ATL comment on Sutton Trust report on social mobility

Commenting on new research by the Sutton Trust on social mobility, Dr Mary Bousted, general secretary of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), said:

“The Sutton Trust report shows that the public agree that Government’s treatment of the further education sector is draconian.

“Since 2009, cuts of 14 per cent to funding for young people in FE, and 35 per cent to adult learning budgets, have clearly impacted social mobility and limited people’s life chances. If young people are unable to access skills education because there is less money in colleges this will limit their ability to get the first step on the career ladder. Cuts to budgets also mean that adults are unable to improve their skills or retrain if they lose their job.”