The education gap
Not everyone is empowered with the tools and support they need to access employment, let alone follow their aspirations and fulfil their potential. Schooling is such a crucial first step in every young person’s career, and yet a shocking 94,900 children are missing out on education in the UK*, meanwhile globally one in five children drop out of school due to poverty and other pressures*.
Unequal career opportunities
The hard repercussions of this for a young person’s career and livelihood are undeniable. Two in three children from underprivileged backgrounds do not achieve the basic entry requirements to progress beyond GCSE, and it’s estimated that by the age of 26, four in five will be earning below the “just-about-managing” salary threshold (UK).
These statistics are saddening and unacceptable, not least because of the knock on impact on their quality of life, as well as that of their families and their children and so on.
Learning is a privilege, and it’s one which should be equally available to everyone, regardless of background or postcode. Myself and Andrea - who come from two of the most disadvantaged areas in the UK - are passionate about redressing the balance, and when we took joint ownership of the business in 2018 we knew we wanted Ryder Reid to stay committed to empowering more young people with the chance to learn.
Future Frontiers and coaching young people
As part of this commitment, we support Future Frontiers - an education charity who help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds fulfil their potential. They do this through training, face-to-face coaching, and giving students access to role models in their preferred industries, including recruitment and law.
Our team of consultants have worked with Future Frontiers to coach young people on the opportunities available to them depending on their aspirations. As someone who completed a degree apprenticeship with the support of Ryder Reid, before becoming Co-owner, I know first-hand how life changing this sort of input from businesses can be - and I’m proud of the steps we’ve taken as a team to play a role in bringing this to life for more people.
Breaking the cycle
There’s such a long way to go in closing the education gap and breaking the poverty cycle, and businesses have a responsibility to do what they can - especially in our line of work. It feels good to know that Ryder Reid is contributing one small cog in the wheel of helping a wider pool of young people to learn, upskill and ultimately go onto live happier lives that include a thriving career.
Written by Callum Smith, Ryder Reid Legal co-owner and Business Director. Callum joined Ryder Reid Legal in 2006 and it was his first job in recruitment. He has worked his way up from entry level to now co-owning the business. Callum has worked in all of our recruitment divisions, but his main experience comes within our interim legal division. In 2018, Callum bought Ryder Reid Legal with Andrea Prendergast, our Executive Search Director.
References:
https://www.savethechildren.org/us/charity-stories/international-day-of-education-2024
https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/children-missing-education