Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to reduce the number of working age adults with poor numeracy skills.

This government recognises the importance of mathematics skills, both in work and everyday life. We provide full funding for adults who need these skills to undertake a range of courses including GCSEs, Functional Skills and stepping stone qualifications up to level 2.

Through the Flexible Learning Fund, we are investing over £11 million in a range of projects to design and test flexible and accessible ways of delivering learning to adults with low or intermediate skills. These projects include increasing the mathematics skills and confidence of adults already in work through online and blended learning techniques. We also fund Unionlearn to deliver projects develop the learning capacity, and skill and qualification amongst the workforce, with a particular focus on difficult to engage workers with low skills.

We are reforming English and mathematics Functional Skills qualifications, which are accessed primarily by adults. This will make sure these qualifications are more rigorous and better recognised by employers.