Breaking down barriers to opportunity

Top takeaways

The Sutton Trust’s Opportunity Index explores the geography of opportunity and social mobility in England, by using data for pupils on free school meals (FSM) against six key indicators to rank constituencies. It reveals the inequality of place: the top 20 constituencies for opportunity are all in London, and young people in East Ham (the highest ranking constituency for opportunity) were over three times more likely to become top earners compared to those in Newcastle Upon Tyne Central and West, the lowest ranking. 

Recommendations arising from the report include the reform of the National Funding Formula (NFF) and restoration of pupil premium funding, which has lost value in real terms over recent years. 

How the Opportunity Index was constructed

The index ranks constituencies according to a range of measures, using data from 10 million young people across 20 years. They used six key indicators of opportunity for FSM eligible pupils:

• Attainment 8 score (best GCSE results across eight subjects)
• A level results (based on average points score)
• Percentage in sustained education or employment post KS4
• Percentage with a degree by age 22
• Percentage in sustained employment at age 28
• Average earnings at age 28.

The findings are displayed in a map view, with green indicating high opportunity rankings and red low rankings. 

Headline findings

The report highlights that while students from lower income families fare worse in education and employment outcomes than non-FSM pupils, ‘barriers to opportunity are also heavily impacted by place’ (report page 29).

For example:

• Only 53% of FSM pupils from the North East and Yorkshire and the Humber were in education, an apprenticeship, or employment at age 28. This is well below the 68% national average for all pupils in England.
• Young people who had received free school meals in Ruislip Northwood and Pinner (London) were six times more likely to reach the top quintile of earners, compared to those in Leeds East (25% compared to 4% respectively).
• FSM pupils from East Ham are over three times more likely to have a degree by age 22, at 35%, compared to those in Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West, at 10%. 
• There’s a 30 percentage point gap in achievement of GCSE grade 5 in English and maths between East Ham (London) and Newcastle upon Tyne Central and West (North East).

(For more headline findings, see the press release and page 1 of the report.) 

While it might not be a surprise that London tops the rankings, the map reveals some inconsistencies within regions. For example, leafy Sevenoaks in Kent has the highest proportion of free school meals pupils not in education or employment at the age of 28, at 57%.

Report recommendations

The report makes a number of recommendations (see page 2 for the full list), including:

• Equalising access to early years education.
• Reforming the NFF to rebalance funding back towards schools serving the most disadvantaged communities. 
• Expanding free school meal eligibility to all children on Universal Credit. 
• Incentivising the best teachers to work in the most disadvantaged schools, by making changes including enhancing financial incentives and increasing flexibility.
• Restore pupil premium funding in real terms, and extend it to post-16 institutions. 
• A greater supply of apprenticeships for young people, and more effort on access to higher education. 

What’s in a name?

The report is framed very much in terms of social mobility and disadvantage, but not everyone is a fan of these terms. 

A recognition of the isolation and lack of belonging that can arise from being socially ‘mobile’ led Iesha Small to question her faith in social mobility as an educational cause: read more in Why I no longer believe in social mobility. 

Professor Lee Elliot Major argues that in order to avoid a trap of deficit thinking, we should talk about ‘children from under-resourced backgrounds’ rather than ‘disadvantaged’. Read more in Why we need to stop talking about disadvantage (and what we should talk about instead).

Questions for reflection

• Where does your constituency rank in the opportunity index? Does this surprise you, or is it what you expected? Do you think the ranking gives a fair representation of opportunities for young people in your area? 
• Can young people in your area easily access higher education, employment or apprenticeship opportunities, or do they need to move away? 
• Has the National Funding Formula been beneficial for your school or setting? Do you think it needs further reform? 
• What are you spending your pupil premium funding on? Do you feel it’s being used effectively? 

Reading and resources

• CfEY: Why I no longer believe in social mobility
• Need to Know: Resources to support effective use of the pupil premium 
• Need to Know: The case for auto-enrolment 
• Schools Week: Why we need to stop talking about disadvantage (and what we should talk about instead)
• Sutton Trust: London miles ahead of other regions in providing best opportunities for the poorest young people
• Sutton Trust: Opportunity Index Interactive Map
• Sutton Trust: The Opportunity Index