Employer newsletter – 12 December 2022

Employer Newsletter

December 13, 2022 | Paula Kemp

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There’s been lots going on in the social mobility world recently, from the recent launch of our new Employer Advisory Group to last week’s release of the 2022 Social Mobility Employer Index.

We’re busy planning our 2023 employer masterclasses, and you can already register for the first one. Join us on 18th January 2023 to learn more about how to improve your organisation’s socio-economic data – find out more and sign up below. We have a great programme of masterclasses coming up next year, so watch out for more information coming soon!

Finally, thank you for engaging with our resources this year, whether you’ve attended our events, used our toolkits, read our blogs and case studies, followed us on LinkedIn, or just read this newsletter. It’s great to see so many people taking steps to increase socio-economic diversity in their organisation, and we look forward to providing you with even more support next year.

We hope you’re able to take a break over the coming weeks, and we’ll be sending out the next edition of our newsletter in January.

Thanks for reading,
The SMC Employers Team

Upcoming events:

Using workforce data to understand and improve social mobility

Wednesday 18th January, 3-4pm

Register now for our next masterclass! Join us on 18th January 2023, 3-4pm, to explore ‘Using workforce data to understand and improve social mobility’.

As an employer, data is one of the most important tools you have to understand and improve diversity in your workplace. However, many employers report that collecting socio-economic data remains their biggest challenge.

In this masterclass, we’ll be joined by Tracy Garrad, CEO of AXA Health, who will discuss AXA’s journey in improving their socio-economic data, including why this matters, their successes and challenges, and their plans for the future.

Register now to attend our data masterclass.

National Apprenticeships Week

Join us to celebrate National Apprenticeships Week (6th-12th February 2023) with a masterclass focusing on how apprenticeships can help increase social mobility, and provide great benefits for your business.  Watch this space for more information!

Hear more from the SMC:

Announcing our new Employer Advisory Group

We’re delighted to share further information about the 13 members comprising our new Employer Advisory Group. Chosen from those who responded to our open consultation in October, they represent a wide range of industries and regions, and each bring a wealth of knowledge and experience.

The group has been put in place to drive social mobility in the workplace in the UK and support the Commission’s employer focused programme of work, and we look forward to working with all our members to improve social mobility across the country.

The first meeting took place on Thursday 1st December, with lots of discussion based around the early findings from our employer consultation!

You can find out more about our Employer Advisory Group here.

Employer Consultation report coming in January

Thanks to everyone who completed our Employer Consultation earlier this year. We received some great submissions, and really appreciate the time that was spent on providing this information.

In January, we’ll be publishing a report based on our findings. The report will discuss what activities and interventions organisations are implementing to improve social mobility, what is and isn’t working, and what challenges and issues remain for organisations.

In case you missed it:

• On 29th November we welcomed employers to our ‘T Levels: What, why, where and how?’ masterclass, hosted by our Deputy Chair, Alun Francis, Principal of Oldham College.

  We were joined by a panel of experts who gave us some fascinating insights into what T Levels are and how they can benefit businesses, from the perspective of both T Level providers and organisations hosting T Level placements.

  If you missed it, you can watch the recording and read our recap online now.

• Last week, The Social Mobility Foundation published their 2022 Employer Index, showing how employers are performing in eight areas of social mobility.

  Their Employer Index Report gives detailed data and insights gained from Index submissions. It also features best practice and practical steps that you can take to improve social mobility in the short, medium and long-term.

  For even more support with improving social mobility in your organisation, you can access all our employer resources, including those highlighted in the report, on our website.

• We were delighted that the Commission is mentioned numerous times in the latest UK Social Mobility Awards report, ‘Widening the gate? Advancing social mobility in 2021-22’ report, with many organisations using our one key question as a simple, reliable SEB measure, and lots of organisations engaging with our resources.

  This fascinating research examines what employers and educators did to advance social mobility in 2021-22, and how they did it – both the challenges they overcame, and the key things that helped to support effective social mobility work.