About this Event
In June 2026 an independent inquiry into White Working-Class Educational Outcomes, commissions by Star Academies, found that ‘the intersection of socio-economic disadvantage, working class identity, geographic inequality and white ethnicity has become one of the most significant and persistent drivers of educational underachievement within the English system today.’ The authors of the report conclude that, ‘The education system is not set up to serve white working class children and families.’
Rising pupil disengagement from the curriculum and school is a particular problem in economically-stagnant towns and cities beyond the south-east but is also the case in some London suburbs. In these locations, the link between educational achievement, work and positive prospects appears weak for many young people, as does trust in social institutions. There are also signs of growing disconnection between parents and schools over how they are run. This is a particular problem with multi-academy trusts, often managed at a distance from individual schools and communities. For instance, in June there were angry demonstrations about authoritarian discipline at Athena Learning Trust school in Devon. To what extent are the discrepancies between schools and working-class communities born out of poor communication or do differences in values, such as diversity and sustainability, play a part?
Added to this is the debate about the one million 16–24-year-olds in the UK who are NEET (not in education, employment or training). Andy Burnham and Lucy Powell have made their case that the way forwards should be for schools to offer high-quality technical education for students from age 14, suggesting that they should value the ‘hard hat every bit as much as the graduation cap’. While schools should help students to find a pathway into employment, and recognise the social worth of head, hand and heart jobs, would parity of esteem between academic and vocational qualifications lead to better education for young people or might it lower expectations of what some pupils can achieve?
The key questions here are why are some young people struggling to see the point of education and engage in the academic curriculum and what can schools do to help? Teachers should acknowledge that the struggle of the working-class child within education is often greater than that of those who are born into cultural privilege, because of the uneven social distribution of cultural capital and principled forms of reasoning, as theorised by Basil Bernstein and Pierre Bourdieu. Education cannot fully compensate for society’s deficiencies and inequality, but it can help to prepare young people to lead a full and rich life.
Teachers can tirelessly, humanely and resolutely make the case for enlightenment over confusion, for powerful knowledge over ignorance, and for the intellectual potential and potency of the students that they have the honour to teach. The report into White Working-Class Educational Outcomes notes that a minority of schools are successfully achieving good educational outcomes in working-class communities, so what are the essential lessons we can learn from their success and will other schools be able to follow suit?
SPEAKERS
Sarah Anderson
Sarah is a policy analyst for Public First. She graduated from the University of Cambridge with a first class BA in Classics. Since joining Public First she has co-authored the report of the Inquiry into White Working Class Educational Outcomes which was referenced in the 2026 Schools White Paper, as well as leading analysis for the Parent Voice Project, the largest-ever poll of English parents.
Candice Holdsworth
Candice is a London-based writer, broadcaster and mother of three children. She is a regular contributor to Spiked, TalkTV, GB News, the BBC, The Spectator and The Sun, and frequent guest on GB News, Plank of the Week and the Spiked podcast. Candice holds a master's degree in political philosophy.
James Mannion
James is a teacher trainer and government adviser. He is the author of Fear is the Mind Killer (2020) and Making Change Stick (Hodder, 2025), a practical guide to implementing school improvement. He works with schools internationally, and hosts two podcasts - Making Change Stick in Schools and Rethinking Education, which has had over half a million plays to date.
Toby Marshall
Toby is a teacher of film studies and member of the Academy of Ideas Education Forum. He has taught film studies and other subjects in Essex and East London for more than 20 years, working successfully with both GCSE resit, A-level and degree-level students. He writes the regular Toby’s Jug Substack on the relationship between politics, values, knowledge and education.
SUGGESTED READING
. Sutton Trust, June 2026.
Event venue & nearby stays
Accent Global Learning - London Study Center, 12 Bedford Square, London, United Kingdom
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