Sonia Sodha

Sonia Sodha
Born	Sonia Priya Sodha June 1981
Education	St Hilda's College, Oxford
Occupation(s)	Columnist, author

Sonia Priya Sodha (born June 1981) is a British columnist, author and broadcaster. She has written for The Guardian and The Observer. She was a senior adviser to Ed Miliband when he was Leader of the Opposition. She has appeared regularly on ITV's This Morning since 2022.

Life and career

Sonia Priya Sodha was born in June 1981.[1] She describes herself as a "half-Hindu, half-Sikh Indian".[2] She went to a private school,[3] followed by St Hilda's College, Oxford,[4] where she took a BA (Hons) in PPE and an MPhil in Politics.[5]

During her time at Oxford, Sodha served as the president of the Oxford University Liberal Democrats in the Hilary term of 2001.[6]

She worked for the Social Market Foundation and the Race Equality Unit at the Home Office before joining the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) as a research assistant,[5] later becoming a research fellow.[7] She later moved to become Head of the Capabilities Programme at Demos,[8] where she led work in areas including education and public services,[9] and became Head of Policy and Strategy at the Dartington Social Research Unit.[9]

She was a senior adviser to Ed Miliband when he was Leader of the Opposition.[10] Later, when Sodha was head of public services at Which?, she was reported by The Times to have influenced Miliband's policy of breaking up large banks and requiring them to sell branches to stimulate competition.[11] Sodha is now engaged as the chief leader writer at The Observer and deputy opinion editor at The Guardian.[12] She has made appearances on television and radio shows including the Sky News newspaper review, Today, and Question Time,[13] and has presented BBC Radio 4 documentaries on topics including multiculturalism[14] and deliberative democracy.[15]

Sodha has also served as a trustee of City Year UK, a charity that supports role models to help students from disadvantaged communities,[16][17] and of Trust for London, a charity addressing poverty and equality.[10]

Since 2022, Sodha has appeared regularly on ITVs This Morning as contributor to news-related subjects.

Publications

Year	Title	Authors	Publisher	ISBN
2006	Housing wealth : first timers to old timers	Dominic Maxwell and Sonia Sodha	IPPR	9781860302985[18]
2006	The saving gateway : from principles to practice	Sonia Sodha and Ruth Lister	IPPR	9781860303043[19]
2007	Moving on up: Progression in the Labour Market[a]	Natascha Engel, Sonia Sodha and Mike Johnson	IPPR	9780230524934[20]
2008	Thursday's Child	Sonia Sodha and Ruth Lister	IPPR	9781860303180[21]
2009	Service nation	Sonia Sodha and Dan Leighton	Demos	9781906693275[22]
2010	Ex curricula	Sonia Sodha and Julia Margo	Demos	9781906693343[23]

Notes

1. Chapter in Politics for a New Generation

References

1. "Trust for London Trustee: People". Companies House, Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
2. Sodha, Sonia (17 April 2016). "Zac Goldsmith is playing with fire as he bids to lure Asian voters". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
3. Sodha, Sonia (30 June 2019). "Don't blame parents for wanting the best for their kids. Change the private school system instead". The Guardian.
4. "19 October 2000 – No 4562". Oxford University Gazette. 19 October 2000. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
5. Maxwell, Dominic; Sodha, Sonia; Stanley, Kate (August 2006). "An Asset Account for Looked After Children" (PDF). ippr.org. Institute for Public Policy Research. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
6. "Fould Officers". The Weeping Cross. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
7. "Savings Gateway". BBC News. 17 November 2006. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
8. Great Britain Parliament House of Commons Children, Schools and Families Committee (8 April 2010). Young People Not in Education, Employment Or Training: Eighth Report of Session 2009–10, Vol. 2: Oral and Written Evidence. The Stationery Office. pp. 26–. ISBN 978-0-215-55383-6.
9. "Sonia Sodha". thersa.org. Royal Society of Arts. Archived from the original on 8 April 2020. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
10. "Sonia Sodha". trustforlondon.org.uk. Trust for London. Archived from the original on 8 April 2020. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
11. Griffiths, Katherine (18 January 2014). "Revealed: The Labour team behind plan to split banks". The Times. London. p. 45. Retrieved 8 April 2020 – via The Times Digital Archive.
12. "Sonia Sodha". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 29 March 2020. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
13. "IAPP Data Protection Intensive: UK 2020: Keynote Speakers". iapp.org. International Association of Privacy Professionals. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
14. "Multiculturalism: Newham v Leicester". BBC Radio 4. 28 February 2016. Archived from the original on 21 October 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
15. "Deliberative Democracy". BBC Radio 4. 10 March 2019. Archived from the original on 15 October 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
16. "Sonia Sodha". cityyear.org.uk. City Year. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
17. "Our vision, mission & values". cityyear.org.uk. City Year. Archived from the original on 8 September 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
18. Dominic Maxwell; Sonia Sodha (2006). Housing Wealth: First Timers to Old Timers. Institute for Public Policy Research. ISBN 978-1-86030-298-5.
19. Sonia Sodha; Ruth Lister (2006). The Saving Gateway: From Principles to Practice. Institute for Public Policy Research. ISBN 978-1-86030-304-3.
20. Engel, Natascha; Sodha, Sonia; Johnson, Mike (2007). "Moving on up: Progression in the Labour Market". In Pearce, Nick; Margo, Julia (eds.). Politics for a New Generation: The Progressive Moment. Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 191–214. ISBN 978-0-230-52493-4.
21. Sonia Sodha; Julia Margo (2008). Thursday's Child. Institute for Public Policy Research. ISBN 978-1-86030-318-0.
22. "Service nation / Sonia Sodha, Dan Leighton". explore.bl.uk. British Library. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
23. "Ex Curricula". demos.co.uk. Demos. 24 February 2010. Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 8 April 2020.

External links

• Sonia Sodha broadcast appearances (YouTube)
• Guardian and Observer articles by Sonia Sodha
• New Statesman articles by Sonia Sodha
• Prospect articles by Sonia Sodha