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Dave Simmonds

Emeritus Fellow

Dave Simmonds OBE was the chief executive of the Centre for Economic & Social Inclusion up until its merger to form Learning and Work Institute. Dave was the co-founder of Inclusion in 1996 and built it to be a respected voice in UK ‘welfare to work’ research and policy. Dave has also worked as a special adviser to the House of Commons Work and Pensions Select Committee, and the OECD. Dave has advised the Scottish and Welsh governments, as well as the Northern Ireland Executive and the Republic of Ireland on their work on unemployment. Dave was awarded an OBE in the honours list for summer 2005 and is an Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Employability Professionals. Prior to Inclusion he was interim director for England at the National Lottery Charities Board, now Big Lottery, and held various posts at the National Council for Voluntary Organisations, where he was responsible for economic policy and voluntary sector involvement in labour market programmes.

9 June 2026

Innovative, “hyper-local” approach to employment support completes two years

An innovative employment support pilot spanning Medway to Merseyside has shown promise reaching social housing residents who are out of work but do not typically access mainstream support.

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9 June 2026

Final report: Evaluation of the JobsPlus Pilot

This evaluation of JobsPlus builds on the interim findings published in September 2025 to provide evidence on whether the model can be adapted to the UK context and effectively implemented to improve employment outcomes.  

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29 May 2026

Multiply adult numeracy randomised controlled trials

Alongside Ipsos and other partners, L&W has conducted Randomised Control Trials to evaluate the effectiveness of existing and new interventions to improving adult numeracy.

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29 May 2026

I found my voice through lifelong learning – others deserve the same chance

Ed Balls, Former Cabinet Minister and Shadow Chancellor, sets out why lifelong learning is vital for the country.

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28 May 2026

Responding to the interim report of the Milburn review

L&W chief executive Stephen Evans responds to the interim report from the Milburn review on Thursday 28 May 2026.

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19 May 2026

Labour Market Briefing: May 2026

Our analysis of the ONS labour market statistics, released on the morning of 19 May 2026.

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19 May 2026

Labour market dashboard

Every month, Learning and Work Institute produces detailed and timely analysis of the latest labour market statistics from ONS. Explore our interactive charts.

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19 May 2026

Labour market stats response, May 2026

L&W’s chief executive Stephen Evans responds to the latest labour market data from ONS.

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1 May 2026

Driving Change in Higher Education

Learning and Work Institute is working in partnership with The Carers Federation with funding from The National Lottery Community Fund to improve the support that young adult carers receive in higher education.

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