Digital inclusion is critical to opportunity, particular in the AI economy. In Manchester today speaking alongside Manchester Mayor @andyburnham.bsky.social @helenmilner.bsky.social OBE, Baroness Hilary Armstrong and Rob Benson. @suttontrust.bsky.social @mayorofgm.bsky.social

Great to be in a (somewhat wet) Manchester today for the Digital Inclusion summit with @andyburnham.bsky.social #FixTheDigitalDivide @suttontrust.bsky.social

Creative industries have one of the lowest representations of folks from working class backgrounds. 👇

Balanced defence of universities from David Willetts here. 👇

The right decision in my view - to provide some financial relief to unis and remove ambiguity going forward. 👇

Disadvantaged kids are more likely to have SEND needs but LESS likely to get support, leading to a DOUBLE DISADVANTAGE and much worse outcomes. Why? a 🧵 @suttontrust.bsky.social latest research

🗣️ "Middle-class parents have the time, the resources, and the money to be able to fight harder for their children and get the support that they need." Our CEO, @nickharrison73.bsky.social, discussed our research on the SEND system on Sky News this morning with Matt Barbet and Leah Boleto 📺

💬 “Right now, disadvantaged kids with SEND are being failed by a system beset with inconsistency and mind-boggling bureaucracy." @nickharrison73.bsky.social Great coverage of our new research on the SEND system in @theguardian.com ⤵️

Surely it’s a false economy to cut education in prisons. Rehabilitation is right for individuals and society overall! 👇

Opportunity zones and incentives to drive investment and entrepreneurship in the left-behind parts of Britain, consequently improving social mobility where it's needed most. From the Social Mobility Commission. We agree @suttontrust.bsky.social that innovation and growth are key to opportunity.

🥳 We're launching a brand-new Changemaker Ambassador programme! This brand-new initiative will see us equip and empower around 20 alumni from across our different programmes to support our mission. Get to know our ambassadors ⤵️

Outstanding from @jburnmurdoch.ft.com - the best way to get a job is to get a degree. You will almost almost always earn more as well.

All new job seekers are struggling, but having a degree still helps! Critical analysis from ⁦‪John Burn-Murdock. Also why we still support degrees as a great route to social mobility at @suttontrust.bsky.social

Could unused apprenticeship levy be directed to individual plumbers, electricians etc. to help them train the next generation?

Fully agree @bphillipsonmp.bsky.social - The two child cap has to go if we're to tackle child poverty and improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged kids. We all know that scrapping it is the most cost effective way to do this. Anyone out there disagree ??!! @suttontrust.bsky.social

Very good news if true. Child poverty is one of the biggest drivers of lifelong disadvantage. The cap needs to go! @suttontrust.bsky.social

Was a great discussion - and if you haven’t seen it, do look up our report Elitist Britain.

Very much support bringing back maintenance grants for less well off students. 👇

Strong speech by Keir Starmer today - and good announcement on support for further education and apprenticeships - and parity with more academic routes.

It was a great discussion. Thanks to your brilliant panel and everyone who attended :-)

The privately educated are hugely over represented in leadership roles in the media. 👇

Paralympic medallists (73% comprehensive, 20% private school) are more representative of the population than Olympic medallists (52% comp, 33% private). Anyone know why this is? Latest @suttontrust.bsky.social research, Elitist Britain.

Pop stars may have a Diva reputation. But they're actually quite representative of all of us, as 76% went to comprehensive school. Film and TV stars are much more elitist, with only 41% going to a comp, and 32% to private school. Latest @suttontrust.bsky.social report, Elitist Britain.

Police Chiefs and Crime Commissioners are much more representative of the country at large than Army Chiefs. Police = 60% comprehensive education and "only" 21% private school. Army = 63% went to private school. Latest @suttontrust.bsky.social report, Elitist Britain.

Important point. Those with the knowledge and resources more likely to push for a re-mark widening the gap. @suttontrust.bsky.social

Breaking news: Hereditary peers almost all went to private school, a d half to Eton. 😱

Cricket is the most elitist sport in Britain, with 50-60% of top players attending private school (vs. 7% of the population). Football is representative. Olympians in the middle with "only" 20-30% private school. Rugby is split men (elitist) vs. women (representative). @suttontrust.bsky.social

Both Labour deputy leader candidates now talking about scrapping the two-child benefit cap. Doing so is the most cost-effective way to reduce child poverty - and if it remains child poverty rises. It has to go + must be a spending priority.

Special Educational Needs (SEN) just goes up and up. As the parent of a wonderful SEN kid - I can empathise with the the cost and huge family strain mentioned here. The current SEN system is broken. Provision is inadequate and councils are not funded to provide it. Needs to change!

Senior judges are one of the least representative professions in the country: 62% went to private school (vs. 7% of the population) and 75% attended Oxbridge (vs. 1% of the population). Not good for diversity of thought. Latest @suttontrust.bsky.social report, Elitist Britain.

💬 “In 2025 you can still buy advantage, massively increasing your chance of getting into the most powerful roles in the country.” @nickharrison73.bsky.social Our new research, Elitist Britain, dives deeper into the pathways of the elite, from school to university ⤵️ elitistbritain.suttontrust.com

Privilege at the top of British business. Only 9% of FTSE 100 Chairs attended a comprehensive school (compared to 89% of the population). Whereas 47% went to private school. New @suttontrust.bsky.social report, Elitist Britain.

50% of newspaper columnists attended private school. Might explain all the noise in the press about VAT on fees - a policy which only actually affects 7% of the population. @suttontrust.bsky.social latest report: Elitist Britain.

Private school dominance has actually gone up in some key professions - BBC, Newspaper columnists, Army, Cricket - over the last five years. Whereas the Cabinet is now representative! New @suttontrust.bsky.social research Elitist Britain.

Are kids at private school 5x as smart as those in the state sector? Of course not - but they are 5x as likely to end up in the most powerful and influential positions in Britain today. New @suttontrust.bsky.social research - Elitist Britain.

Private schools still have a vice-like grip on Britain’s elite. We need many more pathways to the top of our society to level the playing field and stop wasting talent. New @suttontrust.bsky.social research 👇

We know children’s centres work - clearly need to roll them out (again) 👇

Really happy to have launched the Social Mobility Alliance in parliament today. A group of organisations, all aligned to drive systemic - and big! - improvements in opportunity across the UK 👇

Welcome this, which will help take hunger out of the classroom. Current FSM threshold (household income less than £7,400 per year pre benefits) ludicrously low anyway! Great to see one of our suttontrust.bsky.social policy priorities implemented. 👇

Important step to take hunger out of the classroom, and a building block in the governments opportunity mission. 👇

Scrapping two child benefit cap is the single biggest thing we can do to reduce child poverty. Good that the political sands are shifting. 👇

Important report on the fiscal (as well as societal) benefits of Sure Start centres. We need to build them up again! 👇

Social mobility mapped by parliamentary constituency. Take a look at our new Opportunity Index 👇

Read of latest report on opportunity by parliamentary constituency here 👇

Great write-up by @guardianheather.bsky.social of a fascinating @suttontrust.bsky.social report. Striking graphics (to follow) too 1/n

Visa rules and fees getting in the way of the best scientists coming to the uk to do research. Crazy, particularly when we could be attracting US researchers fleeing Trumps attack on science and universities. 👇

More UK universities under pressure. Perfect storm of inflation, no rise in fees, and reduction in international students. We need to act to support the sector. Unis are a key driver of social mobility and economic growth. A rare UK success story!! @suttontrust.bsky.social

We shouldn’t damage our university sector by further restricting student visas. Also, surely students don’t impact net migration figures over time as most go home after their course. 👇 @universitiesuk.bsky.social

Full or admiration for people my age and above going into teaching 😊👇