Professor Jo Blanden - An equal start in life? Social mobility and investment in children

Overview

To what extent does family background affect people’s ability to succeed in life? Jo’s PhD established that the incomes of individuals born in 1970 are more closely linked to their parents’ incomes than was the case for individuals born in 1958; there was a decline in social mobility. Subsequent work has demonstrated that changing inequalities in education are a driver of these changes. This lecture will provide a summary of Jo’s work on social mobility and its drivers and discuss how she has contributed to important policy debates from the mid 2000s onwards. As gaps in skills between richer and poorer children can be observed before they start school, investment in early years education has the potential to close mobility gaps. In a case study, Jo will discuss her research on how effectively Government investment in early education creates a more equal start for young children.