Signatory exclusive: Improving Social Mobility Through Inclusive Leadership
For our latest Signatory Exclusive Lunch and Learn event we were joined by Rose Sellman-Leava, co-founder of Inclusive Futures CIC.
Rose shared how some simple, actionable considerations in the workplace can improve inclusion for everyone, but particularly those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.
As Co-Founder of Inclusive Futures CIC, a female-led social enterprise, Inclusive Futures is dedicated to social mobility and has reached over 10,000 young people from low-income backgrounds since 2020.
The session moved beyond theory, diving into the systemic barriers that shape professional lives and how inclusive leadership can dismantle them.
Understanding the Gap: Postcodes and Pay
Rose opened by defining social mobility as the link between a person’s occupation or income and that of their parents. In cities like Bristol, this link is starkly visible; opportunity is often determined by postcode, with neighborhoods in the top 1% and bottom 1% of deprivation sitting less than a mile apart.
In the workplace, these disparities manifest in what Rose termed the "class pay gap." Research shows that employees from working-class backgrounds often earn £6,000 less than peers in the same roles. This isn't due to a lack of talent, but rather a lack of "cultural capital," informal networks, and the "unspoken rules" of corporate environments.
The Three Levels of Barriers
To improve mobility, Rosemary argued that organizations must understand barriers at three distinct stages:
Pre-Employment: Systemic educational disparities and limited career exposure.
Entry-Level: Opaque recruitment practices, such as informal referrals and "culture fit" biases that exclude those without established networks.
In-Work: A lack of mentorship and the existence of "unconscious bias" that affects how performance is evaluated.
Rose challenged the group to rethink well-meaning phrases like "just be more confident" or "everyone has the same opportunities here". These can stifle mobility by ignoring the reality that not everyone starts from the same baseline.
Leading with Inclusion
Rose shared alot of detailed insight and we shared a discussion with our signatories on how they are addressing these challenges in their organisations. Our signatories can log into the members hub to view:
The You Tube and detailed insight summary for this event
Insight and videos from previous lunch and learn events including:
Jan 26 - Leading with Empathy: Best Practices for Supporting Employees Affected by Relational Trauma
Dec 25 - Cultivating Wellbeing - Anti Racism and Mental Health in the Workplace - with a focus on the ‘raising the flags’ movement
Join the charter to become a member and access this insight and come to our future lunch and learn sessions!
Get in touch with Rose to find out more about inclusive futures and their work: Rose Sellman-Leava rose@inclusivefutures.co.uk check out their work: www.inclusivefutures.co.uk
