Labour’s mostly state-educated Cabinet must push fair HE access

The UK’s long-awaited general election has not only brought about a sea change in the political composition of the House of Commons. It has also led to a significant shift in its educational profile.

Sutton Trust research finds that the proportion of MPs who were privately educated has fallen from 29 per cent in 2019 to 23 per cent today (compared with 7 per cent of the wider population). Of today’s MPs, 63 per cent were educated at comprehensive schools, up from 54 per cent in 2019.

The most dramatic shift is in the new Cabinet members announced over the weekend, with 92 per cent educated at comprehensive schools, while only 4 per cent attended an independent school and a further 4 per cent a grammar. This is in stark contrast to all previous Cabinets, including Rishi Sunak’s, 63 per cent of whose members were privately educated.

Why does this matter? The social and educational backgrounds of our political leaders are likely to influence their policy decisions and priorities. If MPs come from very similar socio-economic backgrounds, and if their backgrounds look very different from those of the population as a whole, there is a risk of groupthink, potentially neglecting the concerns of broader society. Private school attendance is a reliable proxy for high social class and privilege, whereas there is huge variation in socio-economic background among the 88 per cent of us who attend a comprehensive school.

Greater diversity in the Commons and the Cabinet is, therefore, cause for celebration, as is the new government’s focus on “smashing the class ceiling” through its Opportunity Mission. However, it remains to be seen whether the government will implement the policies needed to create opportunity for everyone and remove barriers for those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

These barriers are immense, which is why the Sutton Trust’s programmes target low-income students and aim to improve access to leading universities and careers, focusing on criteria such as eligibility for free school meals and first-generation higher education participation. These initiatives are vital as they support those facing an uphill struggle for social mobility. The necessity of targeted support is underscored by the widening gap in school attainment and evidence showing highly able students lagging behind their more privileged peers by a grade per subject at GCSE.

Higher education continues to be the surest route to social mobility for those from poorer backgrounds, with low-income students four times more likely to become socially mobile if they attend university. UK graduates overall earn, on average, £100,000 more over their lifetimes than non-graduates, despite student loan repayments and higher taxes. University plays a crucial role in offering an environment where people can discover opportunities, develop essential skills and connect with vital networks and the job market, all of which drive upward mobility. Yet, while state school access to higher education has improved, students from disadvantaged backgrounds still struggle to access selective institutions. Each year, 1,000 students from historically low-participation areas miss out on places despite meeting entry requirements., either because they are not encouraged to apply or are not offered places.

These stubborn gaps persist despite considerable efforts from universities, government, regulatory bodies and the third sector to improve access rates. The Office for Students urges universities to enhance their efforts to widen access through access and participation plans (APPs), but there has been insufficient political support for these initiatives. Indeed, those promoting widening access have, in some senses, been running to stand still.

In the coming years, this may become even more challenging, as universities manage the ongoing funding squeeze from the declining value of tuition fees, and, rightly, an increased focus on student success and well-being. With finite resources, widening participation departments are likely to find it increasingly difficult to prevent access gaps from growing further because of rising social inequalities and increasing competition for university places.

Ahead of the election, Bridget Phillipson, who is now education secretary, said Labour would “enable our young people to seize the opportunities of the future through our reforms of the skills system and higher education funding – your background will be no barrier to getting on under a Labour government”. To deliver on this promise, action is needed both to strengthen widening access initiatives and to improve financial support for students.

The new government should undertake a Fair Access Review to explore a new sector-wide approach. This should include encouraging the use of contextual admissions, whereby applicants’ backgrounds are considered during the admissions process, as well as reviewing regulatory expectations. Student maintenance levels have lagged far behind inflation in recent years, meaning that essential costs are higher than the maximum loan for the majority of students. Raising maintenance support would better enable students to focus on their studies. If maintenance grants were reinstated, it would also make the system fairer: the poorest students currently graduate with the highest debt.

But addressing inequality is not just a moral imperative. By widening access, we can stimulate economic growth and ensure that we have the robust, highly skilled workforce that is essential for our nation’s competitiveness on the global stage.

Tapping into the full, diverse range of talent available across the UK will foster innovation, creativity and civic engagement within higher education, preparing students to become active and informed citizens and building a more just, equitable and prosperous society.

Jon Datta is head of university access and digital at the Sutton Trust.