Lifelong Learning Strategy

Grahame Morris Excerpts

Wednesday 4th November 2026 Westminster Hall

[Paul Davies]

Absolutely. A lifelong learning strategy provides tremendous opportunities to take account of individual needs, particularly when we look at local implementation. I chair the all-party parliamentary group on tackling loneliness and connected communities, which spoke to young people a number of weeks ago. The key thing they talked about was individualised support, and many of them talked about SEND issues.

Not only do 86% of people who attend learning courses say that they make new friends as a result, but the volunteers also benefit: 77% of WEA volunteers feel more connected to their community following their involvement. From my perspective as chair of the APPG, that connection and that aspect of tackling loneliness are especially powerful merits of lifelong learning.

Despite the clear benefits, lifelong learning has steadily slipped down the political agenda for decades. England still lacks a national lifelong learning strategy to ensure that people have access to learning no matter where they live or what their circumstances are. That is concerning. The Government are spending £1 billion less on adult skills in England than in 2010. Employers are spending 36% less on training per employee than in 2005. The UK figure is well below half the EU average.

[Grahame Morris (Easington) (Lab)]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for securing a debate on this important issue. He is presenting his case wonderfully. I want to highlight the point about the fall in investment and the vital role that both employers and trade unions play. We have seen a culture of decline in lifelong learning. As a young man, I did not go to university, but I had the great fortune to attend WEA courses in my village that were run by Ray Hudson and Huw Beynon, who came from Durham University and are now professors. That inspired me to go on to day release and night classes and to get vocational qualifications in that way. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is vital for employers to play a greater role alongside Government and trade unions, and that the restoration of the union learning fund by this Government is an important step towards rebuilding that partnership?

[Paul Davies]

I absolutely agree: that is a vital step. We have to look at creating partnerships right across our communities, and trade unions are a vital part of that.

Unfortunately, enrolments in publicly funded adult qualifications from the most deprived areas have fallen by 27% since 2010. That is not a situation we want to be in. More than 8 million adults still lack essential literacy, numeracy and digital skills. That is nothing short of a national tragedy. A strategy for something as fundamental and universally needed as access to learning should not be considered a luxury; it is essential infrastructure for a thriving society and economy.

There is no doubt that the UK is facing multiple skills crises. Following the Milburn report, we hear a great deal from Government, rightly, about the challenges that young people face. Significant work is under way to address them, and I am grateful for Alan Milburn’s efforts to bring together Departments and develop a cross-Government response, but the conversation must not stop at young people. Adults of all ages also need opportunities to learn for joy, to retrain and develop new skills throughout life, whether by adapting to changes in the labour market, navigating new technologies or remaining active and connected in their communities. Lifelong learning is just as important for individuals at all stages of adulthood. To unlock the merits of adult education, lifelong learning needs its Milburn moment.

Earlier this month, the APPG on further education and lifelong learning released the report of its inquiry into adult education. It recognised the lack of an overarching vision for adult education. A national lifelong learning strategy could help to overcome that; it is something that the WEA has called for and which forms the centrepiece of its lifelong learning labs campaign. The campaign started at the beginning of this year, collecting more than 2,000 pieces of evidence and bringing together more than 100 organisations, ranging from the TUC and trade unions to institutes of adult learning, charities working across prisons and with asylum seekers and refugees, and organisations looking to shape society for all ages, such as Intergenerational England. The final report and recommendations of the year-long campaign will be published on 15 December and launched in Parliament. I encourage the Minister to meet the WEA to learn more about the campaign and explore the recommendations, which could support the Government’s mission on delivering growth in every postcode.

We want to be a nation where learning is valued, where it is accessible and flexible for people to choose what is right and best for them, where adults can pick up learning at any age, where people have fun learning and want it to be part of everyday life, and where both informal and formal learning are valued and their contributions to wellbeing and productivity are understood. We know that it is not a magic bullet for all our social and economic challenges, but access to lifelong learning offers a way into a wider network of support and connection. Importantly, it improves confidence and self-worth in individuals. Finally, it will unlock greater empathy and understanding of others.

A national strategy would clearly signal that the Government value lifelong learning right from the top and see the connection across civil society. Once it is in place, regional and local leaders and providers can be empowered to deliver it and focus on local needs and priorities; I emphasise that looking locally at individual needs is crucial.

I am grateful that the Government have made positive steps in the area of learning and training. The creation of the lifelong learning entitlement, the Milburn inquiry and the youth guarantee are sensible interventions, but we need to build on them. There are issues to be addressed in the lifelong entitlement, which begins only at level 4; it automatically excludes level 1, 2 and 3 qualifications. To reap the rewards, we need to take the protocol across all levels. The strategy should provide a clear national framework with the learner at its heart, recognising that the best delivery is often local. It needs to empower regional leaders, fitting alongside the Government’s devolution agenda, to deliver community-led lifelong learning provision.

In 1919, the Ministry of Reconstruction’s report made it clear that

“adult education is a permanent national necessity, an inseparable aspect of citizenship, and therefore should be both universal and lifelong.”

More than 100 years later, that principle remains just as relevant. We have the evidence, we have the organisations and we have the opportunity to make a difference. Now we need to apply the political ambition to match it.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (Josh MacAlister)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Wishart. I start by congratulating my hon. Friend the Member for Colne Valley (Paul Davies) on securing this important debate and highlighting the opportunities that lifelong learning presents for learners, education providers, employers and our economy.

I particularly want to thank my hon. Friend for setting out the historical context of this debate and for drawing Members’ attention to the efforts of previous Governments during reconstruction and some of the economic tumult that the UK has experienced in recent years. It certainly makes the historic comparison very relevant. I also want to thank the Workers’ Educational Association, representatives of which are in the Public Gallery for this debate. The association has been in existence for 123 years, following an inspirational mission. I start my contribution by confirming that the Government would very much welcome working with the WEA on these matters and many others.

The world of work is changing, and our education and skills system must change with it. New technologies and changing skill needs mean people will benefit from more opportunities to learn, retrain and upskill throughout their working lives. We need to move beyond the idea that education happens just once, at the start of life. People should be able to return to learning as their lives and careers—and the economy—change. If we want to grow our economy, we need a workforce who are able to adapt as industries, jobs and technology change. Lifelong learning helps people to develop the skills they need to seize those new opportunities.

There is a clear case for action. Recent polling indicates that nearly half of adults in England are considering a career change, but for many, finding the time to retrain around work and family life remains a major obstacle. That is why this Government are delivering a more flexible post-18 education and skills system with the lifelong learning entitlement at its heart, giving people greater flexibility over what, when and how they study. Student finance in England is changing to reflect that, and this debate is timely, because last Friday 30 October, the application service for the new student finance system, the lifelong learning entitlement was launched. The policy was announced by the previous Government just over six years ago, and I want to acknowledge the cross-party working that has been pivotal to achieving the successful launch of the lifelong learning entitlement.

[Grahame Morris]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Minister for addressing these issues. I did not want to break his flow, but on that specific issue, there are regional disparities. My constituency is in the north-east of England and many people in that region are denied opportunities, not through lack of ability but through lack of opportunity. Will the youth guarantee include the opportunity to access lifelong learning, particularly for younger people who have been denied that opportunity previously?

[Josh MacAlister]

I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention and for highlighting the need for both the youth guarantee—which is a separate but related policy area to the LLE—and the LLE to ensure greater flexibility over not just what can be studied but where people can access those opportunities. If someone is in a rural or more remote part of the country and physically further from a higher education institution, that should in no way be a barrier to being able to access those units of study that the LLE is designed to give people the right to access.

Alongside full qualifications and degrees, learners will, for the first time—this is the crucial thing about the LLE—be able to access student finance for individual modules of higher education. People need that kind of flexibility to fit around their work, family life and other commitments, while others may want to return full-time to upskill or retrain. Ultimately, the LLE is about creating an education system that keeps pace with people’s lives and our changing economy. It will help people build the knowledge and skills they need throughout their careers and support the workforce and economy into the future.

The Government’s response to lifelong learning, however, is broader than that single programme. We are building a system of post-18 education, skills, adult learning, career advice and higher education. Adult education helps people access new opportunities, enables employers to find the skills they need, helps the economy and builds stronger, healthier and more resilient communities. A number of Members have referenced the impact on isolation.