Since the late 1990s, the academic performance of many students in London has risen dramatically – so much so, it now exceeds national averages. The improvement is due largely to big gains in the 13 districts of Inner London – places with the greatest concentrations of low-income and minority students. Sanford professor Helen “Sunny” Ladd spent a month in two of those boroughs, Tower Hamlets and Hackney, in order to identify what policies are driving the change.