Introduction

Career Ready is a charity dedicated to helping young people in disadvantaged areas access internships and work opportunities. However, the organisation faced a challenge: how to allocate additional resources effectively. They needed to understand whether their current support was well-distributed across schools and if new schools should be added in other regions.

To address this, I developed an Opportunity Index, a data-driven approach to identify areas where the charity could maximise its impact. By mapping this index across all local authorities in England, we could visualise regions of high potential and uncover underrepresented areas.

Developing the Opportunity Index

The Opportunity Index was created using two key metrics for each local authority:

  1. GDP: A proxy for the number of jobs available in the region.
  2. Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD): A measure of local deprivation.

Combining these factors generated an opportunity index was created with score between 0 and 1 (from least to most opportunity).

For city regions, the GDP was calculated as the total GDP of the greater city area, reflecting the interconnectedness of local economies. This approach highlighted areas with high deprivation levels and significant job availability—ideal candidates for Career Ready’s expansion.

Key Insights from the Opportunity Map

In the data visualisations below the colour scale is logarithmic scale and represents the opportunity index which takes represents a value from 0 to 1, from less to more opportunity. The red dots show where Career Ready already has partnering schools.

1. North West (Liverpool and Manchester)

Cities in and around Liverpool and Manchester are among the most underrepresented regions in terms of Career Ready schools. Only 13% of the organisation’s schools are located in the North West, yet 4 of the top 10 local authorities with the highest Opportunity Index scores are in this region (40%).

  • Commutability: Treating Liverpool and Manchester as a combined metropolitan area (35 minutes by train) significantly increases the Opportunity Index scores, highlighting strong potential for growth.

2. Low-Opportunity Regions

Approximately 15% of Career Ready schools are located in regions with low opportunity scores, such as York, Norwich, and Bristol.

  • This suggests that some existing resources could be redirected to areas with higher potential impact.

3. London

In London, schools are not distributed in alignment with Opportunity Index scores. Five of the top 10 boroughs with the highest scores are underrepresented, comprising only 18% of Career Ready schools.

  • Underrepresented Boroughs:
    • Barking: 1 school
    • Hackney: 1 school
    • Newham: 0 schools
    • Haringey: 0 schools
    • Tower Hamlets: 3 schools

Visualising the Opportunity Index

National Overview

The map below illustrates the Opportunity Index across all local authorities in England. Regions in the North West stand out as key areas for expansion:

Opportunity Map of England

Focus: North West

This map highlights the significant potential of Liverpool and Manchester, showing why these regions should be a priority for Career Ready:

North West Opportunity Map

Focus: London

The London-specific map reveals the disparity between opportunity scores and the distribution of Career Ready schools. Targeting underrepresented boroughs like Newham and Hackney could have a substantial impact:

London Opportunity Map

Conclusion and Recommendations

Mapping opportunity through geospatial analysis provides a powerful lens for resource allocation. For Career Ready, this means:

  1. Expanding in the North West, leveraging the combined potential of Liverpool and Manchester.
  2. Improving representation in high-opportunity boroughs within London, such as Newham and Tower Hamlets.
  3. Optimising existing resources by reviewing schools in low-opportunity regions.

These insights offer a clear roadmap for maximising the charity’s impact, ensuring resources are directed where they’re needed most.