Lewis Hamilton's 'urgent' message prompts UK government change

Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton has released a statement of intent to keep the UK government on their toes following his visit to 10 Downing Street.

In June 2025, the UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with Hamilton and a group of young people at a roundtable at 10 Downing Street in support of the Ferrari F1 star's foundation, Mission 44.

Mission 44 is a charitable foundation founded by Hamilton in 2021 that works to help promote education reform and support underrepresented young people in the UK through initiatives that aim to improve diversity and foster careers in STEM and motorsport.

Following his meeting with Starmer last summer, Hamilton secured a commitment from the UK government to work with Mission 44, and now the 41-year-old has shared an update regarding a relevant change in the UK government's education policy.

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Hamilton's 10 Downing Street visit prompts change from Starmer

Ahead of his return to the track in his second season with the Scuderia, Hamilton has taken to social media to share his response to the government’s show of commitment to building a more inclusive education system, whilst also stating that he will be keeping a close eye on how they follow through with those promises.

On Monday, February 23, the UK government published the Schools White Paper, publicly setting out plans to abolish the link between a child's background and their chance of future success, hoping to 'rebalance' the country's schools system and improve opportunities for disadvantaged young people and children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).

In a Facebook post following the publication of the paper, Hamilton wrote: "When I visited 10 Downing Street with Mission 44 last year and met with the Prime Minister along with young people and our partners, we carried a clear and urgent message: the UK needs an education system that truly includes every young person, regardless of their background. Our discussions were grounded in what we had heard directly from students, teachers, and parents. We outlined several essential steps. From elevating young people’s voices, to developing a national framework for pupil engagement and increasing the number of teachers from underrepresented backgrounds. We explained how these actions are vital if we want every student to feel seen, supported, and able to thrive, and that conversation led to a government commitment to work with Mission 44 to help make our vision a reality.

"Yesterday, the Schools White Paper was published, which formally laid out some of these commitments, and set out further major education reforms, many of which reflect what Mission 44 called for through our Nothing Happens in Isolation campaign: •⁠ ⁠Embedding inclusion into the education system •⁠ ⁠⁠Increasing personalised support for the young people that need it most •⁠ ⁠⁠Collaborating with parents, partners and services within the community

"I’m pleased to see the government’s commitments to build a more inclusive education system reinforced in this publication. The real test is what happens next. What changes in classrooms. What young people actually feel when they walk through the school gates.

"At Mission 44, we’re going to keep driving change and working to build a fairer future for young people around the world."

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