Lifelong Learning Strategy

Paul Davies Excerpts

Wednesday 4th November 2026 Westminster Hall

[Pete Wishart (in the Chair)]

I will call Paul Davies to move the motion and then call the Minister to respond. I remind other hon. Members that they may make a speech only with prior permission from the Member in charge and from the Minister, which I know has been negotiated in advance of this debate. As is the convention in 30-minute debates, there will be no opportunity for the Member in charge to wind up.

[Paul Davies (Colne Valley) (Lab)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered the potential merits of a national lifelong learning strategy.

This debate is well timed, as we are midway through Get the Nation Learning Week, a national campaign co-ordinated by the Learning and Work Institute. The campaign, backed by more than 230 organisations, marks a rare opportunity for adult learning to be pushed to the forefront, and for employers, community organisations, learning providers and Parliament to highlight the importance of the issue. What is more, today is the Get the Nation Learning awards ceremony, one of the biggest celebrations of lifelong learning in England.

In our fast-changing digital world, there has never been a time in history when the need to learn continuously throughout life has been greater. Many Governments have used education as an enabler for national renewal, a policy to call upon when the country requires radical social change. Today, we see the Government highlighting the need to radically rewire the state, foster true cross-departmental working and shake up Whitehall for good. However, there is, I believe, a gap in this plan. National renewal as lifelong learning needs to be incorporated across Government agendas within a national lifelong learning strategy.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I commend the hon. Gentleman for bringing forward this issue; I spoke to him before the debate. His proposal is something that I have been seeking as well. Does he agree that a successful national lifelong learning strategy must include all regions across the United Kingdom, including my Strangford constituency, where local colleges and community groups do phenomenal work retraining older workers? Continued adult education keeps the mind sharp, tackles isolation and directly reduces pressure on our health services. Does he agree that modular training should be shared equally across the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland so that no worker is ever left behind?

[Paul Davies]

The hon. Member must have been reading my speech. I will get on to some of his comments, but I totally agree with them; they were very well put.

Across the country, including in my constituency, people desperately want to see good growth in every postcode. I believe that that cannot be achieved without access to lifelong learning in every postcode. Lifelong learning has been an instrumental driver of social change at key periods in our history. In 1919, the Ministry of Reconstruction’s landmark report on adult education provided the foundations to make lifelong education a permanent national necessity. In the 1970s, the Right to Read campaign raised the profile of adult literacy across the nation. Lifelong learning has been a catalyst for social progression throughout our history, and there are important lessons to be learned. I encourage the Minister to reflect on the Ministry of Reconstruction’s foundational principle from more than 100 years ago, which is just as important now as it was then:

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

An institution that helped to shape the report was the Workers’ Educational Association, which is still the largest provider of community adult education. Its history shows us how the course of working-class lives can be changed for the better when people have access to lifelong learning. The WEA shaped and was part of the history of workers’ education throughout the last century and continues to do so in this century. As one of the largest lifelong learning charities in the country, the WEA campaigns to bring learning within the reach of every adult, no matter what their circumstances are.

Learning has multiple cross-cutting outcomes. Participating in learning is shown to improve wellbeing and health. It improves connections, brings people together and reduces social isolation. It increases understanding and empathy for people from different backgrounds or cultures. It ripples out to strengthen whole communities. Furthermore, the WEA has found that more than 84% of people with pre-existing mental health conditions say that taking part in adult learning improves their wellbeing, signalling the extent to which learning helps one to lead a happier, healthier life. The WEA knows at first hand how lifelong learning brings communities closer together and helps to build confidence and agency for individuals.

Just as the evidence base for health and wellbeing is strong, the link between lifelong learning and connecting communities is powerful. Learning helps people to become more active and combats isolation and loneliness: 80% of learners say that they meet people on their courses they would not otherwise meet.

[Adam Dance (Yeovil) (LD)]

For young people with special educational needs and disabilities, the transition from education to further learning and employment can be really challenging. Does the hon. Member agree that a national lifelong learning strategy should prioritise dedicated pathways and support for young people with SEND, particularly in rural or hard-to-reach areas, so that opportunities after education are equal across the country?

[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.