Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of whether the current adult education funding model provides fair and equitable access to funding opportunities for small and medium-sized training providers; what assessment he has made of the impact of funding concentration among large national providers on competition, learner choice and innovation; and whether he plans to review current procurement and commissioning processes to ensure high-quality local providers are not excluded from accessing public funding opportunities.

We are committed to investing in education and skills training for adults and are investing over £1.4 billion in the Adult Skills Fund (ASF) this academic year. The principal purpose of the ASF is to engage adults and provide the skills and learning they need to equip them for work, an apprenticeship or further learning.

Currently approximately 68% of the ASF has been devolved to 13 authorities including the West Midlands Combined Authority which covers Aldridge and Brownhills. These authorities are responsible for the provision of ASF-funded adult education for their residents and commissioning/allocation of the ASF to learning providers. The Department for Work and Pensions provides the remaining funding for learners who live in non-devolved areas.

By honouring our commitments to combine and further devolve adult skills funding, we give those with local knowledge the power they need to make decisions that are best for their areas and their residents. They are also well placed to engage with their local providers.