Recommendation 2

HM Government Accepted in Part

“We recommend Ofcom ensure an increased focus on analysis of age diversity in its future reports on EDI in broadcasting, and promote equal prioritisation of age diversity alongside gender, racial and ethnic, LGBT+ and disability diversity across all age groups in the EDI strategies of broadcasters” (paragraph 40) We agree with the Committee’s conclusion on the need for Ofcom to carry out robust analysis on a range of EDI characteristics, something we have been doing since 2017. As part of this work, we already collect a range of data from broadcasters, including on age splits across the industry. Ofcom’s legal duties in relation to equality of opportunity in broadcasting are limited to specific characteristics: sex, race and disability, and we collect information on broadcasters’ employees in these areas on a mandatory basis. We recognise that equality of opportunity goes a lot further than this, so we collect a range of other information from broadcasters on a voluntary basis. This includes information on other protected characteristics set out in the Equality Act 2010 (age, religion or belief, sexual orientation, as well as geographic location, socio-economic background and caring responsibilities. From the start of our monitoring programme we have requested information on age split by sex, giving us a more granular picture of where barriers to entry and progression may lie. We also monitor some characteristics (including age by a range of metrics, including job level (in particular, those in senior roles, and job role (e.g. commissioning & programming, on screen, etc. With such a rich dataset, each year we highlight areas of particular concern taking into account this data alongside responses to our annual self- assessment survey which monitors broadcasters’ approach to promoting equality of opportunity. We also publish a large amount of additional data alongside our report, in our interactive data set. We absolutely recognise the importance of age diversity and have drawn attention to the under- representation of those aged 50+ in broadcaster workforces relative to the working population as a whole (for which the current figure is 33% aged 50). For example, in our five-year review of diversity and equal opportunities in UK broadcasting (2021) we drew attention to the lack of increase in representation of employees aged 50+ within the TV workforce, and the fact that age has the largest percentage point difference from the UK benchmark across the TV industry and second only to disability in radio. We said that broadcasters appeared to have focused on entry-level recruitment at the expense of retaining diverse staff and enabling them to progress. As the committee has highlighted, older people remain under-represented in the workforce. However, we are now seeing more progress: in 2018,16% of women in the TV workforce who provided data were aged 50+, for 2023/24 this figure is 22% of female employees (compared with 28% of male employees). In addition, where other characteristics are even more under-represented in senior roles, this is not the case for older people. 45% of senior managers in broadcasting are 50+, and 45% of broadcasting employees in on-screen/on-air roles. We remain committed to obtaining (and reporting on) as much voluntary data on age as possible, in addition to providing guidance for broadcasters on making equal opportunities arrangements. We continue to engage actively with industry and other stakeholders, for example facilitating opportunities for sharing of effective practice.