Just one per cent of characters in children's books are from BAME backgrounds

Black, Asian and ethnic minority people are not being properly represented in children’s books in the UK, a study has shown.

Figures from a new study by The Centre for Literacy in Primary Education (CLPE) have revealed that 35 per cent of children in England come from BAME backgrounds, but only one per cent are main characters in books.

Of the 9,115 children’s books which were published last year in the UK, only 391 – four per cent – feature a BAME character.

The study looked at both non-fiction and fiction children’s books to see how far characters represented those who were reading about them.

In doing so, researchers found that overall in 2017 publishers had failed to do this with every single ethnic minority being under-represented.

This was the first time a study of this nature had been carried out, but there are plans to have one every year now.

The report has made recommendations that children’s books should give “a meaningful and accurate representation of the interconnected, diverse society,” for children to see.

It also wanted characters represented to not be cultural stereotypes, and well-developed.

Teacher, Darren Chetty told the BBC: "I've heard children say that they think their written stories should be about white children.

"In order for this view to change, we all need to take responsibility, and children's writers and publishers are going to need to broaden their imaginations when it comes to the stories that children encounter."