Social mobility is key to tackling regional inequalities and unlocking economic growth - Alan Milburn & Alun Francis

Later this spring the Government will reveal its new child poverty strategy. It will do so against a backdrop of low economic growth, a tough fiscal position and heightened geo-political uncertainty. As we enter this new era of change, it is all too easy for defeatism to triumph. But at this critical moment, we must ensure that the most disadvantaged communities do not become a lost cause. Failure to do so would cut short yet another generation, laying to waste their talent and potential. That would not only exacerbate social division and dampen social mobility. It would also inhibit economic growth. Talk to any employer and they will tell you that the biggest constraint on growth today is a shortage of skilled labour.

The Government’s welcome focus on raising the rate of economic growth is the right approach for Britain but doing so requires an inclusive approach which aims to unleash the potential of every part of our country.

From our first Commission report to our most recent, we have always argued that if public policy is to successfully raise levels of social mobility and reduce levels of child poverty it has to be place-based.

Our 2017 State of the Nation report first identified that social mobility cold spots were concentrated in remote rural or coastal areas. In these places young people from disadvantaged backgrounds faced far higher barriers to progress than those who grew up in cities.

Our most recent report for 2024 found that former mining, industrial and ship-building areas, as well as rural and coastal areas, remain overlooked and still continue to have some of the lowest opportunities across the UK.

So the Social Mobility Commission is directly working with the private sector and Combined Authorities across the country, to recommend workable prospective solutions that will finally catalyse this long overdue growth.

The lessons we have learnt from our years of working on social mobility are three-fold. Firstly, creating lasting change needs a consistent, long-term strategy which embraces employers and educators as well as governments. Secondly, that strategy has to be led from the top, involving all parts of government which is why we welcome the Mission-based approach Keir Starmer has pioneered. Thirdly, place-based approaches that seek to improve growth in the regions where economies have faltered for decades must be a priority for action.

In this era of change it is vital that the Government’s economic growth strategy has at its core a determination to unleash the potential of each of the regions and nations of our country. This approach holds the key to unlocking more opportunities for social mobility for disadvantaged communities and higher levels of economic growth. It simply isn’t possible to have one without the other.

Alan Milburn was the Social Mobility Commission’s first chair and Alun Francis is the Commission’s current chair.