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.
Representation of south Asian main characters fell by 14.3 percentage points to 1.4%, despite children of south Asian heritage making up about 12.4% of the population of under-10s. Just three books featured main characters of Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) heritage, down 50% from the previous year. This represented 0.1% of surveyed books, compared with the group’s 2.2% share of the population.
The research by the literacy charity found that only 150 books – 6.9% of those surveyed – featured main characters from minority ethnic, disabled or neurodivergent backgrounds. Of these, 37.3% were written or illustrated by creators who did not share the background of their characters. The author Sheena Patel said: “At an age when children are figuring out the world around them and where they fit in, it’s vital they have access to funny, inspiring, adventurous books that reflect both the lives they live and the ones they don’t.
We must do better.” The report surveyed baby and toddler books, picture books and fiction for children aged up to nine. It found that representation of disabled characters in picture books fell sharply: the number with disabled main characters dropped by 60% in 2025, to just two titles. Neither was by a disabled creator.
The survey also highlighted what it described as a lack of “incidental representation”: stories in which a main character’s identity does not explicitly drive the plot of the story. Dr Stella Louis, an early years consultant, trainer and author, pointed to this “continued reliance” on books where identity itself was the story. The report found that all three books published in 2025 with MENA main characters were refugee narratives.
The study authors said children of MENA heritage needed stories covering a broader range of themes and experiences. She said the fact that all three books published were focused on refugee experiences risked reinforcing a “single story” about the region, defining it through “war and displacement rather than our rich cultures and heritage”. There were some signs of progress.
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