Lee Elliot Major OBE FAcSS is Britain’s
first Professor of Social Mobility, based at the University of Exeter. He advises on education, government and corporate leaders across the world on enabling people from all socio-economic backgrounds to flourish in life, whatever path they choose. He was formerly Chief Executive of the Sutton Trust, the UK’s leading social mobility foundation.
His work is dedicated to improving the lives of children and young people from under-resourced or poorer backgrounds. He works closely with school and university leaders, global employers and Governments in the UK and across the world to develop practical ways of improving educational and life prospects.
Amongst his award winning books are his latest book
Equity in Education which argues for a
new approach and language for disadvantage and
challenges deficit discourses in education. On its release the book was immediately ranked among Amazon’s ‘Hot New Releases in Education’. His Penguin book
Social Mobility and Its Enemies has attracted attention across the world. Lee is one of the most prominent public voices in national education debates and is invited to speak about the topic across the world. His forthcoming book
Cracking the Class Code documents contemporary class divides across the world. Lee lived on his own from the age of 15 and once
He was awarded an OBE in the 2019 Queen’s Honours. Lee lived on his own from age 15 and once worked as a bin-man. He was the
first in his family to go to university. He was a warded and OBE for services to social mobility.
He has served on several government advisory bodies and currently sits on the Department for Education’s Schools Strategy & Delivery Advisory Group.
He holds several academic posts including Associate Member, Nuffield College, University of Oxford, and Associate, London School of Economics, Centre for Economic Performance. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences and serves on the Strategic Advisory Network of the Economic and Social Research Council.
Some links on Lee's equity work that may be useful. His
ARC talk for school system leaders.
Fixing a broken tongue: sets out some ideas about inclusive language. Here is the latest report on the
equity scorecard for schools. The equity leadership course is
here. The Equity in Education book that started it all is
here. Lee's
TEDx talk.
