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Snakes and Ladders: The Great British Social Mobility Myth
Politicians claim social mobility is real a just reward for ambition and hard work. This book proves otherwise.
From servants' children who became clerks in Victorian Britain, to managers made redundant by the 2008 financial crash, travelling up or down the social ladder has been a fact of British life for more than a century. Drawing on hundreds of personal stories, Snakes and Ladders tells the hidden history of how people have really experienced that social mobility - both upwards and down.It shows how a powerful elite on the top rungs have clung to their perch and prevented others ascending. It also introduces the unsung heroes who created more room at the top - among them adult educators, feminists and trade unionists, whose achievements unleashed the hidden talents of thousands of people.
From servants' children who became clerks in Victorian Britain, to managers made redundant by the 2008 financial crash, travelling up or down the social ladder has been a fact of British life for more than a century. Drawing on hundreds of personal stories, Snakes and Ladders tells the hidden history of how people have really experienced that social mobility - both upwards and down.It shows how a powerful elite on the top rungs have clung to their perch and prevented others ascending. It also introduces the unsung heroes who created more room at the top - among them adult educators, feminists and trade unionists, whose achievements unleashed the hidden talents of thousands of people.
464 pages, Hardcover
Published February 11, 2021
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279 people want to read
About the author
Selina Todd
8 books20 followersSelina Todd is an English historian and writer. From 2015, she has been Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford. Todd's research focuses on the history of the working-class, women and feminism in modern Britain. Since 2017, Todd has also been president of the Socialist Educational Association.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 2, 2021
This book isn't really about the 'social mobility myth', instead it's a potted history of social mobility - or the lack of it. Although the UK is overtly snobbish, and the US prides itself on being a meritocracy, it is no different at all. It's just that the 'aristocracy', the Daughters of the Revolution, the super-wealthy Wasps, are just as exclusive and determined to not allow anyone, let alone some jumped-up millionaire type into their ranks.
A really good example of just how snobbish and closed-rank the aristocracy in the UK is, is Nicholas ColeridgeThe Glossy Years: Magazines, Museums and Selective Memoirs. In this biography, Nicholas details just how for those born into the 'smart' set, academic qualifications aren't necessary to get into the top universities or the top jobs, and abominable political attitudes - like older people with the big country houses reminiscing positively of the Nazis can just be laughed off. Who are the politicans in the UK (and this includes the anti-Semitic, Hamas-loving, Marxist Jeremy Corbyn deposed leader of the Labour party) they are overwhelming from upper middle class homes. They went to 'good schools'. Is it much different in the US, you have the Kennedy/Cuomo dynasties, the Bush one, Daley, Rockefeller etc.
Ironically though, the royal families of Europe and even Japan are not exclusive. The last aristocrat to marry into a royal family was 40 years ago, Princess Diana. Since then, the royal families princes and princesses have all married commoners they met at school or college. And that is the key to a meritocracy becoming more important than birth to the majority. The next queen of Great Britain will be Kate Middleton, her mother was born on a council estate, very working class, although her father wasn't.
Rising from the working class to the middle class which started in earnest in the 50s depended on the more egalitarian education system. There was the chance of going to university and becoming a professional and automatically midddle-class. Or becoming an entrepreneur, making a lot of money, wearing the right clothes, living in the right areas, sending the kids to the right school and drinking in the right pubs. (This does not apply to footballs or the WAGS
This meritocracy has meant that small towns throughout the UK, but especially in the north of England and Wales (I'm from a village of 40 people) have left for opportunities only the big cities offer, until they've made their money, making them devoid of the brightest, leaving behind opportunities for foreign companies to come and put factories in, their own born and bred being entrepreneurs elsewhere. This isn't good but what to do?
When they've made enough for early retirement, they move to small 'exclusive' villages where similar people have been buying up property from the now mostly working-class villagers who've always lived there. Will they drink with these working class villagers, yes! Will they marry into them? Doubtful.
Traditionally the really beautiful girl from any class has been as much a 'catch' as one from a 'good' (read: rich) family. It still holds true. Especially if she is decades younger than the richer, more upscale man. But does the rich older woman marry pretty working class guys (not necessarily younger)? Rare and it isn't really socially acceptable, especially if he is much younger.
So by and large social mobility is a myth. But it does happen. Look at me - I come from a middle of the road, middle class family and I married into a top political one! (But of course for a certain type of person I married down, since my ex is Black, but we won't worry about them because social mobility myths are one thing, racist myths are another much more pernicious one.)
This wasn't much of a review, more just a rant, but the book was more a history book told through vignettes and whereas it was quite good reading, I would have been happier if it had stuck to it's title which is what I wanted to read about. Still, 4 star.
A really good example of just how snobbish and closed-rank the aristocracy in the UK is, is Nicholas ColeridgeThe Glossy Years: Magazines, Museums and Selective Memoirs. In this biography, Nicholas details just how for those born into the 'smart' set, academic qualifications aren't necessary to get into the top universities or the top jobs, and abominable political attitudes - like older people with the big country houses reminiscing positively of the Nazis can just be laughed off. Who are the politicans in the UK (and this includes the anti-Semitic, Hamas-loving, Marxist Jeremy Corbyn deposed leader of the Labour party) they are overwhelming from upper middle class homes. They went to 'good schools'. Is it much different in the US, you have the Kennedy/Cuomo dynasties, the Bush one, Daley, Rockefeller etc.
Ironically though, the royal families of Europe and even Japan are not exclusive. The last aristocrat to marry into a royal family was 40 years ago, Princess Diana. Since then, the royal families princes and princesses have all married commoners they met at school or college. And that is the key to a meritocracy becoming more important than birth to the majority. The next queen of Great Britain will be Kate Middleton, her mother was born on a council estate, very working class, although her father wasn't.
Rising from the working class to the middle class which started in earnest in the 50s depended on the more egalitarian education system. There was the chance of going to university and becoming a professional and automatically midddle-class. Or becoming an entrepreneur, making a lot of money, wearing the right clothes, living in the right areas, sending the kids to the right school and drinking in the right pubs. (This does not apply to footballs or the WAGS
This meritocracy has meant that small towns throughout the UK, but especially in the north of England and Wales (I'm from a village of 40 people) have left for opportunities only the big cities offer, until they've made their money, making them devoid of the brightest, leaving behind opportunities for foreign companies to come and put factories in, their own born and bred being entrepreneurs elsewhere. This isn't good but what to do?
When they've made enough for early retirement, they move to small 'exclusive' villages where similar people have been buying up property from the now mostly working-class villagers who've always lived there. Will they drink with these working class villagers, yes! Will they marry into them? Doubtful.
Traditionally the really beautiful girl from any class has been as much a 'catch' as one from a 'good' (read: rich) family. It still holds true. Especially if she is decades younger than the richer, more upscale man. But does the rich older woman marry pretty working class guys (not necessarily younger)? Rare and it isn't really socially acceptable, especially if he is much younger.
So by and large social mobility is a myth. But it does happen. Look at me - I come from a middle of the road, middle class family and I married into a top political one! (But of course for a certain type of person I married down, since my ex is Black, but we won't worry about them because social mobility myths are one thing, racist myths are another much more pernicious one.)
This wasn't much of a review, more just a rant, but the book was more a history book told through vignettes and whereas it was quite good reading, I would have been happier if it had stuck to it's title which is what I wanted to read about. Still, 4 star.
January 20, 2025
This took me forever to get through. For various reasons I kept picking it up and putting it down again. This is not a reflection on the book - it is a great read. Nothing I’ve read gives quite the same level of historical consideration of social mobility and its origins and developments
September 15, 2025
Selina Todd makes an excellent exploration into the early 20th century history of social mobility, but doesn't really credibly establish with any certainty that social mobility is a myth in Great Britain, and especially fails at this attempt when it comes to making the argument for modern Great Britain.
The majority of the book consists of the pre-1970s history/struggle of social mobility, whilst the conclusion - and only about 10 pages - consists of an attempt at discussing to what extent social mobility is a myth in 21st century Britain; and even then Todd does not provide a compelling argument in defence of the 'myth' notion.
What would have been most important to see was a discussion and inquiry into the last 10 years in greater depth with a lot of sources backing her argument, but instead there were only a handful of pages in the conclusion and very little attempt at exploring the argument in the context of the 21st century. And even then there was no mention of the attempts made by those big institutions so heavily criticised throughout the book as inaccessible - over 20% of the Civil Service are now working class; almost all universities, including Oxbridge, make serious effort to widen participation and often go out of their way to support those from disadvantaged backgrounds; prolific Civil Service departments and private enterprises all have schemes intended for those who once struggled to climb the social ladder. Absolutely no mention of this, and the book was published in 2021, a year after the Civil Service and university access statistics came out.
Therefore it really is a very one-sided book, with almost a deliberate motive to portray a failure in British society when in fact social mobility is at a new age in the past 10 years, in moderation of course. What I would have expected to see as a closing argument was that, while in the past 5-10 years social mobility has seriously improved such that it cannot be construed a myth, when combined with the cost of living crisis and Brexit it brings social mobility into question, not outright dismissal.
This particular quote shook me to my core though: - “By 2015, the top 10% owned 45% of Britain’s household wealth” - that is INSANE!! Surely even the Conservative vote would have looked in horror at that statistic.
“Like the Conservatives, New Labour believed that the free market - rather than. Strong welfare state - was the best means of achieving [overcoming inequality]”. Questionable. To suggest that these are mutually exclusive is just wrong and also, didn’t Blair pump a record amount of funding into public services and the NHS? To dislike Tony Blair is one thing, to rewrite history is another.
But ultimately, much of the book's fundamental argument is rather silly in that she cannot possibly serve an argument against the prevalence of social mobility in the modern context as society has changed by miles since pre-1970 and to suggest that there is an equivalency between them is just not compelling.
Great to see reference to certain great activists - Ellen Wilkinson and William Morris - both of whom have schools named after them within walking distance of my area.
Some other nice quotes:
The majority of the book consists of the pre-1970s history/struggle of social mobility, whilst the conclusion - and only about 10 pages - consists of an attempt at discussing to what extent social mobility is a myth in 21st century Britain; and even then Todd does not provide a compelling argument in defence of the 'myth' notion.
What would have been most important to see was a discussion and inquiry into the last 10 years in greater depth with a lot of sources backing her argument, but instead there were only a handful of pages in the conclusion and very little attempt at exploring the argument in the context of the 21st century. And even then there was no mention of the attempts made by those big institutions so heavily criticised throughout the book as inaccessible - over 20% of the Civil Service are now working class; almost all universities, including Oxbridge, make serious effort to widen participation and often go out of their way to support those from disadvantaged backgrounds; prolific Civil Service departments and private enterprises all have schemes intended for those who once struggled to climb the social ladder. Absolutely no mention of this, and the book was published in 2021, a year after the Civil Service and university access statistics came out.
Therefore it really is a very one-sided book, with almost a deliberate motive to portray a failure in British society when in fact social mobility is at a new age in the past 10 years, in moderation of course. What I would have expected to see as a closing argument was that, while in the past 5-10 years social mobility has seriously improved such that it cannot be construed a myth, when combined with the cost of living crisis and Brexit it brings social mobility into question, not outright dismissal.
This particular quote shook me to my core though: - “By 2015, the top 10% owned 45% of Britain’s household wealth” - that is INSANE!! Surely even the Conservative vote would have looked in horror at that statistic.
“Like the Conservatives, New Labour believed that the free market - rather than. Strong welfare state - was the best means of achieving [overcoming inequality]”. Questionable. To suggest that these are mutually exclusive is just wrong and also, didn’t Blair pump a record amount of funding into public services and the NHS? To dislike Tony Blair is one thing, to rewrite history is another.
But ultimately, much of the book's fundamental argument is rather silly in that she cannot possibly serve an argument against the prevalence of social mobility in the modern context as society has changed by miles since pre-1970 and to suggest that there is an equivalency between them is just not compelling.
Great to see reference to certain great activists - Ellen Wilkinson and William Morris - both of whom have schools named after them within walking distance of my area.
Some other nice quotes:
“But some WEA classes turned down the offer of scholarships to Ruskin College, Oxford. These students and tutors did not want advanced education to the restricted to only a few students. And they were reluctant to see collaborative learning eroded by preparing for competitive exams. The debate over whether education should provide a meritocratic route up the social ladder, or model a co-operative, socialist society, shaped the development of adult education in Britain.”
“Like many Ruskin students, [Ellen Wilkinson] hoped education would enable her to improve life for the community in which she had grown up and where she still lived ‘to remove slums and underfeeding and misery’, not to flee from them.”
August 9, 2023
3.5 Stars!
Todd remains one of the most compelling contemporary voices on this subject. She takes a fairly broad and deep view sourcing many people and texts, as well as referencing the likes of Mass Observation and the Workers Educational Association.
She describes the trauma of those who have tried to transition from working class backgrounds into middle class situations and the many issues that came along with that, not just the general unease or alienation, but serious mental health issues which were developed as a result of the many problems and discrimination which they had to endure.
“Throughout recent history, governments have bailed private schools out of successive crises by offering them generous subsidies. The only times that the private sector had shown any inclination to open its doors a little wider have been when it is struggling to survive…Currently, private schools receive about £200 million of taxpayers’ money every year.”
This could have probably been slimmed down in areas, to make it a little less sluggish, and it can start to feel a tad dry and repetitive towards the end, but overall Todd covers a lot of worthwhile ground and makes a lot of valid and concerning points. Her proposed solutions at the end are admirable but are unlikely to take root any time soon in a broken Britain that has been cheated, stripped and stolen by a dangerous group of plutocrats and kleptocrats.
Todd remains one of the most compelling contemporary voices on this subject. She takes a fairly broad and deep view sourcing many people and texts, as well as referencing the likes of Mass Observation and the Workers Educational Association.
She describes the trauma of those who have tried to transition from working class backgrounds into middle class situations and the many issues that came along with that, not just the general unease or alienation, but serious mental health issues which were developed as a result of the many problems and discrimination which they had to endure.
“Throughout recent history, governments have bailed private schools out of successive crises by offering them generous subsidies. The only times that the private sector had shown any inclination to open its doors a little wider have been when it is struggling to survive…Currently, private schools receive about £200 million of taxpayers’ money every year.”
This could have probably been slimmed down in areas, to make it a little less sluggish, and it can start to feel a tad dry and repetitive towards the end, but overall Todd covers a lot of worthwhile ground and makes a lot of valid and concerning points. Her proposed solutions at the end are admirable but are unlikely to take root any time soon in a broken Britain that has been cheated, stripped and stolen by a dangerous group of plutocrats and kleptocrats.
July 8, 2023
After ploughing my way through Tom Bowers diatribe on Jeremy Corbyn, it was refreshing to come across a well-researched, well-written and compelling discourse on social mobility in the UK from the early 20th century to present times.
It was fascinating to read of how people have consistently used education in an effort to ascend the social ladder and yet they are not always successful - often due to the ineptitude or ideological entrenchment of politicians. I found it sad to reflect that the 1970's oil crisis and subsequent IMF intervention in UK government domestic policy led to the socially progressive initiatives of the Labour government being reversed. We should ponder on what our current society would be had this not occurred. It was also illuminating to read of events in my own lifetime, now in the context of history.
The stories of individuals interwoven in the text gave life and colour to the discussion.
Finally, the commentary on some parents living their thwarted aspirations through the lives of their children resonated strongly with my own experience.
It was fascinating to read of how people have consistently used education in an effort to ascend the social ladder and yet they are not always successful - often due to the ineptitude or ideological entrenchment of politicians. I found it sad to reflect that the 1970's oil crisis and subsequent IMF intervention in UK government domestic policy led to the socially progressive initiatives of the Labour government being reversed. We should ponder on what our current society would be had this not occurred. It was also illuminating to read of events in my own lifetime, now in the context of history.
The stories of individuals interwoven in the text gave life and colour to the discussion.
Finally, the commentary on some parents living their thwarted aspirations through the lives of their children resonated strongly with my own experience.
November 26, 2022
Britain is unbalanced- if it wasn’t the rich would also be getting poorer and threatening to strike. Todd argues social mobility is a sham and I cannot disagree. Her conclusions merit further consideration but the trouble with equality is that some people have to relinquish what they see as theirs - power, money, position, status - so others thrive and flourish and it really doesn’t feel like our society is ready to make that sacrifice for the greater good. Is inequality too entrenched?
October 10, 2021
Couldn’t finish this as had to go back to the library. An interesting book with a very comprehensive history told through real accounts. However I felt that a it summised the argument in the introduction, and then spent the rest of the book reproving the same point for each generation.
October 2, 2021
Thought provoking, but not sure an emphasis on unionisation, public sector expansion and labour party would be a realistic solution. Heavy criticism on meritocracy is not justified either.
October 7, 2024
Depressing that society improved so much up to 1979 and then started going backwards.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews