Social Mobility, Life Chances, and the Early Years

It is widely agreed that the early years are a particularly important time forefforts to increase social mobility, because a good deal of inequality is alreadyapparent by the time children start school, and because children’s developmentmay be less amenable to change after they enter school. But it is less clear howmuch policies can reduce inequality in the early years, or what policies might bemost effective, given the multiple influences on development in the early yearsand given the complex effects of policies. In this paper, I review what we knowfrom research about what affects development in the early years and examinethe current UK policy framework in light of that research. I then makerecommendations for priorities for next steps to improve social mobility andother desired outcomes in the early years and thereafter.[...]