Lifelong learning
10 September 2024
Adult learning: Creating paths to economic fairness
We all know that higher skill and education levels are key drivers of economic success, both for individuals and across geographic areas. If we want Wales to have a prosperous economy where the benefits of that prosperity are distributed evenly, then education and skills are going to be a core focus.
6 September 2024
Participation in learning in Wales
Welsh Government has a welcome aspiration to make Wales a nation of second chances; with a policy landscape that supports lifelong learning and in particular adults returning to education. However, translating such a laudable ambition into practical action is no mean feat. We’re all accustomed to an entitlement to education into our early adulthood, but the same entitlement is less apparent as we age.
1 August 2024
Adult Participation in Learning Survey 2023: Wales
Year-on-year the survey finds stark and persistent inequalities, with some groups more likely to learn as an adult than others. The 2023 survey also indicated that differences between geographical regions may be widening. With devolution of learning and skills policy and funding, it is important to better understand patterns of participation at a national and regional level.
3 July 2024
New Futures Wales pilot
Our flagship programme, New Futures, supported workers who were looking to change career and reskill as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. This work was funded by the Covid-19 Support Fund.
3 June 2024
Place-based collaboration: an update from Newport
Building on the VocTech Challenge green and white papers, Ufi VocTech Trust (Ufi) and Learning and Work Institute (L&W) have developed a programme of place-based partnerships.
3 January 2024
It’s time for all of us to get involved in VET
For much of modern history vocational education and training (VET) was seen as the sole responsibility of employers. In fact it’s quite a recent phenomenon for governments to get involved in VET at all.
3 January 2024
Review of the Skills System in Wales
Learning and Work Institute was commissioned by Welsh Government in February 2023, to undertake a review of the skills system in Wales. This research was designed to be a thought piece to explore different visions for vocational education and training in Wales.
20 September 2023
John Gates: From coal seams to French seams
They talk of miners now being a dying breed of men as memories of pit life fades with every passing year. Next year will see the fortieth anniversary of the last big Miner’s Strike (1984-85) that was a seminal moment in British history and sounded the death knell for so many mining communities in South Wales.
18 September 2023
Adult Learning Wales Citizens’ Curriculum: Peace Education in Adult Learning
In a world often marred by conflict and discord, the significance of peace education cannot be overstated, and its importance extends well into adulthood. The need for peace education in adult learning has become increasingly clear as societies grapple with complex global challenges. This blog delves into the reasons why peace education is an unspoken necessity for adult learners and how it can foster positive change on personal, interpersonal and societal levels.
8 August 2023
A Citizens’ Curriculum for Wales?
In his speech to the Adult Learning Conference in 2022, the Minister for Education and the Welsh Language Jeremy Miles MS committed to positioning Wales as a second chance nation; where it’s never too late to learn.
