David Sproul: Give ALL young bright sparks a chance to soar

Research by the Sutton Trust has found that the UK’s leading professions are still dominated by people who were educated at private schools.

It focused on those in prominent positions in their professions and found that 71 per cent of barristers, 61 per cent of doctors and 51 per cent of journalists were privately educated.

This comes as little surprise. The UK has one of the poorest rates of social mobility in the developed world and the OECD estimates that rising inequality knocked a staggering 9 per cent off UK GDP between 1990 and 2010.

The education system undoubtedly has a vital role to play in working to ensure equal opportunities for young people from all backgrounds.

However, as the research demonstrates, improving the UK’s record on this issue is not just the responsibility of our universities and schools – businesses must also radically rethink the ways in which they attract, recruit and retain talent.

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