Feature: Britain's bright working class kids less likely to be high-earners than less-able upper class children

A leading social reformer described as a scandal Sunday that a child's place in Britain's class system determines their destiny in life.

Former Labor politician and cabinet member Alan Milburn was commenting after a damning report published Sunday highlighted the grim reality of the British class system.

The study shows less able, better-off kids are 35 percent more likely to become high earners in life than brighter, but poorer children.

The one-time Secretary of State for Health said: "It's a social scandal that all too often demography is still destiny in Britain. The government should make its core mission the levelling of the playing field so that every child in the country has an equal opportunity."

The report released Sunday from the London School of Economics for the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission, exposed the reality of a "glass floor" in British society that protects less able, better-off children from falling down the social ladder as they become adults.

Milburn, who chairs commission, said the "glass floor" is as much a problem as the "glass ceiling" in the way it inhibits social mobility in Britain.

The research found children from more advantaged social backgrounds who are assessed at age 5 as having low cognitive ability are significantly more likely to become high earners than high ability children from lower income households.

Moreover, children from high income backgrounds who show signs of low academic ability at age 5 are 35 percent more likely to be high earners as adults than children from poorer families who show early signs of high ability.

The research found social background and family income have a significant effect on the likelihood of a child later being a high earner.

The research concludes that better-off, middle-class parents are successful in effectively creating a "glass floor" which protects their children from downward mobility and makes it harder for able children from less advantaged backgrounds to succeed.

Middle class parents are also likely to place a high value on polish and "soft skills", such as self-confidence and decisiveness.

Advantaged parents are also able to move house to be in the catchment areas of the best state schools, pay for private tuition or give their children a private education.

More advantaged parents are also better able to secure advantages for their children into the labor market that are unavailable to less well-off parents, such as social networking and unpaid internships.

Milburn said: "No one should criticise parents for doing their best for their children. But Britain is a long way from being a meritocratic society when the less able can do better in life than the more able."

"It has long been recognised that there is a glass ceiling in British society that prevents children with potential progressing to the top. This research reveals there is a glass floor that inhibits social mobility as much as the glass ceiling," Milburn said.

"Employers need to ensure internships aren't simply reserved for those with the right social contacts," Milburn added.

A suggested action plan includes ensuring children from less advantaged backgrounds have access to support and opportunities available to their peers, and tackling tackle material deprivation that undermine parents' efforts to give their kids the best possible start in life. Endit