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Ukie has launched the second UK Games Industry Census in order to survey the diversity of the UK industry workforce – and today, the 19th of November, is your last opportunity to take part.
The census, which will be conducted, administered and analysed entirely independently by the University of Sheffield, will build upon the original 2020 census that provided a deeper understanding of the diversity of our industry.
Survey respondents will be asked a series of questions about their role in the industry, their characteristics (such as age or gender) and the background (such as the circumstances in which they grew up). Additional questions have been added since the previous survey, to help track trends and understand areas of continuity and change in the workforce diversity profile.
Additionally, this year’s survey has been expanded to cover some additional ground in relation to working patterns and access needs to generate an even deeper profile of the games industry workforce.
The Census will take less than ten minutes to complete, and the data collected will be anonymous. Ukie’s aim is to more than double the number of respondents to the first census, which reached over 3,200 people (20%) of the UK games industry in 2019.
There are two main ways to participate in the census:
- Individuals, or businesses with fewer than 20 employees, can respond to the census via this link.
- Companies with more than 20 employees should should request a pack from the Ukie team to help share the survey securely across their business.
“It’s great that the UK games industry is continuing to support independent research on its workforce,” said Dr Mark Taylor, University of Sheffield. “The last census allowed us to generate a set of baseline numbers, and this one will allow us to understand how things have changed in the last two years, as well as asking more detailed questions in some areas. With Monday’s launch in parliament of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Creative Diversity report on what works in equality, diversity and inclusion in the creative sector, this work has never been more timely.”
“We strongly encourage everyone working in the UK games industry to take part in the census again. The process is entirely anonymised, and the team at the University of Sheffield are expert in collecting and analysing this kind of critical information across different sectors,” said Dr Jo Twist OBE, CEO of Ukie. “The first census played a crucial role in understanding what our starting point was as an industry in terms of who we were, and it gave a strong foundation to our sector’s efforts to become more equal, diverse and inclusive. Taking part and publicly backing it from your business will help drive that work forward.”
“We believe that teams create the best work when they have a range of perspectives and experiences to draw from,” said a spokesperson from Splash Damage. “Seizing moments like this to raise awareness and understand where we stand with issues of diversity and inclusion is essential, and will enrich our industry and the games we create. We are proud to be partners of Ukie’s UK Games Industry Census and the critical work they are doing for our industry.”
