Sophie Pender

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Sophie Pender
Sophie Pender, Founder and CEO of The 93%25 Club.jpg
Sophie Pender speaking in Manchester in 2024
Born
Sophie Angela Pender

June 1996 (age 29) [1]
Borehamwood
Education Hertswood Academy
Alma mater University of Bristol (BA)
Employer(s) 93% Club
Herbert Smith Freehills
Bates Wells Braithwaite
University of Bristol Students' Union
Awards Forbes 30 Under 30 (2022) [2]
Diana Award

Sophie Angela Pender (born 1996) [1] is a British social mobility campaigner and activist. She founded the registered charity the 93% Club, the UK's least exclusive members club for people educated in state schools.

Contents

Early life and education

Pender grew up on a council estate in North London. [3] [4] She lost her father to substance abuse. [3] Pender was educated at Hertswood Academy in Borehamwood. She worked two jobs to support herself during her studies, and achieved straight A*s for her A-Levels the first student in her school to do so. [5] [6] [7] Pender studied English at the University of Bristol, and was the first in her family to attend higher education. [3] [8] Pender graduated from the University of Bristol in 2017. [9]

During her time in the University of Bristol she became involved with efforts to improve social mobility, with the University of Bristol Students' Union [1] and the charity Access Aspiration. [3] Whilst an undergraduate student Pender founded the 93 Percent Club. [10] The club became a national network of student societies, who worked with organisations to improve the employability of graduates educated in state schools. [7] Pender has referred to the 93% Club as an alternative Bullingdon Club challenging old boy networks. [4] [11]

Career

After graduating she worked as a city lawyer for Herbert Smith Freehills and Bates Wells Braithwaite before working full-time for the 93% Club. [11] [12]

Awards and honours

Pender was named as Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2022, [2] and won the Diana Award [13] and was named a Woman to Watch by The Times in 2017. [8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Anon (2015). "Sophie Angela PENDER". gov.uk. London: Companies House. Archived from the original on 2024-12-06.
  2. 1 2 Anon (2022). "Sophie Pender, Founder of The 93% Club". forbes.com. Forbes. Archived from the original on 2024-12-06.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Nye, Catrin (2021). "Being proud of going to state school". bbc.com. BBC News . Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  4. 1 2 Verkaik, Robert (2021). "A Bullingdon in reverse: how working-class student club is taking on elitism". theguardian.com. The Guardian . Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  5. ↑ Oliphant, Victoria (2014). "Sobbing student heads to university after receiving straight A*s". borehamwoodtimes.co.uk. Borehamwood Times. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  6. ↑ Anon (2014). "Best Ever Results...Again!" (PDF). hertswoodacademy.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-07-09.
  7. 1 2 Anon (2021). "About". 93percent.club. Archived from the original on 2021-03-09. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  8. 1 2 Brown, Steven (2017). "Student named one of the women to watch 2017". borehamwoodtimes.co.uk. Borehamwood & Elstree Times . Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  9. ↑ Anon (2024). "Sophie Pender (BA 2017)". bristol.ac.uk. University of Bristol.
  10. ↑ Anon (2020). "Our Leadership". 93percent.club. The 93% Club. Archived from the original on 2020-12-21. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  11. 1 2 Burton, Lucy (2023). "Sophie Pender: The City lawyer smashing the old boys' network". telegraph.co.uk. London: Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2023-11-23.
  12. ↑ Sophie Pender on LinkedIn OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  13. ↑ Anon (2024). "Sophie Pender". diana-award.org.uk. Archived from the original on 2024-12-06.
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