BBC vows to increase diversity of senior management by 2020

The BBC has pledged that at least two of its senior management team will be from a black, Asian or other minority ethnic (BAME) background by 2020, as part of a drive to tackle the lack of diversity at the top of the corporation.

Currently, just one of the 15 members of director general Tony Hall’sexecutive committee responsible for running the BBC is from a BAME background – the director of strategy, Gautam Rangarajan.

The new policy also extends to the senior leadership teams responsible for running the corporation’s divisions, such as radio and education, news and current and affairs, content (TV), and design and engineering.

In addition, shortlists for all senior roles at the BBC will have to include at least one BAME member, a similar system to the Rooney rule introduced in American football.

The BBC has adopted the policies following recommendations from an internal report on career progression and culture for BAME staff at the corporation, which was published on Wednesday.

“They are a range of proposals which we believe will transform the BBC,” said Hall. “This is now a real chance to accelerate change in an unparalleled way. Today’s report is a huge step forward.”

The issue of the BBC’s lack of diversity first made headlines in 2001 when Greg Dyke, then the director general, famously described the corporation as “hideously white”.

Last year, Sharon White, the chief executive of the BBC’s new regulator, Ofcom, criticised the corporation for failing to lead the way in having a diverse workforce.

A report last year by Ofcom found that women, minority ethnic groups and disabled people are all under-represented by broadcasters in the UK. The BBC failed to lead in any of the areas covered by the regulator’s diversity statistics.

The BBC has said that by 2020 it wants half of its workforce to be women, 8% disabled people, 8% lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender people, and 15% to be from a BAME background.

The corporation will also tackle further issues highlighted by the report, including its divisions with less than 10% BAME representation, and “below par” employee survey results including in radio, newsrooms, newsgathering, English regions and the BBC World Service.

“This is an excellent report based on an unprecedented level of engagement from staff,” said Hall. “By better reflecting the broader population we will make better programmes that reflect the lives, interests and concerns of everyone. The proposals build on our existing initiatives, which have been making a difference. This is a great opportunity. We will grasp it.”

Sir Lenny Henry, the actor and comedian, has led calls for Ofcom to force the BBC to increase the diversity of its workforce by setting quotas for on-screen and off-screen staff.

The BBC’s initiatives to tackle on-air issues include a £2.1m diversity development fund to support and accelerate on-air projects with diverse content or talent.