Leveling the Playing Field: Tackling Social Mobility Barriers

Each year, the Education Policy Institute reports on the educational attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers. This year's report, recently published, presents some concerning findings.

You can read the full report here.

The most alarming point is:

“By the end of secondary school (Key Stage 4), disadvantaged pupils were 19.2 months behind their peers. This gap has widened since 2019 by 1.1 months, reaching its highest level since 2012.”

Despite increased focus on social mobility over the past few years, opportunities for young disadvantaged individuals appear to be worsening.

As many of you know, I am passionate about creating equal opportunities for everyone, regardless of their background. At AMS, we are committed to supporting social mobility, and I want to share some practical tips for organisations to advance their focus in this area:

1. Schools/Colleges Outreach: Connect with local schools and colleges to offer structured work experience programmes for pupils who need these opportunities. Ensure you cast a wide net when hiring graduates and consider apprenticeship programs.
2. Understand Your Workforce: Start collecting social mobility data to understand your workforce's composition and the challenges you face. Also, consider social mobility pay gap reporting.
3. Employee Resource Group: Develop your internal strategy by establishing a Social Mobility employee resource group, backed by an Exco leader with credibility and interest in this area.
4. Partnerships: Collaborate with local and national organisations to support your efforts. Some examples of partners we work with include Bridge of Hope, Recruit for Spouses, WM People, Beleve, and Beam.
5. External Advocacy: Develop a strong voice in your sector and with clients. Work with your supply chain to promote social mobility and aim to increase your brand recognition and association with social mobility.

We must continue to prioritise social mobility to improve outcomes for disadvantaged young people. While it will take time to level the playing field, concerted efforts from the commercial sector, government, and the third sector can achieve this. Please connect with me if you would like to explore this topic further.