Broadcaster and campaigner, June Sarpong MBE has been appointed as the BBC’s Director of Creative Diversity.

Undoubtedly daunting, her role will include, leading a renewed drive to further transform and modernise the BBC and its culture. Working to increase representation and ensure that content reflects the public the BBC serve. Focusing on improving the BBC’s on-air talent portrayal and commissioning. She will develop strategies to support both on-air and production talent representation and portrayal across the BBC and its partners. Including ensuring the BBC commissioning guidelines achieve real change and creating an open culture to support and develop new talent and content makers, working across all BBC output and platforms.

Since 2010, June has built a reputation as a leading campaigner and thinker on a wide range of diversity issues. She has: Co-founded the Women – Inspiration and Enterprise (WIE) Alliance in 2010, an international conference supporting female excellence and empowermentCo-founded the Decide Act Now (DNA) summit, promoting discussion and innovationAuthored two books on diversity issues – Diversify (2017) and The Power of Women (2018)Been a passionate advocate for change in the workplace and encourages businesses to break down barriers between different people, stressing the economic benefits of workplaces where different voices are encouraged to work together and to recognise where biases existWorked as an advocate for greater diversity throughout the media and recently supported International Diversity Day at the UN General Assembly.

Reacting, she said: “The task is indeed daunting, however being awarded the opportunity to help level the playing field for the next generation of diverse talent, makes the obstacles and discrimination I have personally faced throughout my own career all the more worthwhile. I look forward to collaborating with diversity and inclusion industry stakeholders to find new and productive ways to create systemic change.”

 “I am particularly humbled to step into the newly created role of Creative Diversity Director for the BBC. I relish the challenge of working with senior leadership to make the BBC more inclusive and representative of the broad and diverse audience it serves.” She added.

June Sarpong will report into Bob Shennan, Group Managing Director and work closely alongside the BBC’s Head of Workforce Diversity and Inclusion and with senior leaders in output, to play a crucial part of the BBC’s ambitious Diversity and Inclusion strategy.