The Diversity Gap in UK Yoga

Yoga is a popular activity that can offer multiple health and wellbeing benefits. In the United Kingdom, it is even recommended to NHS patients as part of the social prescribing system. Although widely viewed as inclusive and accessible, yoga participation in high-income countries is socially uneven – with significant under-representation of marginalised groups. The Diversity Gap in UK Yoga: Outsider Perspectives argues that this lack of diversity in yoga reflects not only practical issues, but also deeper cultural and structural dynamics preventing participation for those who might benefit from it most.

Drawing on rich qualitative research, Dr Sally SJ Brown examines the experiences of people who remain under‑represented in yoga spaces, including individuals who are Black or Brown, disabled, older, or living in larger bodies. Uniquely applying an intersectional critical theory-based analysis, this book conceptualises yoga as a social institution, exploring how practical, perceptual, and cultural barriers are structurally produced. Situating contemporary yoga within wider debates on health inequality and wellness cultures, the book foregrounds “outsider” perspectives rather than established insiders, exposing the power relations shaping participation and belonging.

Providing a critical framework for understanding inequity in wellness practices and offering actionable insights for change, this work is insightful reading for scholars in sociology of health, yoga studies, critical race and disability studies, public health and social policy, and for individuals and organisations involved in yoga and social prescribing.