In reply to UKC/UKH Articles:
Thanks for this. Good to see people getting out there, pushing their limits and having fun. I would normally baulk at anyone going out on hills without experience so good to see guides etc. were available. (I was on the Ramsey at the weekend for the first time and despite experience in the hills still felt I was pushing my experience at times - especially on a wet, misty and dark CMD arête).
Many thanks for the section at the bottom to clarify representation and other important topics. The following line is a good summary: "But despite the egalitarian ethos and a welcoming community vibe, fell running, like many mountain sports, has been slow to see a change in the diversity of feet on the start line. This is not a criticism of what is, at its very heart, a forthright and accepting sport, but instead a recognition that there is still work to be done."
Over recent years I have seen an increase in diversity in fell races, especially in the female ranks and in the bigger Lakes Classic races. It's great to see. It's an incredibly welcoming sport with people taken on their personality and character. There are initiatives to give people more experience (e.g. navigation courses, coaching, wilderness first aid). Fell Running in its nature is non-commercial and doesn't actively promote itself to runners (one of several differences to trail runners), doing so not really being sustainable to the sport. It takes the approach that people will fall into the sport if they are interested - though as you also point out historical and societal reasons do make this less likely.
As I often note on these boards, it is important to delineate between fell running and trail running as they are very different, both physically and organisationally.