Select committee: Education Committee
Conclusion 7
Third report - A plan for an adult skills and lifelong learning revolution
Published 19 Dec 2020
Paragraph 26
Addressed to Department for Education
Education Committee Adult skills and lifelong learning All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
The ability to study bite-size modules rather than commit to full qualifications is a much-needed reform that will make it easier for adults to upskill and retrain. Developing qualifications that can be taken in modules will enable adults with busy working lives and caring responsibilities to build up qualifications over time and ensure their skills stay relevant in a changing job market.
From: Education Committee, Third report - A plan for an adult skills and lifelong learning revolution (HC 278), paragraph 26, 19 December 2020
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 12 March 2021.
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government says it has "considered the findings and recommendations of the report carefully" and responds to each recommendation, largely by pointing to existing and planned measures such as the Skills for Jobs White Paper and the Lifetime Skills Guarantee.
- On a long-term strategy, it points to the Skills for Jobs White Paper and a Lifelong Loan Entitlement equivalent to four years of post-18 education from 2025, and says it will consult on its detail and scope "later this year", with legislation "where necessary".
- On funding, it says funding beyond 2021-22 "will be considered as part of a wider Spending Review later this year which will include full costings".
- On devolving National Careers Service funding, it states "There are no plans to devolve careers budgets".
- On the Union Learning Fund, it says it "chose not to continue to support" it, and will instead use the funding for wider skills and retraining.