Bristol Good Morning Britain weatherman and presenter Alex Beresford has waded into a row over whether working class children should aim ‘lower’ than Oxbridge. The personality who grew up in Eastville hit out after the Government’s social mobility tsar has said understanding of the issue needs to move beyond a “rags to riches”, “Dick Whittington” approach.
In her inaugural speech as chairwoman of the Social Mobility Commission (SMC), Katharine Birbalsingh said society needed to move away from a model of social mobility where there is a “focus on big-leap-upward mobility from the bottom to the top in one generation”. And she said that in reality it wasn’t worth going for top universities like Oxford and Cambridge as it ‘isn’t a reality’ for youngsters from a poor background.
But Mr Beresford hit back on Twitter saying: “I’ve spoken to thousands of working class kids in schools about aspirations. I wouldn’t and will never dream of telling them to aim lower. Set your sights beyond the horizon if you so wish.”
