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

executive summary
in 2009, the government-commissioned panel on Fair access
to the professions revealed that the Uk professions were
increasingly closed off to individuals from non-privileged
backgrounds, to the detriment of the professions and society
at large.
improving access to the professions is a large-scale and
long-term venture. For this reason, it is important that the
professions start monitoring their socioeconomic make-up,
implementing best practice and engaging in outreach activities
without delay.
in order to mobilise the professions, professions for Good, a
coalition of a dozen leading professional bodies, and Spada,
the coalition’s research and communications consultancy, were
commissioned to develop a Social Mobility toolkit.
the toolkit attempts to strike a balance between the need
for robust proxies to monitor social mobility and the need
for practical implementation. there are easy and low-cost
recommendations for small employer organisations, and others
aimed at employers with greater resources and professional
bodies/regulators.
aims and purpose
Understanding the relevance of social mobility:
� it is individuals and their skills that matter most within the
professions. the professions need to cast their nets wider
and rethink current practices if they want to attract talented
– and currently overlooked – individuals.
� the whole of the Uk has an interest in ensuring fairer access
to the professions; they account for the largest single share
of Uk output, and will provide an additional 1.5 million jobs
by 2020. ensuring that the most talented people obtain
these jobs will help the Uk to remain competitive on the
international scene.
� Government, regulators, the media and civil society expect
the professions to respond to the issues laid out by the
panel on Fair access to the professions, led by alan Milburn,
in 2009.
4 Social Mobility toolkit For the proFeSSionS
� the Uk professions have thrived on diversity, especially as
they have become truly international in recent decades.
they should have a workforce that mirrors the diversity of
their clientele as well as that of society as a whole.
Monitoring the socioeconomic profile of the professions:
� the toolkit provides employers and bodies/regulators
with a template questionnaire so that they can assess the
socioeconomic make-up of their professions.
� by collecting data every three years, the professions will be
able to track improvement over time, report to relevant
regulatory bodies and to the newly created Social Mobility
and child poverty commission.
Improving access and rethinking current practices:
� the toolkit provides an overview of the main barriers to
entry to the professions, and suggests best practice in each
of the four following areas: support for individuals from
lower socioeconomic backgrounds; information, advice
and guidance (iaG); work experience and internships; and
flexible, lower-cost routes in the professions.
� it also points employers and professional bodies/regulators
towards existing schemes and initiatives for them to engage
with or emulate.
audiences
the toolkit is aimed at the “traditional” professions, such as
accountancy, law, surveying, engineering and medicine.
it contains recommendations for professional firms and
employers, as well as professional bodies and regulators. the
toolkit will also be of use to the gatekeepers of the professions,
tertiary educational institutes such as Fe colleges, universities
and medical schools.
these stakeholders are encouraged to work together to
ensure regular monitoring of professions’ socioeconomic
profiles, and to put in place co-ordinated policies and
actions to improve access for individuals from non-privileged
backgrounds.