In 2021, Sir Lewis Hamilton went public with The Hamilton Commission report, a research project he had commissioned alongside The Royal Academy of Engineering to address the lack of diversity in motorsport. This landmark report’s recommendations were shared widely within the industry and directly informed the creation of Mission 44, and our vision to build a fairer, more inclusive future for young people around the world.

Mission 44 invests in solutions that empower young people to overcome social injustice, taking an evidence-based approach in all of our decision-making. Here, we summarise three more pieces of research we have used to set our organisational priorities, all of which further highlight the need for greater collaboration and a broader range of inclusion initiatives within (and beyond) the motorsport industry.

Collaborating for Greater Inclusion in Motorsports

Commissioned by Mission 44 and conducted by Purpose Union, this qualitative research with motorsport industry leaders found that:

• Whilst DEI awareness is strong, the adoption of outcome-focused strategies by motorsport organisations is inconsistent.
• Gender is the dominant area of focus in current DEI activities.
• There is a lack of infrastructure which enables effective collaboration and information-sharing between organisations, which hinders collective action towards a more inclusive sector. 

The report’s key recommendation is the formation of a formal cross-sector convening group to unite the motorsport sector behind a shared commitment and pledge to take concrete and measurable action on DEI.

Your Future STEM Career in Motorsport

This survey, conducted by Causeway Education, explored students’ attitudes towards their future careers and the perceived barriers to entering motorsport. Key findings included:

• When making career choices, young people placed skills development, career progression and aligned values higher on their list of priorities than salary, prestige or influence.
• Lack of connections within the motorsport industry (friends, family and professionals) was cited as the biggest perceived hurdle to accessing a motorsport career.
• Lack of knowledge about what makes an outstanding application was also cited as a major barrier, with some respondents reporting a lack of transparency in this area.

Convening at Silverstone  

This event, held by Mission 44 at the 2024 British Grand Prix, convened young people, charitable partners and motorsport employers to exchange ideas on improving access to STEM roles in motorsport for under-represented groups (primarily women and girls, young people from ethnic minority backgrounds and lower socio-economic groups). The group’s recommendations on new codes for employers included:

• Wider advertising of jobs, scholarships and support programmes already available, extending widening participation practices such as university job fairs and the creation of resources that demystify career pathways for young people.
• Improved and more-informed careers advice to break down the preconceived biases associated with apprenticeships, and the provision of more ‘taster’ experiences – including hybrid in-person/online events – to give students a hands-on understanding of career opportunities
• Networking opportunities to give young people access to peer support in navigating applications and interviews.
• Greater financial support for living/moving costs for early career positions to remove financial barriers to young people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. 

To read more of Mission 44’s commissioned research, head to our Research and Learning page.

Causeway Education (2024), Pre-Silverstone convening survey results, internal report for Mission 44, unpublished
Purpose Union (2024), Collaborating for greater inclusion in motorsport, internal report for Mission 44, unpublished
Mission 44 (2024), Silverstone convening event feedback survey, internal analysis produced by Mission 44, unpublished