Top-selling musicians are six times more likely than the general public to have attended private schools.
The UK’s creative industries are becoming increasingly elitist, with working-class people struggling to break into a sector dominated by the middle class and by London, according to a new report.
The findings come from a review of the arts sector in Greater Manchester led by Nazir Afzal, chancellor of the University of Manchester, and Avis Gilmore, former deputy general secretary of the National Education Union.
The Glass Ceiling report is based on a survey of 300 arts workers in the region who identify as working class, ranging from mid-career professionals to teenage musicians. Only 44 percent said they earned enough to make a living, with many relying on second jobs. More than half (51 percent) reported experiencing bullying, harassment or bias because of their social class.
Just 18 percent said they saw their own working-class lives and culture widely represented in the work they produce, while only 22 percent said they personally knew someone working in the arts when they were growing up.
The report argues that routes into the arts once taken by figures such as poet John Cooper Clarke, comedians Caroline Aherne and Peter Kay, and the Gallagher brothers have largely disappeared.
According to the findings, one of the main barriers facing working-class talent is classism and prejudice directed at those from working-class backgrounds. Another obstacle is the “bank of mum and dad”, which allows many middle-class entrants to work for free or low pay while gaining experience and contacts.
A lack of networks and connections in the arts world was also identified as a major stumbling block for working-class people.
The report follows earlier research showing the creative industries becoming increasingly exclusive. A 2024 UK-wide study by the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre found that top-selling musicians are six times more likely than the general public to have attended private schools, Bafta-nominated actors are five times more likely to have done so, and only 8 percent of TV and radio workers come from working-class backgrounds.
The Glass Ceiling report puts forward 21 recommendations. These include treating social class as a protected characteristic, publishing socio-economic data and targets, making pay more transparent, and expanding equality impact assessments to examine how policies affect working-class communities.
Although social class is not currently recognised as a protected characteristic under the Equality Act, Afzal said Greater Manchester should move to recognise people from working-class backgrounds independently.
“As a former prosecutor, I have seen our region do this before,” he said. “When Sophie Lancaster was killed, Greater Manchester Police broke new ground by offering people from alternative sub-cultures hate-crime protection, and other police forces eventually followed suit.”
The authors also noted how certain institutions, such as the Co-op group, had stepped up to campaign for more apprenticeships for working class people.
Avis Gilmore said: “I’m thrilled that the Co-op has agreed to lead a campaign to significantly boost creative apprenticeships in our region.
“The fact that nationally less than 1% of all new apprenticeship starts are in the creative sector is a scandal. We should be looking to do things differently in Manchester.”
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