What's 'public speaking' got to do with social mobility?

“The boy is a communist, a subversive, and should fit in perfectly”

The only other reason my headmaster might have endorsed my application for King’s, Cambridge, was some cherished publicity earned as World Schools Debating Champion. 

Perhaps Cambridge valued that too? But I wasn’t the best in the world, not even in the UK. I was just a lucky private school kid taught to speak up. This subtle advantage spills into university and employment. But it impedes social mobility. Our state schools don’t teach the learned confidence to access the best universities or jobs, which means many young people are held back from achieving their potential.

Speakers Trust is a charity changing this. In barely a decade, it has worked with over 95% of state schools in London and the South East to ensure their students leave school with the confidence and skills they need. More recently it is expanding nationally, arguably where the need is greatest; to towns like Doncaster and Blackpool. Now over 25,000 kids a year receive the training and develop the confidence to be heard. Speakers Trust also works beyond the school gates to restore self-confidence and build empathy within the most disadvantaged and marginalised far communities. The charity is well-run, spending just 2% on core costs. The charity believes strongly in measuring what it achieves – its impact assessment data is extraordinary.

Speakers Trust fills a gap in the National curriculum, which otherwise holds talented and passionate kids back. That’s a dry statement. But witness one of their events and you see that being empowered at a powerlesss age truly means something.

Think Greta, Think Malala...  year 10 pupils given a platform to share how they see the world and what they feel should change. This is where the charity’s impact comes from. The U.K. has equally thoughtful and inspiring kids but we need to teach them how to make their voices heard. They have made me laugh, cry and understand in a way adults do not. 

I got involved as a trustee at Speakers Trust, because social mobility is fundamental - and it starts in education. Personal highlights include kids applying to Cambridge who hadn’t dreamed to, and head teachers describing its impact in raising ambitions and replacing pupil conflict with empathy.

I was luckier than I deserved at school. Sharing the benefits of these undeserved rewards has been rewarding too - albeit less subversive than my headmaster feared.