• We're one step closer to solving the social mobility conundrum

    Today, the government published its ‘Unlocking Talent, Fulfilling Potential’ report, which echoes many of the points made by the National Association of Head Teachers in recent years, particularly the focus on early-years education. The problem is, that despite the good and improving system that we know exists, and was noted by Amanda Spielman in her…

    11.40 Dec. 14th, 2017 | Opinion

  • Social mobility isn't about behaving like the middle class

    We need to change the entire conversation on social mobility to have a chance of changing people’s lives for the better, says Prof Sonia Blandford A staggering 2.5 million children and young people in Britain live in poverty, and they are “born to fail” according to social mobility metrics as put forward by those in power.…

    16.45 Oct. 2nd, 2017 | Opinion

  • We won't know if opportunity areas have worked until at least 2021

    The government won’t be able to gauge the impact of a £72 million project to boost social mobility in 12 “opportunity areas” until after 2020, its own research has found. John Rodger, a partner with York Consulting hired by the government to evaluate the success of the  programme, has warned that expectations “may be set…

    13.03 Aug. 16th, 2017 | News

  • 50 years before we have an equitable school system

    We’re making slow progress in closing the attainment gap, claims the Education Policy Institute’s Jo Hutchinson, because the picture is far more complex than you’d think The gap in attainment between disadvantaged pupils and their peers has been entrenched in our education system for generations. These gaps become evident in the early years and grow…

    11.30 Aug. 8th, 2017 | Opinion

  • 3 things I learned about social mobility

    Participation in higher education from young people in disadvantaged groups is greater than ever – but is this the full picture? Andrew Berwick shares some insights from The Bridge Group’s recent social mobility conference “The UK is a remarkable country: we are the least socially mobile in Europe. You have to work really hard to…

    16.00 May. 23rd, 2017 | Opinion

  • How to make Opportunity Areas work: build sustainable programmes

    As long as pupils from independent schools are still more than twice as likely to attend a Russell Group university, we should all focus on doing everything we can to support social mobility in the UK. The secretary of state’s intent and the philosophy behind opportunity areas is therefore a wholly good thing and we…

    5.00 Mar. 6th, 2017 | Opinion

  • How to make Opportunity Areas work: invest in local people

    Opportunity areas are a welcome commitment to social mobility. They demonstrate a legitimate concern that all parts of the country should have a high quality education system. They target resources, support and attention and are no doubt inspired by the success of the London Challenge – which has been surprisingly difficult to transfer to other…

    5.00 Mar. 6th, 2017 | Opinion

  • More faith schools 'unlikely' to boost social mobility

    A plan to boost the number of faith school places by changing prohibitive admissions rules on new schools is “unlikely to be effective” in increasing social mobility, warns the Education Policy Institute (EPI). The think tank has found that pupils in faith schools seem to do “little or no better than in non-faith schools” once…

    0.01 Dec. 2nd, 2016 | News

  • Gaming app claims to help children's cognitive self-regulation

    A mobile phone app that encourages parents to play games at home with their children shows promise in closing the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged pupils, according to a new study, although concerns have been raised over the small number of parents included in the research. A randomised control trial of 144 families evaluated by researchers at the…

    0.01 Nov. 18th, 2016 | News

  • The social capital of a private education

    Privately educated pupils earn more – but they also get better “quality” jobs. Why is that, ask Anna Vignoles and Francis Green The role of private schooling has been controversial in England for many decades. Despite being a relatively small part of the school sector (about 7 per cent of pupils), private schools have an…

    5.00 Oct. 17th, 2016 | Opinion

  • Forget grammars! Sixth-form colleges are engines of social mobility

    The government should consider how greater investment in sixth-form colleges could drive up standards, says James Kewin Sixth-form colleges share the government’s ambition to create an education system that works for everyone, not just the privileged few. But the plans unveiled earlier this month to achieve this are flawed and incomplete. Flawed because they overplay…

    5.00 Sep. 24th, 2016 | Opinion