In the UK, employment opportunities are unevenly distributed.

It’s well known that highly paid and prestigious professions are dominated by those who were born into privilege and attended elite institutions. Meanwhile, those who grow up in poverty remain less likely to attend or graduate from university, or achieve social mobility in any form.

The situation is complex, with job market forces, institutional bias and a lack of equitable opportunities all playing a role. The erosion of entry-level positions is increasingly common, with employers routinely demanding evidence of experience for roles that are supposedly for the inexperienced. Add to this the expectation of a stellar academic record and a university degree and it should come as no surprise that social mobility in the UK is the worst it’s been for over fifty years.

At GoodWork, it is this that drives us. We know that there are many young people across the UK who have much to offer, but are screened out of opportunities because they don’t have the traditional markers of potential that employers look for.

In a market where almost 80% of employers believe graduates don’t have the skills they need to be work-ready, the exclusion of talent based on academic indicators looks increasingly questionable. And when diversity remains a key challenge for employers, efforts to include candidates who don’t fit the typical profile are an opportunity to redress the balance.

As is often the case when focusing on social mobility, we’ve found that the candidates we support at GoodWork are not only from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, but often experience multiple barriers to work. Looking at our approach through an intersectional lens allows us to support young people more effectively, ensuring that we take each individual’s unique experiences into account and empower them to be successful in employment.