Trade union leaders are calling on the government to do more to save Stoke-on-Trent's ceramics industry.

Pottery manufacturers have faced a torrid 2025 due to rocketing energy costs and cheap foreign imports, with Royal Stafford and Moorcroft both collapsing this year – the latter being saved from liquidation by its founder's grandson.

The GMB union, the Trade Unions Congress and environmental think tank group Green Alliance have now published a new report setting out what the government needs to do safeguard and future proof the ceramics sector.

According to the report, the industry has 'fallen through policy gaps' for decades, while recent government measures aimed at supporting energy-intensive sectors do not go far enough to help ceramics.

The report sets out a raft of short-term actions to tackle dumping and 'exorbitant' electricity prices, as well as a long-term plan around issues such as decarbonisation.

Around 20,000 people are employed directly in ceramics, half of which are in Stoke-on-Trent and other parts of the West Midlands.

According to its authors, the report is the first of its type to draw from the experiences of workers in developing its recommendations.

GMB organiser Chris Hoofe said: "Tens of thousands of working class jobs rely on the ceramics sector; we cannot afford to leave its future to chance.

"But so far we aren't seeing enough action from a government grappling with the unique challenges the sector faces.

"We need action on gas pricing and an end to unnecessary red-tape, and we need it quick.

"This report will hopefully be a wake-up call for decision makers and pave the way for policy that safeguards UK ceramics for generations to come."

GMB rep and fourth generation Stoke-on-Trent potter Sharon Yates explains the importance of ceramics to her city in the introduction to the report.

She says: "Pottery is in our blood here in Stoke. When I'm at work, if I look to my left I see my daughter. If I look to my right, I see my granddaughter. Each of them doing work they're proud of, creating a product unique to our town.

"Because sky high energy bills, and a market too easily swamped by bogus ceramic products from abroad are hitting Stoke hard.

"We need a plan to safeguard jobs here in Stoke, for my generations of working people to come."

Gas accounts for around 60 per cent of the costs of a typical ceramics site, and prices have shot up in recent years following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The report says that electrification of most ceramic processes will be possible eventually, but until that happens the government needs to provide support around gas and electricity.

There are also recommendations to extend anti-dumping measures on Chinese-made tableware until 2029, and for public bodies to boost demand in the short-term by prioritising UK manufactured ceramic products.

In the long term, the report calls for the establishment of a decarbonisation innovation fund, saying that existing support in this area cannot be accessed by the small and medium sized manufacturers that make up much of the UK ceramics industry.

In a joint statement, Stoke-on-Trent MPs Gareth Snell, Allison Gardner and David Williams said: "Our ceramics industry is the envy of the world. From world class tableware, to high end materials for industry; there has never been a more important time for us to shine a light on the role ceramics plays for the UK economy.

"The human story of our potteries though is what makes the industry so special. Here in Stoke-on-Trent, the home of the UK potteries, ceramics runs through every community, every street, every home.

"We are a proud city of potters, and a city determined to fight for the industry's future."

The government says that is is taking action to support the ceramics industry, through measures such as the British Industrial Competitive Scheme and the National Wealth Fund.

A spokesperson for the Department for Business and Trade said: "We recognise the challenges faced by potteries and ceramics businesses across the country.

"Our Industrial Strategy included measures to support the sector, including our Supercharger scheme that will slash energy prices as part of the Plan for Change, and a new British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme will look to reduce electricity bills for manufacturing sectors like ceramics by up to 25 per cent."