13% of UK games staff are from low-income backgrounds; national Into Games campaign launches to help more people get careers

UK non-profit Into Games says it’s launched a national campaign to support more working-class people into careers in the UK games sector. 

While the working class make up 30% of the UK population, only 13% work in UK game studios. This was first highlighted as a major issue in 2023 by journalist Sam Greer in this YouTube piece via People Make Games.

With only 13% of UK games staff from low-income backgrounds, 78% of people from working-class backgrounds employed in games believe the sector isn’t doing enough to level the playing field for those from low-income.

And 59% also believe the sector to be still inaccessible or very inaccessible to those from low-income backgrounds.

So UK non-profit Into Games is declaring 2024 as the year the games sector starts its fightback on the dire social mobility stats highlighted in UKIE’s 2022 UK Games Industry Census.

Into Game’s own ‘Difficulty Level’ research, released later this month, suggests that 78% of working-class people already in the games sector feel like not enough is being done to support new people coming in, with 51% having felt othered during their career because of their class.

Social mobility overall in the UK isn’t improving, with the Institute for Fiscal Studies confirming that it is now at its worst in over 50 years. Into Games says that ‘games careers could offer a way up for many, delivering creative and positive work outcomes for young people who often connect deeply with video gaming, even when navigating challenging home lives’.

Over the next 12 months, Into Games will implement its wide-reaching ‘Gameplan’ to help turn the tide and build the foundations for a fairer, more diverse sector. The plan, which highlights achievable delivery goals in five key areas, has been developed as a direct result of Into Games research and programme work conducted over the last four years.

Into Games’ work is made possible by its partnerships with 20+ UK studios, including Ubisoft, nDreams, Jagex, 10:10 Studios, Studio Gobo and Electric Square. This is in addition to its close ties to the national games trade body Ukie and its educational programme Ukie Edu, which will play a key role in delivering successful outputs.

Ukie also runs its Digital Schoolhouse esports tournaments for school children in the UK, and in 2023 Ukie published a detailed report looking into UK esports, written by Esports News UK editor Dom Sacco.

The organisation is raising delivery funds as part of the programme, intending to bring in £100,000 by April 2024. All funds raised go directly to plan delivery.

Into Games’ GamePlan 2024

The plan aims to:

• Reach 20,000 young people in schools in areas of deprivation
• Deliver four regional games and careers fairs in the heart of communities 
• Deliver an annual bursary aimed at supporting event, travel and equipment costs 
• Provide free training and mentorship for 150 people near work 
• Provide free leadership training for those from low-income already at work   
• Create at least 40 new in-studio work opportunities for people from low income with our national studio partners
• Create a model for excellence in South London

Declan Cassidy, CEO of Into Games, said: “We think games is in a unique position to provide a real leg up for many people from low-income groups. Games are something that many are already deeply connected to, and we need them to be able to see that they have a place in the sector.

“Having come from a working-class background myself, I am deeply aware of challenges that people face when having to make career decisions in difficult circumstances, and I believe that there is a wealth of untaped talent sitting right under noses if we provided a bit more support and stability at the right time and place.

“We need better access to training, financial support at early stages, and a joined-up approach at the regional level to make a difference. We think our Gameplan for 2024  provides a good foundation to start building this infrastructure based on existing programmes.”

To see the full plan and help support delivery, you can visit gameplan2024.intogames.org for more information or email [email protected]. 

Dom Sacco

Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.

As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.