Inquiry Published Papers

Background

Over the coming months, the Inquiry will be publishing a series of interim papers on the Inquiry themes, the implications of lifelong learning for different sectors, expenditure on lifelong learning, and the public value of lifelong learning.

‘The Impact of Lifelong Learning and Poverty Reduction’ by Dr Ricardo Sabates is the first of the Inquiry’s public value papers.

Public Value

This series of papers will grapple with a range of questions about how we should understand lifelong learning. The ‘public value’ of lifelong learning resides in the benefits it brings, not only to the learners themselves, but to the wider society. If learning makes individuals healthier, for example, that is good for them, but also for their family, their community and for the health service and the taxpayer. It signals a general uplift in the quality of life. This is public value.

The Impact of Lifelong Learning and Poverty Reduction, by Ricardo Sabates
This paper summarises research-based evidence about the impacts of lifelong learning on poverty reduction. It is a contribution to an empirically based understanding of the complex mechanisms through which education impacts on poverty reduction.

It starts by providing a definition of poverty and sets the scene for learning opportunities for poor people in the UK. It reviews literature on the income effects of adult education, the impact of financial literacy, the employment and health effects of adult learning, basic skills and health literacy and the impact of lifelong learning on reducing child poverty.