A country characterised by low growth and entrenched inequality. This is how a recent report by the Resolution Foundation summarised the UK. It’s for this reason that increasing prosperity in an equitable manner is a key challenge facing policymakers across the nation in upcoming years. For the sector, the question this has raised is;
How might (higher) education play a role in helping to tackle the twin challenge of poor productivity and high inequality?
Today, we add our contribution to this area of discussion by releasing the findings from an empirical analysis examining the association between education provision, the skill level of the local population and productivity.
The key take-away message from our study is as follows. Among the 374 local authorities/council areas/local government districts across the UK, there are a cluster of 38 localities – often exhibiting a mining, manufacturing or industrial legacy – which have both low productivity (on average) and the smallest proportion of residents with Level 4 qualifications or above (this category would generally cover those with degrees, but will also often include individuals with sub-degree qualifications such as HNCs/HNDs). As well as a relatively low stock of skilled workers, these areas also tend to display a net outflow of graduates. School attainment is typically below the national average. Based on our own UK-wide area-based measure of deprivation, we find that 44% of vicinities within these 38 local authorities/council areas fall within the most deprived quintile.
