Children’s books with Black main characters down 8% in a year, study shows

The Guardian UK Sunday 04 October 2026, 23:01 UTC By Emma Loffhagen 1 min read

Key Points

Only 150 of 2,189 titles published in UK for young children last year focused on minority ethnic, disabled or neurodivergent charactersThe number of children’s books featuring Black main characters fell by almost 8% last year, according to research into diversity in UK publishing. Just 47 – or 2.1% – of the 2,189 books published for under-10s in 2025 featured a Black main character, a 7.8% fall from the previous year, according to Inclusive Books for Children. Black children make up about...

Only 150 of 2,189 titles published in UK for young children last year focused on minority ethnic, disabled or neurodivergent characters

The number of children’s books featuring Black main characters fell by almost 8% last year, according to research into diversity in UK publishing.

Just 47 – or 2.1% – of the 2,189 books published for under-10s in 2025 featured a Black main character, a 7.8% fall from the previous year, according to Inclusive Books for Children. Black children make up about 8.5% of that age bracket in England and Wales.

UK (LOCATION) Inclusive Books for Children (ORG) England (LOCATION) Wales (LOCATION)

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