A couple of weeks ago, I spent the evening in London, with three other doctors, talking to sixth-formers from “non-traditional backgrounds” (a euphemism for low socio-economic status) about studying medicine. A friend from medical school organised this careers event on behalf of Teach First, an independent charity that aims to broaden access to education. These were 16- and 17-year olds achieving high grades despite being in inner-city schools, where their peers were not pursuing A-levels, let alone higher education.