Select committee: Education Committee
Recommendation 34
Third report - A plan for an adult skills and lifelong learning revolution
Published 19 Dec 2020
Paragraph 95
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)
The Union Learning Fund is a crucial programme for delivering workplace training. It has a strong track record of proven effectiveness and should be treated in line with other training providers in both the public and private spheres. It has a vital focus on tackling disadvantage, upskilling low-skilled workers, and offers excellent value for money. The Department has not explained its rationale behind its decision to stop funding the Union Learning Fund. Unless this decision is reversed, we will see the brakes put on workplace learning which will harm workers, employers and productivity.
From: Education Committee, Third report - A plan for an adult skills and lifelong learning revolution (HC 278), paragraph 95, 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.