If we want a more diverse creative industry, it’s time to do more than talk about it

7 May 2025, 14:56 | Updated: 8 May 2025, 15:44

It’s easy to admire creativity.

We celebrate the brilliance of British design, the buzz of fashion week, the flair behind the campaigns that go viral. But behind the glamour, there’s a harder truth: the UK’s creative industry, worth £124 billion, still shuts out far too many.

Only 17% of creative workers come from working-class backgrounds. Most internships are unpaid. And for many talented young people, a creative career feels completely out of reach.

That’s why we launched the Business by Design Academy from the Kurt Geiger Kindness Foundation last year — a free seven-month AQA accredited programme for young people based in London.  Its mission is to give young people the ladders they need to climb over the walls that too often keep them out of this industry.

Last month, I had the enormous privilege of watching 33 young creatives graduate from our Academy’s second cohort. The students came from different postcodes, cultures, backgrounds and walks of life — but what united them was their talent and drive. They didn’t just show up; they thrived. I was delighted that we were able to award 3 of the students’ full-time paid apprenticeship roles and one a one-year paid internship at Kurt Geiger, alongside offering a further 3 entrepreneurial grants to financially contribute towards developing their own ventures.

These aren’t just placements — they’re at the start of real careers. 30% of the Academy’s initial cohort still work full-time at Kurt Geiger while others have gone on to complete studies, internships and sought opportunities elsewhere.

This isn’t a PR exercise. It’s a challenge to our industry and this couldn’t come at a more critical time. According to the Feb ’25 ONS data, the number of 16–24-year-olds not in education, employment or training (NEET) is at an 11-year high. For many, the door to a creative career isn’t just closed — it was never built in the first place.

Governments can’t do everything — and nor should they. If we truly believe in creativity, we must invest in the next generation. That means paying them. Training them. Believing in them before the world does.

With the Business by Design Academy going digital and expanding nationally from Autumn this year, we’re scaling access — not limiting it. We’re increasing our next London intake by 50%, starting in September 2025, and the free online version will enable someone in Newcastle or Newport to access the same opportunity as someone in Camden.

As a business, it’s one of the most important things we’ve ever done. Not because it’s charitable, but because it makes us better. Fresh perspectives make for better ideas. Different backgrounds make for stronger teams.

To those running creative companies: take a look at who’s not in the room. Then ask yourself — what are you doing to change that?

We built a school. What will you build?

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Neil Clifford is Kurt Geiger CEO.

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