Biography
Professor Jo Blanden was a full-time researcher at the Centre for Economic Performance (CEP) at the London School of Economics from 2000 to 2005 and completed her PhD at UCL over this time. She joined the Department of Economics at the University of Surrey in October 2005. She is a Professor at the School of Economics at Surrey and an Associate at the CEP.
Current areas of research include:
- Jo's research interests lie broadly in the fields of labour and family economics. Her work with Paul Gregg and Steve Machin on 'Changes in Intergenerational Mobility in Britain' found that the relationship between family income and children's adult earnings has strengthened for those born in 1970 compared to those born in 1958. Jo's recent paper with Stephen Machin (January 2017), on 'Home Ownership and Social Mobility' found that home ownership rates have fallen rapidly. The results reinforce a picture of falling social mobility in Britain.
- Jo has published work on international comparisons and on how using different measures of mobility changes conclusions. In addition she has looked at how obtaining qualifications in adulthood affects individuals' earnings. Recent work with Lindsey Macmillan seeks to understand how social mobility is affected by educational expansion. Her current projects continue to explore the topic of social mobility in the UK, with joint work with Lindsey Macmillan, Paul Gregg, Luke Sibieta and Ellen Greaves seeking to understand the impressive school performance of children in London, especially for those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
- She has a research grant to look at the impact of nursery attendance on children's outcomes (with Sandra McNally and Kirstine Hansen) which is now part of a larger collaboration with Birgitta Rabe and Emilia Del Bono. This work indicates that the £2bn a year invested in part-time early education appears to have quite small educational benefits.
Publications
