Select committee: Education Committee
Recommendation 28
Third report - A plan for an adult skills and lifelong learning revolution
Published 19 Dec 2020
Paragraph 80
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 ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
Community learning appears to have been largely overlooked by the Department. The Department does not have sufficient oversight of what data is available on A plan for an adult skills and lifelong learning revolution 51 community learning. Nor are we confident that the Department has a good understanding of what provision exists nationally. The Department’s lack of strategic vision for community learning is concerning and suggests an underlying lack of insight into the benefits and value of community learning. An ambitious, long-term strategy for community learning provision and funding is needed.
From: Education Committee, Third report - A plan for an adult skills and lifelong learning revolution (HC 278), paragraph 80, 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.