Adult Learners’ Week 2015 began on Saturday, a week dedicated to celebrating the opportunities education can present to adults looking to upskill, further themselves in their career, or train in a completely new area.
The government recently announced an imminent 24% cut to adult education funding for 2015-16; in an economy rife with spending cuts, adult education of often one of the first areas to experience harsh cuts. The Association of Colleges (AoC) has estimated this will result in the loss of a staggering 200,000 adult education places.
Adult education is now more important than ever, with an ageing population in Britain – pensioners now outnumber children under the age of 16 – and a tight economic situation where many are finding themselves in a number of different careers throughout their life. Research has shown that young people are now more likely than ever to switch careers more often than their predecessors.
We carried out our own research into adult education with people over 45, with almost 1 in 5 concerned that they’ll have to work past the national retirement age to make ends meet. Furthermore, 10% of our 2000 adults surveyed are concerned that they’ll need to change careers and therefore retrain before they retire. Cuts to adult education means their options to upskill will be severely limited.
32% of those surveyed believe the government isn’t spending enough on adult education and should review their funding policies, and as a result of this only 5% know where to look for the funding and support needed to undertake a qualification. These results show a concern amongst over 45s about their educational opportunities.
On a more positive note, our survey also showed that attitudes towards lifelong learning are changing; 94% of respondents said they’d be happy taking an adult education course and although online delivery of qualifications is a relatively new phenomenon that our 45+ audience may not have experience with, 25% would like to do their course online.
The response to our survey further confirms that access to adult education is absolutely vital in a society that has seen a shift towards multiple careers in a lifetime with an ageing population. Education should be accessible to people of all ages and abilities, and the cuts to adult education funding shows a disregard for those looking to upskill or retrain. Education is crucial to how we evolve and grow, yet it seems there are more and more barriers to accessing education past school-age.
At NCFE we’re doing as much as we can to help your centres and your learners during these difficult times; we currently have 107 qualifications available for funding on the Skills Funding Agency’s (SFA) Simplified Funding Rates catalogue for 2015-16, and we’re continuing to apply for funding for more of our valued qualifications.
We’re also taking part in Adult Learners’ Week at NCFE headquarters; a number of NCFE-ers are delivering learning sessions to colleagues including memory improvement, introduction to guitar and piano playing, styles of learning, photography and much more! We’re excited about our opportunities to upskill, and we’ll be posting pictures of our sessions on social media – look out for them on Twitter, @NCFE, and Facebook.
What are your thoughts on Adult Learners’ Week? Will you be taking part in any way? What do you think of our research findings, do they surprise you? And how will you be coping with the cuts to funding?
