Where young people are growing up in the UK affects their opportunities and life chances.
More than a million households were ‘destitute’ in the UK at some point over the course of 2019 (a rise of 35% compared with 2017), with these households containing 550,000 children (a rise of 52% compared with 2017) (Destitution in the UK, JRF, 2020).
Much of this ‘destitution’ is concentrated in London, the North West and North East of England, with relatively high levels also in Yorkshire and Humber, the West Midlands and Scotland. Economic disadvantage affects achievement and opportunities at school significantly, meaning that where young people grow up matters.
By 2023, IntoUniversity will have centres in eight of the ten places in the UK with the highest levels of ‘destitution’, providing the local support that can break cycles of disadvantage and open up new opportunities for social mobility through meaningful post-school destinations.
"More than a million households were destitute in the UK at some point over the course of 2019 (a rise of 35% compared with 2017), with these households containing 2.4 million people (a rise of 54 compared with 2017), of whom 550,000 were children (a rise of 52% compared with 2017). [...] The geography of destitution remained focused in northern regions of England in 2019, particularly core cities and manufacturing towns, with rather less emphasis (than in 2017) on London boroughs or cities in the south of England or the Midlands."
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"Areas with lower pay for disadvantaged sons and less equality of opportunity are typically more deprived, with lower house prices, fewer labour market opportunities in professional occupations and fewer education opportunities in ‘Outstanding’ schools…Education drives opportunities - Individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds perform less well at school and are less likely to attend university than those from wealthier backgrounds growing up in the same area. Across local authorities, education gaps between sons from poor and wealthy families explain, on average, around 80% of the gap in adult earnings between them."
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Nearly nine in 10 senior roles are held by people from privileged families, according to research from the City of London Corporation. Akin to research in the legal sector, employees from lower socioeconomic backgrounds take longer to progress through grades, despite finding no statistical evidence to link this with job performance. Interviewees from lower socioeconomic backgrounds describe efforts to fit into the dominant culture and expressed feelings of exclusion.
Read the report hereOur work is based upon sound public research into both the need for our work and the effectiveness of our approach. Find out more about the barriers young people are facing below.
The link between economic disadvantage and educational underachievement permeates every stage of a young person’s education. …
Young people from disadvantaged neighbourhoods are significantly less likely to progress to university or any further education, employment or training than their more privileged peers.
We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to access the benefits Higher Education can provide.
Early intervention is key in breaking down barriers to education and encouraging young people to think about their futures before their attitudes towards study become fixed.
