

They don’t need more education! Too many school leavers go to university, says social mobility charity boss

12pm: Too many school leavers are going to university, according to the head of a social mobility charity and think-tank.

Sir Peter Lampl, founder and executive chairman of the Sutton Trust, believes that many teenagers should consider alternative further education opportunities.

Sir Peter said: ‘I think there are too many kids going to university.

‘Too many graduates come out with a lot of debt, the levels of debt are astronomical, and in many cases they come out with skills that the marketplace doesn't want.’

Sir Peter suggested that graduates eventually become a drain on the economy because they are unable to pay back their student debts.

Speaking to the Daily Telegraph, he said: ‘The students aren't going to be able to pay back the debt so that is a big problem. Who is going to pay?

‘We are giving them the money, the taxpayer is funding this, and the taxpayer is not going to get paid back.’

On the eve of A-level results day in England, Sir Peter claimed a lot of students would be ‘better served’ by doing a degree apprenticeship where ‘you earn while you learn, you come out with no debt and you come out with skills the marketplace wants’.

Sir Peter established the Sutton Trust in 1997 as an educational charity that works to champion social mobility through research and policy.

According to its website, Sir Peter has given more than £50million to the trust. His concerns come after it was reported that 44 per cent of all 18 year-olds in England sought places at universities this year, a ten per cent increase on last year.

However, many students’ university places are thought to be under threat this year as a result of A-level grades being decided upon by teachers, after exams were once again cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.