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Joe Seddon
BEM
Seddon in London, 2020
Born
Joseph Henry Seddon

(1997-06-04) 4 June 1997 (age 27)
Leeds, England
NationalityBritish
EducationWesterton Primary Academy

Heckmondwike Grammar School

Mansfield College, University of Oxford
Alma materUniversity of Oxford
Occupation(s)CEO, Entrepreneur
Known forFounder & CEO, Zero Gravity
AwardsForbes 30 Under 30

Tech Entrepreneur of the Year

Prime Minister's Points of Light Award
HonoursBritish Empire Medal (BEM)
Websitejoeseddon.com

Joseph Henry Seddon BEM (born 4 June 1997) is a British technology entrepreneur known for founding Zero Gravity, a technology company that supports students from low-opportunity areas into universities and careers.

Since its inception, Zero Gravity has supported over 8,000 students from low-opportunity areas into Russell Group universities, including more than 800 into Oxbridge.[1]

In 2022, Seddon was named in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list for his contributions to technology and entrepreneurship, and, in 2023, he was honoured in King Charles' Birthday Honours List.[2] In 2024, The Sunday Times featured Seddon in their inaugural Young Power List as one of "the 25 most inspiring people aged 30 and under in the UK and Ireland".[3]

Early life and education

[edit]

Seddon was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire in June 1997, and was raised in a single-parent family by his mother, Catherine, who works as a speech therapist in the National Health Service.[4] He grew up in Morley, a post-industrial town in West Yorkshire whose woollen industry experienced significant economic decline in the late 20th century.[5] In 2018, Morley was ranked in the bottom 50% of English constituencies on the Social Mobility Index, which measures how likely a person from a disadvantaged background is to progress to a higher social status later in life.[6]

Seddon was educated at Westerton Primary Academy, a local state primary school in Morley, West Yorkshire. He then studied at Heckmondwike Grammar School, a state grammar school in Kirklees, West Yorkshire, securing 12 A*s in his GCSE exams and 4 A*s in his A-Levels.[7] In his later years at school, Seddon was involved in competitive debating, where he won a number of regional and national awards and was invited to join England's National Debating Team.[8]

Seddon has stated that, for most of his time at school, attending a prestigious university “wasn’t really on my radar”.[9] It was only after a radio interviewer questioned him about applying to Oxbridge upon revealing his GCSE results live on BBC Radio Leeds that he began to entertain the possibility seriously.[10] However, Seddon struggled to navigate the Oxbridge application process, describing the interview as “almost like arriving on a different planet”.[11]

Seddon was ultimately successful in receiving a place to study Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) at Mansfield College, University of Oxford, and graduated in 2018 with first class honours.[12] Whilst studying at Oxford, Seddon received a £6,500 means-tested bursary from the university to fund his living costs.[13] Notably, during Seddon’s final year at Oxford, not a single student from his home constituency of Morley & Outwood was admitted to study at the university. Alongside his university studies, Seddon was an occasional contributor to The Daily Telegraph, where he wrote articles about reforming Britain's higher education system.[14]

Career

[edit]

Zero Gravity

[edit]

Upon graduating from the University of Oxford, Seddon founded Access Oxbridge, a mobile app that connected school students from low-income backgrounds with mentors currently studying at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge.[15][16] Prior to the app’s launch, British universities had come under criticism for the number of students admitted from private schools.[17] In 2016, the University of Oxford gave 59% of offers to UK students from state schools, whilst 93% of all UK students are educated in state schools.[18] Oxford University spends £14 million per year on programs to recruit applicants from low-income backgrounds, costing £108,000 per student admitted.[19]

Seddon’s app aimed to increase access to Oxford and Cambridge by matching low-income students with undergraduate mentors who coached students through weekly hour-long video calls.[20] Seddon built the app from his hometown bedroom and initially funded the initiative from the remnants of his university maintenance grant.[21] In its first year, 110 low-income students mentored on the app achieved offers to study at Oxford and Cambridge.[22][23] In October 2019, Seddon was awarded the Prime Minister's Points of Light award for social impact in education.[24]

Media coverage of Seddon’s work attracted the attention of a number of social impact investors who, in March 2020, provided Seddon with £425,000 of venture capital investment to expand his work.[25] Seddon re-designed his app and relaunched it as Zero Gravity in May 2020.[26] Zero Gravity aims to increase social mobility by developing technology to identify low-income students and provide them with personalised support to win places at UK universities, including Oxbridge and the Russell Group.[27][28][29][30]

In 2020, over 1000 students mentored by Zero Gravity achieved offers to study at Russell Group universities.[31] Zero Gravity has supported 261 low-income students to study at Oxford and Cambridge since its launch.[32] In June 2021, Seddon received the Diana Award in memory of Princess Diana for social impact in the education sector.[25]

In December 2021, Seddon confirmed that he had raised a seed round of investment in Zero Gravity totalling £3.5 million.[33] In 2022, he was named by Forbes in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.[34]

Seddon was awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) in the 2023 Birthday Honours for services to social mobility.[35]

Advocacy and media

[edit]

Seddon's work as an entrepreneur has been covered by BBC News,[21] The Times,[36] The Daily Telegraph,[37] and Corriere della Sera.[38] He is a contributor to BBC News, BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 5 Live, where he discusses education, social mobility and careers.[39] He has also been a guest speaker at the Cambridge Union, where he has delivered lectures on social entrepreneurship.[40]

In October 2020, Seddon was appointed as a Trustee of the British Youth Council.[41] Seddon is also a Governor of Lister Community School.[42]

Personal life

[edit]

Seddon lives in London and is a Hull City supporter.[43]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Griffiths, Sian (30 April 2024). "How I helped 800 pupils get in to Oxbridge". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  2. ^ "Forbes 30 Under 30 2022: Social Impact". Forbes. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  3. ^ Elliott, Hannah Swerling, Katie Tarrant, Louise Eccles and Sharin Hussain | Graphics by Matilda Davies | Design by Heather (30 April 2024). "The 25 most inspiring people aged 30 and under in the UK and Ireland 2024". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 30 April 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ Gill, Gurvinder (11 February 2020). "I spent my last £200 getting people into Oxbridge". BBC News. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  5. ^ "The Heritage Trail – Morley Archive". www.morleyarchives.org.uk. 18 August 2014. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Social Mobility Index by Constituency, England" (PDF). House of Commons Library (CBP 8400). 15 October 2018.
  7. ^ "Celebration for pass masters at two schools". The Press. Retrieved 26 October 2019.[permanent dead link‍]
  8. ^ "Debating Matters – People – Joe Seddon". archive.debatingmatters.com. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
  9. ^ Heywood, Lucy (21 August 2022). "In Conversation with Joe Seddon, founder of Zero Gravity". The Oxford Blue. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  10. ^ "Joe Seddon's fight to transform UK higher education and beyond". Varsity Online. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  11. ^ Burn, Chris (18 February 2019). "Meet the 21-year-old from Yorkshire giving hundreds of state school students the secrets of how to get into Oxbridge".
  12. ^ "Oxford grad offers free tutoring to poor kids". Metro Newspaper UK. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
  13. ^ Choudhury, Yasmin (30 April 2024). "'We used our student loans to start a business'". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  14. ^ Seddon, Joe (27 February 2018). "Striking lecturers must stop using students as a bargaining chip". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  15. ^ Mintz, Luke (17 June 2019). "Can mentor schemes really turn the tables for disadvantaged students applying to Oxbridge?". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
  16. ^ "Student-led outreach initiative Access Oxbridge launches 'groundbreaking' new app". Varsity Online. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
  17. ^ "Oxford and Cambridge condemned over failure to improve state school access". The Guardian. 12 December 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  18. ^ "Oxford University to have 'most state school students for decades'". BBC News. 2 September 2016. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
  19. ^ "Oxford 'spends £108,000' to recruit each extra low-income student". The Guardian. 19 September 2018. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  20. ^ "This app helps students with Oxford and Cambridge University admissions". Study International. 17 February 2020. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  21. ^ a b Gill, Gurvinder (11 February 2020). "I spent my last £200 getting people into Oxbridge". BBC News. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
  22. ^ Bennett, Rosemary (2 February 2019). "Oxford graduate Joe Seddon offers key to interview ordeal". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
  23. ^ Penna, Dominic (12 February 2020). "Want to go to Oxbridge? 5 insider tips for state school students from a 'super mentor'". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 15 July 2021.
  24. ^ "Access Oxbridge founder receives Prime Minister's Points of Light award". Varsity Online. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  25. ^ a b "Alumni Stories: 'I Wanted to Show How Technology Could Disrupt the Higher Education Sector and Level the Playing Field for Students'". www.alumni.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  26. ^ Bennett, Rosemary. "App gives poor pupils a mentor to guide them into top universities". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  27. ^ Cerullo, Sophia (30 May 2020). "Oxford graduate launches digital mentoring for students from disadvantaged backgrounds". Cherwell. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  28. ^ "Mentoring start-up 'Zero Gravity' launched today by founder of Access Oxbridge". The Oxford Student. 24 May 2020. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  29. ^ "'Not everybody has a dedicated office space and a Macbook Air': Oxford grad creates app to help improve access to university". University of Cambridge. 28 May 2020. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  30. ^ "Grad signs up 1,000 students to mentor disadvantaged kids applying to uni". UK. 28 May 2020. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  31. ^ Griffiths, Sian. "Fairground worker Milly teaches herself Classics on rollercoaster ride to Oxford". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  32. ^ "Zero Gravity helps 151 low-income students receive Oxbridge offers". Varsity Online. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  33. ^ "Zero Gravity (Educational Software) Company Profile: Valuation & Investors | PitchBook". pitchbook.com. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  34. ^ "Joe Seddon". Forbes. Retrieved 27 May 2022.
  35. ^ "No. 64082". The London Gazette (Supplement). 17 June 2023. p. B35.
  36. ^ Bennett, Rosemary. "Young mentor secures 60 Oxbridge offers for deprived pupils". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
  37. ^ Penna, Dominic (12 February 2020). "Want to go to Oxbridge? 5 insider tips for state school students from a 'super mentor'". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
  38. ^ https://www.pressreader.com/italy/corriere-della-sera/20200223/page/28. Retrieved 29 February 2020 – via PressReader. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  39. ^ "Joe Seddon from Access Oxbridge on BBC Look North". YouTube. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  40. ^ "Easter Term 2019 | Cambridge Union". Issuu. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
  41. ^ "British Youth Council | Our board". British Youth Council. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  42. ^ "Our Governing Body | Lister Community School". lister.newham.sch.uk. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  43. ^ "The North/South Divide – Climbing The Rungs". Retrieved 15 July 2021.
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