Research published by the Sutton Trust reveals how geography, gender and ethnicity all impact opportunities for disadvantaged young people, with big variations across England.  The report, which builds on last year’s Opportunity Index, finds that many regional gaps in attainment are driven by the uneven spread of ethnic groups across England. It also found that girls, and certain ethnic groups, perform strongly at school but then underachieve in the labour market. 

For example, Bangladeshi girls eligible for free school meals (FSM) perform 11% higher than the average student, but earn 20% less as adults. The GCSE attainment of an FSM Bangladeshi girl in the North West is almost 2 times higher on average than a white British FSM boy from the South East. Despite this, she typically earns almost £5,500 less at age 28.

Commenting, Nick Harrison, CEO of the Sutton Trust, said: …For too many young people hard work and academic success are still no guarantee of equal opportunity. Some disadvantaged groups, particularly working class girls, and many ethnic minorities, dramatically outperform at school, only to see those gains disappear in the labour market. 

'That should concern anyone who believes Britain is a meritocracy. Talent exists in every community, but the routes to success are massively uneven. We need to start by doubling down on focusing education support in the most left-behind communities, targeting those most in need. And we also need to look long and hard at biases in the labour market which are still blocking success for many of those who beat the odds and do well at school.'

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