 52% of contributions in 2021.
Women are significantly under-represented in senior creative roles. Writer contributions fell from 38% in 2019 to 32% in 2022 before recovering to 41% in 2025. Women still make only one quarter (26%) of all director contributions – a proportion that has changed very little year on year since 2019. This mirrors the gender divide in the gateway role of First Assistant Director where just 27% of contributions were made by women in 2025.
Women are least well represented in Comedy programmes, particularly on-screen where they now make just 35% of contributions, down 14.2 percentage points over the past seven years.
Women continue to dominate Head of Production roles. In 2025 women made 89% of Head of Production contributions
People who identify as transgender are better represented on-screen (0.9%) than off-screen (0.6%). This is on a par with the overall national population estimate (0.5% England & Wales Census 2021).
Over the past seven years, on-screen representation of people wo identify has transgender has remained fairly consistent.
Sexuality
The proportion of contributions made by people who are lesbian, gay or bisexual continues to increase, and remains very strong compared to national population estimates.
In senior off-screen roles, gay men (11%)are much more highly represented than the other LGB+ groups, for example lesbian women and bisexual people (2.5%)
LGB+ representation is particularly strong both on and off-screen on Drama and Entertainment programmes. In both genres, around one fifth of contributions come from people who are lesbian women, gay men or bisexual people.
Kate Phillips, Chief Content Officer, BBC, said: “The latest Diamond reporting highlights the progress our industry is making on representation, while also showing where there is still more work to do. The BBC remains committed to using these insights, working with partners across the industry to improve representation and ensuring our content and the people who make it, fully reflect the audiences we serve.”
Priya Dogra, Chief Executive at Channel 4 comments: “Channel 4 has always believed that better representation leads to better storytelling, stronger creativity and a more inclusive industry. We welcome the progress shown in the latest report, particularly the growth in representation of disability and ethnicity across Channel 4 programmes. We remain committed to creating opportunities for talented people from every background, removing barriers to progression, ensuring the content we make reflects modern Britain and drives lasting change.”
ITV CEO Carolyn McCall said: “This year’s report demonstrates encouraging improvements in areas like disability representation and writing, but by showing where progress has stalled it also provides a reminder that sustainable improvements will only be delivered through systemic, embedded change. At ITV, we remain completely committed to driving this structural shift through our £80 million Diversity Commissioning Spend, which underpins our wider work to connect and reflect society through our content, making what matters. Tackling these industry and society-wide challenges requires collective action, and we will continue to work closely with our industry partners to find solutions, using the new Diamond system to track our shared progress.”
Reemah Sakaan, President of 5, said: “The latest Diamond report is an important reminder of why clear, consistent data matters. Diamond gives us a shared picture of where progress is being made, where it is slowing, and where more focussed action is needed. That clarity is essential if we are to keep ourselves on track as an industry and deliver on the commitments we have made to build a more inclusive television sector. At 5, we remain committed to representing all audiences and ensuring our programmes reflect the reality and richness of modern Britain.”
Cécile Frot-Coutaz, Chief Advertising and Content Officer Sky, CEO Sky Studios, said: “The Diamond report is essential because it ensures we make decisions based on evidence, not assumptions. Robust data helps us understand where real progress is being made but, just as importantly, where barriers still exist. It reminds us that progress is never guaranteed—it takes sustained commitment and accountability to build momentum and keep it moving. That’s why at Sky we’re focused on creating lasting opportunities for underrepresented talent, both on and off screen.”
Hilary Rosen, Director of Commissioning, UKTV, said: “We’re proud to see UKTV leading the industry in delivering strong results for disabled representation on screen and in the representation of over-50s talent. Just as importantly, the report highlights areas where we need to improve and gives us a clear view of where to focus our attention next. Diamond remains an invaluable tool, and we’ll continue to support efforts across the industry to increase participation, engagement and transparency. With the enhanced TEP platform launching in September this year, we’ll have even richer data to help drive progress.”
Pact CEO Nigel Warner, said: “It’s encouraging to see improvements being made in certain areas in this year’s Diamond Annual Report, but as ever, there is more to be done. As the TV and film industry evolves, we must all work to ensure that the financial pressures facing the sector do not disproportionately affect those from underrepresented backgrounds. The new and improved Diamond monitoring system launching in September will give us even better data to be able to use to create positive change. Pact remains committed to seeing continuous and meaningful improvement in diversity across the industry.”
Staff Reporter
Share this story
