Over 80% of practitioners in the UK arts sector work on a freelance basis. While freelancing offers scope for autonomy and creative freedom, it is also characterized by widespread precarity, low pay, long hours and systemic inequalities. Funding cuts and recent challenges have only intensified these conditions.This book provides an evidence-based account of what it means to work as a freelancer in the UK performing arts sector, drawing on data from the Big Freelancer Survey (2020–2025). It presents a unique insight into arts-based freelance work in the UK, providing workable recommendations for change.

Over 80% of practitioners in the UK arts sector work on a freelance basis. While freelancing offers scope for autonomy and creative freedom, it is also characterized by widespread precarity, low pay, long hours and systemic inequalities. Funding cuts and recent challenges have only intensified these conditions.This book provides an evidence-based account of what it means to work as a freelancer in the UK performing arts sector, drawing on data from the Big Freelancer Survey (2020–2025). It presents a unique insight into arts-based freelance work in the UK, providing workable recommendations for change.