Latest News: April 2007

The UK's largest festival of learning

The largest festival of learning in the UK is just a few weeks away. Adult Learners’ Week - which runs from 19th – 25th May 2007 and is organised by NIACE – is a time when thousands of people consider a return to learning and begin a life-transformational journey.

Each year around 10,000 events (taster sessions, demonstrations, workshops) take place, attracting anything up to 100,000 visitors and participants. Adults will have opportunities to get a taste of learning in colleges, shops and supermarkets, factories and businesses, libraries and museums, community and adult education centres. Details of what’s on offer this year is available from the online calendar of events at: www.alw.org.uk/calendar

Adult Learners’ Week is also the time when adults from across the country are awarded for their remarkable achievements through learning. Inspirational stories of people realising long-held ambitions and transforming their lives will demonstrate the effectiveness of learning as an adult.

Supporting this year’s Adult Learners’ Week is comedienne Jo Brand. She said:

“I know through my time working as a psychiatric nurse that learning can benefit not only your confidence and your career but also your health. Furthermore, my recent experiences learning to play the organ for the television programme Play It Again reminded me that learning as an adult can be a lot of fun too - despite the fact that I was in a state of terror for most of it. Learning changes lives. Give yourself a chance to succeed and try something new during Adult Learners’ Week. You’ll soon realise that nothing is impossible.”

The Skills Minister, Phil Hope MP, said:

“Adult Learners’ Week has become the single biggest event in the adult learning calendar. Learning opens all sorts of new doors in people’s lives. The Week celebrates the success of the tens of thousands of adult learners across the country who have seized that opportunity to improve their lives, transform their careers and enjoy the benefits learning brings.”

He continued, “We want everyone, whatever their age or background, to have the opportunity to succeed through learning. We are transforming the culture of learning in this country and for many people the learning journey will start during Adult Learners’ Week. There are more learning opportunities today than ever, including free provision for adults to get their first numeracy or literacy qualification and a free entitlement to get a first full Level 2 qualification, equivalent to 5 good GCSEs. People can quickly and easily find out about courses in their area by calling learndirect free on 0800 100 900. And our new Train to Gain service is helping businesses get the training they need to succeed, including offering free training to up-skill employees.”

He ended, “The learners, and their tutors, advisers, employers, families and friends, who have encouraged and supported them along the way are an example and inspiration to us all.”

Rachel Thomson, Senior Campaigns Officer at NIACE, said:

“Each Adult Learners’ Week is a great opportunity for you to get a taste of the positive impact that learning could have on your life. The remarkable stories of the outstanding learners we celebrate with our awards illustrate just how good learning is for your health, your confidence and your career learning is. This is the perfect time to follow in their inspirational footsteps.”

She ended, “Whatever you want out of life, learning can steer you in the direction you want it to go in. There will be thousands of events taking place across the country and to find out more about what’s on offer where you are during this year’s Adult Learners’ Week, visit our website www.alw.org.uk or call learndirect advice free on 0800 100 900.”

Source: NIACE Press Release: "The UK's largest festival of learning" Released On 24/04/2007

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Review of the mission and purpose of further education in Wales

The Review, chaired by Sir Adrian Webb, incorporates an analysis not just of Further Education Institutions, but an evaluation of the wider role of the sector in relation to post sixteen developments, 14-19 Learning Pathways, higher education, the Leitch review of skills, workplace and adult learning.

NIACE Dysgu Cymru’s response to the review covers a number of key areas, through which we emphasise the importance of adults: demographic change, widening participation and social justice, community engagement and civic participation, and balancing the needs of the individual, society and the economy. In addition it calls for greater recognition of the diverse ways in which adults learn, and of the wider benefits of learning.

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Adult learning devastated

The announcement from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) in the Statistical First Release (SFR) containing new figures on learner numbers in Further Education and work based learning - for October 2006 - shows a further significant drop in the number of adult learners in Further Education (FE) and Adult and Community Learning (ACL).

Overall there are one in eight fewer adult learners since October 2005 with almost a quarter of a million people no longer engaging in learning. The figures illustrate dramatic falls for each five year cohort from adults aged 25 and over, with nearly one in three fewer learners over 60. There are now less than half the learners aged 60 and over than there were two years ago.

Alan Tuckett, Director of NIACE, said:

“The time has come for Government to take breath and ask itself whether this is the best way to secure a learning society. A million adults have been lost to learning in just two years. How many more have we got to lose before the Government wakes up?”

He continued, “The evidence is overwhelmingly clear. Adult learning makes a difference to your health. It inhibits the onset of Alzheimer’s and has a positive effect on learners’ children. Because of demography two in three of the jobs in the next ten years will need to be filled by adults. All the gains of the last ten years are now lost except for the welcome increases in literacy, language and numeracy learners and the modest improvements in workplace learning. It’s too high a price to pay. These figures show that adult learning provision has been devastated over the past two years.”

Source: NIACE Press Release: "Adult learning devastated" Released On 28/03/2007

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