UK loses out on £19bn in annual GDP growth due to lack of social mobility

An apprentice learning to work on a boiler. The report says apprenticeships could be a ‘great vehicle’ for improving social mobility in the UK. Photograph: Ian Allenden/Alamy

A lack of social mobility is costing the UK £19bn a year, a report produced by the cross-party thinktank Demos and the Co-op has found.

The Social Mobility Commission, which advises the government, defines social mobility as “the link between a person’s occupation or income and the occupation or income of their parents”.