Breaking the cycle of disadvantage

Tomorrow the Education Secretary, Damian Hinds, will say that to truly break the cycle of disadvantage and ensure every child gets the chance to reach their full potential, we need to better understand its changing nature. 

Key facts: 
  • The speech from the Secretary of State will shine a light on a range of factors holding young people back based on new analysis and challenge oversimplified concepts, such as the North/South divide.
  • New data shows disadvantaged children in big cities – not just London - outperform counterparts elsewhere in the country, while disadvantaged pupils in coastal areas have much lower outcomes. 
  • There are certain factors which come together to trap families into a cycle of disadvantage and stunt social mobility such as geography, ethnicity, special educational needs and disabilities, stability of home life, contact with social care, poverty, low-income and mental health. 
  • Understanding better how these factors interact to hold children back will allow us to unlock social mobility and close the disadvantage gap. 

Why this matters:

We have seen really strong progress in narrowing the attainment gap at each stage – from pre-school to primary to secondary. But this new analysis will help us move faster to rebalance the odds for more children so they have best start in life.

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