Social Mobility and Child Poverty – Cabinet Office Call for Evidence

The Cabinet Office has issued a Call for Evidence on the issue of Social Mobility and Child Poverty. This is in advance of the establishment of a statutory Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission. The Commission will be issuing its first report to Parliament in Spring next year. That report will also take into account of the evidence collected for:

• Alan Milburn’s review Unleashing Aspiration: The Final Report of the Panel on Fair Access to the Professions
• Frank Field’s review The Foundation Years: preventing poor children becoming poor adults
• Graham Allen’s review of Early Intervention
• the social mobility strategy document, Opening Doors, Breaking Barriers
• tthe Child Poverty Strategy Consultation.

The Call for Evidence will also help inform the Commission’s first report. It aims to explore questions around how child poverty and social mobility are linked, and the examples of how projects can be set up and expanded and progress measured on these issues. The questions are:

• What do you think are the links between social mobility and child poverty?
• What are the main barriers which stop people moving out of poverty or which prevent people from slipping into poverty?
• Do you think the Government’s policies, in particular the social mobility and child poverty strategies, will improve people’s life chances?
• Are there other policies that could be implemented for the same cost which would ensure that all citizens have the same opportunities?
• How can we create the right mix of practical and financial support to ensure that all people have opportunities to get on in life?
• What are the best examples of projects which have brought about real progress in creating a fairer, more mobile society?
• What are the best examples of where effective projects have been expanded and best practice shared with other areas or organisations?
• What more should businesses, civil society and other non-government institutions be doing to improve social mobility and tackle child poverty?
• What would be the best way to measure progress on social mobility and child poverty?
• Do you think the indicators set out in the child poverty strategy and social mobility strategy are the right measures?

TCC have previously blogged on the Government’s social mobility review. In addition more recent postings on unevenly distributed levels of self-efficacy and the barriers to changing that have expanded on how interventions will need to be more sophisticated and go beyond providing resources to deliver a service and expecting people to automatically respond to it. In future the barriers to motivation to take part will require much more targeted activity at a local level. Understanding the social networks and values that hold back communities and the individuals within them will also need to be understood more before pro-social behavioural interventions can be delivered.

The closing date for the current Call for Evidence is 16 October, so there is plenty of time for those who wish to contribute to this important issue.

Charlie Mansell is Research and Development Officer for The Campaign Company. If you want to see what your own primary values set is, why not take the simple Values Questionnaire here.