UK Social Mobility Awards

Celebrating the 2024 SOMO Awards Gala 🏆 Even though it’s been nearly 2 months since this year's SOMOs, we’re still feeling inspired by the incredible achievements, moving stories and shared passion for creating change! As we look back, we’re motivated to continue empowering others, breaking down barriers, and creating opportunities for young people to thrive. A huge thank you to everyone who attended, supported, and contributed to making the SOMOs such a success 🙌 Check out the amazing winners here 👉 https://lnkd.in/eNRphBEZ Watch the highlights video below to revisit the incredible moments 🎥

🤝 The impact of Social Mobility Networks 🤝 Our 23/24 Key Findings report, released last week, shows an increase in retention activities among UK businesses, owing to an increase in Social Mobility Networks. We found employers are working to raise awareness of the barriers faced by LSEB employees and to create a stronger sense of belonging for these employees. Read more from our Key Findings report - Joining and thriving? - here 👉 https://lnkd.in/dZi2gsrF

Is the geographical spread of social mobility activity in businesses increasing? 🌍 According to our Key Findings report, released yesterday, compared to 2023 there has been an increased proportion of reported activities across all regions in England, specifically in the North East (up 11%), and Yorkshire and The Humber (up 14%). Read more in our report - Joining and thriving? - analysing entrants to the 2024 UK Social Mobility Awards 👉 https://lnkd.in/dZi2gsrF

📣 SOMOs Key Findings Report 2024 📣 We’re excited to release our latest report: "Joining and Thriving? Advancing Social Mobility in 2023-24", highlighting insights from this year’s UK Social Mobility Awards entrants. This report examines the social mobility work of employers spanning 20 sectors, covering organisations employing nearly 1.3 million people in the UK. Our key findings are: 💼 While inclusive hiring practices and alternative pathways to employment are on the rise, this has not yet translated to the actual employment of LSEB candidates. 🤝 Social mobility networks are critical, providing mentorship and allyship for LSEB colleagues. 📊 Data collection is vital for understanding socio-economic diversity and shaping strategy. 🚧 Many employers reported barriers in raising awareness of social mobility, but there has been a move from some to voluntarily recognise LSEB as a distinguishing characteristic, despite it not legally being so. To read the full report, visit our website here 👉 https://lnkd.in/dZi2gsrF

To round off the winners of this year's SOMOs is Nationwide Building Society who picked up the award for the Social Mobility Network of the Year 🏆 With more than 800 members, The Nationwide Social Mobility Network drives cultural inclusion and supports colleagues from diverse socio-economic backgrounds. Activities such as coaching workshops, mentoring, and apprenticeships contribute to professional growth and career mobility, while senior sponsorship ensures social mobility remains a strategic priority. These efforts demonstrate the network’s commitment to advancing social mobility, diversity, and inclusion. Nationwide’s network also raises awareness of social mobility challenges, ensuring diverse voices are heard in decision-making. The network has organised impactful initiatives such as Speed Mentoring, which provided targeted personal development to 100 colleagues and hosted events such as ’Speak More’ to share personal social mobility stories, fostering an environment where colleagues feel comfortable to share and be themselves. Externally, the network has supported young people in their early career journeys and acted as positive ambassadors within the Financial Services industry.

The Community Programme of the Year award was taken home by Sky thanks to its efforts in advancing social mobility 🤝 Sky is committed to creating opportunities for those at risk of exclusion through its various initiatives. Sky On Tour provides an immersive experience for underserved secondary schools , offering students the opportunity to experiment with advance equipment to create environmental campaigns. From January 2024 to July 2024 it supported 50 schools across the UK and Ireland. In 2023, more than 20,000 students from undeserved areas visited Sky’s Academy Studios, working with a team of experts to produce their own digital content and gain valuable hands-on broadcasting experience. Sky’s ‘The Edit’ also aims to educate young people about the various roles within the creative and media industries through developing their key media literacy and digital skills. Between 2023/24 the initiative supported 28,000 participants. Keep up the amazing work!

McGinley Support Services (Infrastructure) Ltd took home the award for Progression Programme of the Year 🏆 McGinley Support Services (Infrastructure) Ltd’s upskilling programme is a transformative initiative designed to enhance the competencies and capabilities of their workforce. As a leader in the infrastructure sector, they recognise the imperative need for a versatile and highly skilled workforce to meet the evolving demands of the industry. Through this initiative, they have provided their employees with access to a comprehensive range of training modules, certification, and hands-on experience, enabling them to acquire new skills and expand their expertise across a broader spectrum, of tasks. Complementing this programme, McGinley is now better positioned to undertake more complex and diverse projects, ensuring high standards of quality and efficiency.

Congratulations to Roohi Hasan of ITN who won the award for Mentor of the Year 🏆 Roohi is one of the founding chairs of ITN’s Social Mobility Network, an employee-led group working to drive social mobility up the agenda, ensuring it sits on a par with its inclusion counterparts. As a senior producer at ITN, Roohi works on domestic and international stories of a great variety, but the majority of her work looks to elevate those from under-represented groups. Whether editorially giving voices to NHS nurses from across the continents, traumatised Army veterans, or displaced or disabled persons the world over, Roohi has dedicated her career to giving others a chance to be seen and heard. Colleagues at ITN say she has “mentorship down to a fine art”, and is a passionate advocate of those facing adversity in their quest for success. Her work in facilitating the Catalyst Social Mobility scheme at ITN, now in its third year and ninth cycle, is a source of great admiration for colleagues.

A second award of the night went to Sky, who were also named as Leadership of the Year in the social mobility space 👏 Sky’s social impact programme, Sky Up, helps people realise their potential by bridging the digital divide and creating opportunities, focusing on those most at risk of digital exclusion. Their Academy Studios inspires young people with a new sense of what they can do, and who they can be. The expert team supports young people to create their own news reports, short story trailers and film pitches in state-of-the-art studios and immersive experiences across the UK and Europe, teaching them the skills they need to thrive in a digital world. In 2023, more than 20,000 young people from under-served areas visited the academy sites in London and Scotland, gaining invaluable exposure to the media industry. Sky Up Academy Studios provides young people with the opportunity to explore various roles in the creative industry, giving them skills and knowledge for the classroom and beyond. They develop skills – with a focus on creativity, collaboration and communication – that are highly valued by the industry and transferable to other areas.

University of Bradford have been recognised as best-in-class, taking home this year’s University of the Year Award 🎉 They have demonstrated that socio-economic and structural factors should not present a bar to higher education. It has topped the Higher Education Policy Institute’s Social Mobility Index for the past three years. Some 29% of their home students have been on free school meals, 58% are from the most deprived areas, and 75% are the first generation to enter higher education. University of Bradford also works with local, national and international employers to co-design modules, work-experience opportunities and networks to benefit their students and wider society. Its strategic vision is to be the place to be to make a difference. This idea sits at the heart of the university’s corporate strategy and influences everything it does, from course design to delivery. Well deserved!