Social Mobility Toolkit for the Professions - Equality and Human ...

est practice
This section contains a range of best practice guidelines and
existing schemes in which employers and professional bodies can
get involved to improve social mobility within their profession, and,
more widely in society.
While not every suggestion will be appropriate for all organisations,
in all professions, we hope that these ideas will inspire individuals
and organisations to action.
it would be overly simplistic to suggest that there is a direct
link between following emerging best practice and rapidly
achieving fairer socioeconomic representation within the
professions. Social mobility is difficult to change, not least
because of the number of actors and factors that influence it.
We also recognise that there are significant variations between
professions about, for example, entry requirements, required
skills and the barriers to entry.
nonetheless, there are numerous opportunities for the
professions to work with multiple stakeholders to improve
access for those who face barriers to entry because of their
socioeconomic background.
the recommendations in this section were selected because
they aim to improve all individuals’ chances of entering the
professions. it is important to bear in mind that it is not just
those from deprived backgrounds who struggle to gain entry
into the professions. Many young people from what might
traditionally be called the middle classes also face barriers to
entry.
the professions have traditionally aspired to be meritocratic
and to serve the public interest – and these recommendations
follow in that vein. 51 Following emerging best practice is likely
to yield positive results for individuals, for the professions and
ultimately for society as a whole.
51 “the professions have played a big role in the development of meritocracy because
of their emphasis on knowledge-based skills rather than social class.” Spada. 2009. Ibid,
page iii.
28 Social Mobility toolkit For the proFeSSionS
1 Support, mentor and inspire individuals from
lower socioeconomic backgrounds to embed
aspirations and provide them with both the
opportunity and confidence to pursue a career
in the professions
the context:
� three times fewer young people from average or poorer
backgrounds aspire to be a professional than those from
professional backgrounds. 52
� the Joseph rowntree Foundation has found that, while
young people from deprived backgrounds do not generally
lack aspiration, there is a lack of understanding of how to
fulfil career goals. 53
� individuals from lower socioeconomic groups have lower
application rates for certain professions such as medicine.
When combined with lower acceptance rates, this further
decreases their representation in the professions. 54
� the professions expect candidates to have more than
just technical skill or academic achievements: it is about
“skills much broader than pure academic excellence… for
example, tenacity, creativity, communication skills, many of
what people sometimes term the softer skills”. (cathy turner,
head of hr for barclays). 55
� Soft skills – such as teambuilding, listening and
communicating – are developed via a wide range of activities
such as sports or hobbies. charities and organisations that
provide opportunities to develop these sought-after skills
are very important.
52 panel on Fair access to the professions. 2009b. Ibid, page 4.
53 kintrea, St clair and houston. 2011. “the influence of parents, places and poverty on
educational attitudes and aspirations.” Joseph rowntree Foundation.
54 bMa. 2009. Equality and diversity in UK medical schools, page 1.
55 Quoted in richard bilton. “Social mobility: less privileged face fight for top jobs”, BBC
News, 2 February 2011.