Social Mobility: Politics and Practices

Social mobility is probably the only lens within the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) space that has not come under scrutiny in 2024. In this article, we’ll explore the concept of social mobility, and the politics, practices, and providers who impact it.

What is social mobility?

If you ask the OECD, social mobility is defined as: the change in a person's socioeconomic situation, either in relation to their parents (intergenerational mobility) or throughout their lifetime (intra-generational mobility).

However, I prefer to view the concept, instead, through two lenses: access and encouragement. Individuals from lower socioeconomic backgrounds (LSEBs) face barriers to accessing money, education, health services, and networks. However, even when people from LSEBs overcome their access barriers, it is typical that they require additional encouragement to understand corporate norms, build self-confidence, and avoid imposter syndrome.

As HR professionals and, in particular recruiters and early careers specialists, we play a pivotal role in creating social mobility within our organisations. However, representation must start on the national scale.

Politics

As of July 2024, the UK now has the most socioeconomically representative cabinet that we’ve ever experienced. In fact, our Deputy Prime Minister grew up in a household without books, fell pregnant at 16, and spent the majority of her early life in council housing! Only 4% of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s cabinet come from private education, a staunch departure from the 60%+ of the past three administrations. 

(Source: The Sutton Trust)

Two standout areas of focus for diversity in recruitment may be the appointment of the new Minister of State for Prisons, Parole and Probation - James Timpson - who is known for progressive hiring practices focusing on those who have been impacted by the criminal justice system. In equal measure, the new Secretary of State for Education, Bridget Phillipson, has placed a much greater emphasis on careers education, early careers support, and welfare for young people. 

Practices

There is a big focus on social mobility within Talent and Recruitment, in particular within Early Careers functions. While there are numerous strategies in the market, we’d like to outline a few that will help you attract socioeconomically diverse talent to your organisations.

Apprenticeships

Simply having an apprenticeship offering doesn’t guarantee that you’re opening pathways for talent from LSEBs. One of the fatal flaws of the Apprenticeship Levy is that none of the money set aside can be used to recruit diverse talent. In fact, the most recent data (from 2022/23) points to the lowest number of school leaver apprenticeship starts since 2017. 

If you want to ensure that your apprenticeship is reaching young people from LSEBs, then you need to reach them where they are: in schools… and on TikTok. And, there are plenty of providers (particularly small businesses) who are delivering excellent results for big brands. 

Providers: Apprentivia, Beyond Education, Wiser

Education and outreach programmes

Some industries struggle more than others when it comes to socioeconomic representation. Sectors like Fashion, Financial services, Legal, Media & Arts, and Technology are at the top of the list for needing to drive more diverse talent into their organisations. However, many students are turned off by the idea of working in fields like Insurance or Audits. If you want to get ahead of these recruitment challenges, pursuing an educational outreach strategy could be right for you! 

By engaging with students while they are still at school, companies have the opportunity to increase the flow of diverse talent that aspires to be in their industry. There is also a benefit of unlocking some additional budget from your colleagues in CSR and ESG teams, as many of the organisations that work in this space are charities. 

Providers: STEM Learning, Sutton Trust, The Inspirational Learning Group

Scholarships

Scholarships are a relatively new solution in the UK, but they are popping up inside major brands like Amazon, Accenture, Nationwide, Wise, and more. The concept is simple. Companies invest in students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds to mitigate (or eliminate) the financial barriers advancement through education and into corporate life. Plus, every corporate scholarship is different and can be designed to attract talent specific to your company’s diversity goals. 

Whether you are hoping to support true social mobility by supporting students through all three years of uni or you are trying to fill your internship pipeline with diverse talent, scholarships could be a solution for you. The Gold winner for Early Careers Solution at this year’s IHR Supplier Awards (and guest author of this blog), Blackbullion, specialises in delivering scholarships. 

Work experience and mentorship schemes

If you’re hoping to minimise the investment and create real buy-in from your business, work experience and mentorship programmes could hit the spot. Getting your colleagues from across the business to engage with students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds can break down the misconceptions that many may hold. Not only will your teams grow, but your employer brand will also reach a younger demographic, while you build out your talent pipeline.

Work experiences typically last just a week or two (usually in the late spring / early summer), while mentorship schemes can go on for a few months. If you’re interested in exploring these sorts of programmes, there are a number of providers that enable virtual delivery, light touch service, and full-service offers.

Providers: Springpod, upReach, WiseUp Networks

Final thoughts

If anything in this article about social mobility has piqued your interest, we recommend speaking with your contact at IHR to help point you in the right direction. 

You may also be interested in attending the upcoming social mobility conference, Mobilise UK, hosted by our partners, Blackbullion, on 15 October 2024. IHR members receive a 25% discount on their tickets by using the code IHR2024 at checkout.