Education and labour markets
Our Education and labour markets team has extensive experience of education economics and policy analysis, covering:
- The analysis of further and higher education funding systems, such as fees and graduate premiums. This include the economic benefits to the Exchequer, the wider benefits and spillovers associated with different funding models, and the deadweight loss associated with publicly funded training
- The role of personal and socioeconomic characteristics on educational attainment
- The outcomes to the individual associated with educational attainment, such as the rate of return to education, including higher education and vocational qualifications
- Employer and labour market demand for higher, further and vocational education and training, including apprenticeships, and the impact of skills mismatch between supply and demand at the national and local levels
- International comparisons of education and training systems, including academic and vocational qualifications
- The role of information in determining university selection
- The evaluation of government programmes promoting education and training, including early years policy interventions
Our economic consultants are experts in education and labour market economics. They use techniques including literature reviews, surveys and primary data collection, choice experiments, analysis of large matched data sets, including sophisticated econometric analysis, and cost effectiveness and cost-benefit analysis, in line with HMT’s Green Book.
Recent projects
Our expertise in education and labour market analysis is trusted by our clients, in both the public and private sector, including central government Departments, Non-Departmental Public Bodies, the European Parliament, European Commission, and the OECD, as well as educational institutions, mission groups and associations. We consider all the work that we undertake to form the basis of a long term relationship with our clients and many of our clients return regularly for further analysis and research.
- The returns associated with intermediate and low level vocational qualifications (RR-53 here) and an economic analysis of the returns to BTEC qualifications (here) for Pearson International
- An assessment of the deadweight loss associated with FE and Skills (RR-71 here) for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
- An economic analysis of the direct and indirect costs and benefits to the individual, the state and to society from qualification attainment at degree level for the Royal Society of Chemistry
- Baseline methodology for the evaluation of the Extended Schools programme (here) for the Department of Education
- An assessment of registration and eligibility for Free School Meals in England (here) for the Children’s Food Trust
- Behind the Headlines – Are the changes to higher education funding in England cost-effective? for million+ (here), and higher Education fees and funding modelling for the IPPR
- An assessment of teacher mobility across the 27 EU Member States (here) for the European Parliament
Head of the team
Our Education and Labour Markets team is led by Dr Gavan Conlon, who is a Partner at London Economics. Gavan is an expert in the economics of education. Over the last 15 years, he has directed, managed or delivered more than 130 education related projects. He has provided expert advice and analysis to a number of clients including the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and Department of Education, as well as the European Parliament and OECD, and has also provided expert evidence to the UK Parliament’s BIS Committee Inquiry into Higher Education Fees and Funding.
Gavan has strong academic background and has worked in the London School of Economics as a Research Officer (post-doctoral researcher) in the Centre for Economic Performance. He also has experience of working inside central government having spent a year on secondment to the Department of Education.
Gavan has a doctorate in economics from the University of Oxford that considered the earnings and employment outcomes associated with academic and vocational qualification attainment. Gavan also has several published papers in peer reviewed journals.
Contact details
Gavan Conlon
T: +44 (0) 20 7866 8176
