The skills white paper set out the government’s plans for skills reform to deliver increased productivity and a skilled workforce. So what does it mean for people who could benefit most from the opportunity for a second chance in learning?
The white paper recognises that 8.5 million adults have low essential skills, like literacy and numeracy. It notes that 15 per cent of the working-age population don’t hold a level 2 qualification.
There is much talk of ‘joining up’ the employment and skills system. There might even be a better chance of this actually happening. Bringing together high-quality teaching of essential skills, employment support and employer engagement could be a gamechanger for those looking for work.
The adult skills fund (ASF) supports most essential skills, including literacy, numeracy, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and digital skills. Essential skills provision is often funded on the basis of supporting people into work. But it doesn’t always include specific features of employment support, such as helping people understand the local labour market, or connections with local employers.
Adult skills is moving into the Department for Work and Pensions’ remit. The government wants the ASF better joined up with support provided through Jobcentre Plus (JCP), which can include use of the flexible support fund to access locally run training.
It makes sense to use touchpoints like engagement with the benefits system and employment support to identify people with low essential skills gaps. People with low essential skills are less likely to be in work. Support can then be offered, including referrals into learning provision where appropriate.
The trick will be to develop more effective ways of making it happen. Conflicting priorities between JCP and training providers have long been challenging to align. Flexibility in funding and provision, and strong relationships between JCP staff and providers, will be key.
The white paper promises that the government will review their offer on adult essential skills. There are few details on what this will mean, bar a specific and sensible commitment to update the essential digital skills standards to reflect the latest developments in everyday digital skills.
Skills minister Jacqui Smith has said that the statutory entitlements to fully funded English and maths qualifications up to Level 2 remain. Although there is no commitment to additional investment to support delivery, this is still a welcome indicator of priority, helping ensure that essential skills provision is not consigned to a future of short-term programmes and projects.
While the white paper positions essential skills as primarily relevant to employment, there is strong evidence for good essential skills supporting social outcomes too, like better health and stronger communities. The white paper omits any mention of this wider role for adult learning, including ESOL and other essential skills, in college and community settings.
Beyond that, it’s not clear if this review – or the announcement of new level 1 English and maths qualification for use in 16-19 programmes – will mean a full-scale redevelopment of adult essential skills standards, curriculum and qualifications. Functional skills qualifications were last substantially revised in 2018, and ESOL skills for life in 2014. National standards and the adult literacy, numeracy and ESOL curriculum have been relatively untouched since the turn of the century.
Sorting all this out is a big job. But it is one that is also becoming more urgent, as the old infrastructure for essential skills provision is increasingly creaking and dated. It’s important that teachers have up-to-date and relevant curriculum content, materials and assessments to work with.
Ultimately, addressing the nation’s essential skills needs is going to take more than this, though. The central challenge of engaging more adults in essential skills learning won’t be helped by a new curriculum and qualifications alone. Adult participation in essential skills learning has declined by over 60 per cent over the past decade.
If we want at least nine in ten UK adults to have good essential skills by 2035, it requires an extra 3.5 million adults to gain them, as our Ambition Skills research has shown.
This means that the government and metro mayors need to choose to invest in essential skills, alongside employers. It requires a concerted effort across the state, employers and in communities to identify people who can benefit from improving essential skills – and to find new ways to support them.
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