BBC Targets 25 Percent of Staff From “Lower Socio-Economic Background,” $375M in Annual Savings

Georg Szalai
·3 min read

U.K. public broadcaster BBC said on Wednesday that it will “need to find £285 million ($375 million) in annual savings by 2027/28, requiring a reduction in the content and services we provide to audiences,” as a result of a new license fee settlement with the British government.

In its annual plan, it also set out a target of 25 percent of staff being “from lower socio-economic backgrounds” by 2027 to “ensure our workforce is more representative of the audiences we serve.” It explained: “This will make us one of the first media organizations in the U.K. to set a target for socioeconomic diversity.”

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The plan set out five strategic priorities for fiscal year 2022/23: strengthening impartiality, creating “distinctive, high-impact content,” transforming digital offers and capability, accelerating commercial and global growth, as well as “delivering reform of the BBC, getting closer to audiences across the U.K. and managing the impact of the first year of the new license fee settlement.”

The BBC noted that the plan was published “at a time when record numbers globally are tuning into the BBC for impartial news coverage of the war in Ukraine,” highlighting: “During the first week of the conflict an estimated 280 million people from the U.K. and around the world came to the BBC’s online news output.”

As the BBC celebrates its first 100 years, the public broadcaster also said that “we remain the number one media brand” in Britain, with 86 percent of the U.K. public saying the BBC “has been important to the nation during this time.”

Continued reform and change was once again a key theme of the annual plan. “Over the last 18 months, we have also begun a substantial program of work to reform the BBC, ensuring we are a modern, effective and lean organization,” the broadcaster highlighted. “Delivering value to all audiences is only possible if the BBC reflects the extraordinary diversity of the lives, backgrounds and experiences of the whole U.K. public. The BBC has set itself ambitious goals on and off air to improve its diversity, including increasing the proportion of women, those from an ethnic and minority background, and those with a disability who work for the BBC. We also want to do more to change the socio-economic mix of our staff to better reflect U.K. society.”

The BBC also said it was “committed to a more sustainable BBC and to achieving net zero by 2030.

With its annual plan published just two months after the license fee settlement was unveiled by the British Secretary of State for Digital, Media, Culture and Sport, the BBC commented: “The license fee will be frozen at its current price for two years from ’22/’23 and then rise in line with inflation for the following four years. While we recognize the license fee is a privilege, this is a disappointing outcome at a time of high inflation and media super-inflation. … However, we go into the coming year in a strong financial position and with savings and inflation mitigations in place to help us manage through the first year of the settlement.”

Tim Davie, the BBC’s director-general, said on Wednesday: “The BBC is performing an indispensable role delivering impartial news around the world, with 456 million people using our services globally every week and growing. This annual plan shows significant progress has been made to reform the BBC, but we will continue to transform the organization to provide value for all audiences in the digital age.”

Added BBC chair Richard Sharp: “This annual plan shows the need for truthful, independent news and uniquely British content, is needed more than ever. Our plan highlights the challenges and opportunities in the media market. We will continue driving changes to our public service and commercial operations to fulfil our duty.”

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