Labour to usher in "a golden age" of lifelong learning

The next Labour Government will deliver a ‘golden age of lifelong learning' with opportunities for adults to train and retrain throughout their lives, Labour's Shadow Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson has pledged.

Labour will transform the Tories' failed Apprenticeships Levy into a Growth and Skills Levy. Under this reformed levy, businesses will be given greater flexibility to invest in training courses that meet their skills needs, turbocharging investment in skills for the future.

Labour has said this will create stepping stones for people at every stage of their lives and careers, creating opportunities for adults to upskill with short, modular courses in new industries and technologies and for young people to get on through pre-apprenticeships courses. Labour has said these changes could generate 150,000 traineeships for young people as part of their ‘Youth Guarantee' if businesses use just 3% of the additional flexibility Labour will deliver. 

Sector-specific traineeships, which build the skills needed to secure a full apprenticeship or job, include courses in construction, digital and electrical skills. Labour's Growth and Skills Levy will also allow businesses to invest in upskilling existing workforces, for instance in retrofitting, engineering and high level technical skills which were identified as key shortages in Local Skills Improvement Plans. 

Labour's plans offer a stark contrast to 14 years of Tory failure. Since 2017, the number of adults participating in education, training or skills programmes has fallen by more than 350,000. Employers in Britain are now investing half as much as the European average. 

The picture is no less bleak when it comes to apprenticeships, where the numbers achieving apprenticeship qualifications across Construction, Engineering, and Health and Care have halved. The Learning and Work Institute estimating that there would be 7 million additional adult qualifications had participation remained at the same level it was in 2010 when Labour left office, with poor skills provision estimated to cost the economy around £20bn a year. 

Bridget Phillipson, Labour's Shadow Education Secretary, said: 

“Businesses are crying out for help to tackle skills shortages, so Labour will give them the flexibility needed to create skills training opportunities and drive economic growth through a Growth and Skills Levy

“Unlike the Tories botched apprenticeships levy which has seen training opportunities plummet, Labour will put businesses in the driving seat of creating the opportunities people need to get on in work.

“The choice on 4th July is between a Conservative Party that has given up on upskilling the nation and Labour that will see in a golden age in lifelong learning so that everyone can get on and fire the growth our economy needs

“It's time to end the chaos, turn the page, and rebuild Britain with Labour.”  

Ends 

Notes

• “Slipping behind international comparators and adult qualifications falling by millions” 
• “With 27% fewer adults in the most deprived areas learning compared to 2010 and poor skills provision and uptake costing the economy around £20bn a year”.  

o   The Great Skills divide: How learning inequalities risk holding the UK back: Learning and Work Institute (May 2024) 

•  “Since 2017, the number of adults participating in education training or skills has fallen by more than half a million” 

Participation for ‘Headline – Full year – Participation, Achievement' for Education and Training and Further Education and Skills in England between 2017/18 and 2022/23: Department for Education 

• “achievements across Construction, Engineering, and Health and Care have halved in the same period [...]”  

'Subjects - Starts, Achievements, Enrolments by Detailed level, Degree flag, Std-fwk flag, STEM, SSA T1 and 2, Route' for Construction, Planning and the Built Environment, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies, Health, Public Services and Care, STEM - no and STEM - yes in England between 2017/18 and 2022/23: Department for Education 

•  "Failed Apprenticeship Levy" 

o        UK apprenticeship levy is a £3.5bn mistake, say business leaders - The Guardian

o        Failure to reform apprenticeship levy resulted in 12,000 lost apprenticeships last year- Retail Week

o        Apprenticeships levy 'has failed on every measure', says HR body - BBC

• Labour will reform the Government's apprenticeships levy to enable firms to spend up to 50% of their levy contributions on approved non-apprenticeships training, with at least 50% reserved for apprenticeships.

•  This flexibility will enable businesses to use more of the money in their levy pot for training and investing in essential skills that we need to prepare Britain for the challenges of the next decade.  

o        The list of approved qualifications that the flexible levy could fund include:  

o        Modular courses in priority areas, which lie at the core of our industrial strategy and Labour's five missions, including digital and green skills, social care and childcare that would boost training opportunities with a view to supporting national ambitions such as the transition to net zero.  

o        Pre-apprenticeships training, helping tackle key skills gaps especially around basic digital skills that hold back individuals and organisations.