Professor Terence Hogarth from the Warwick Institute for Employment Research comments on the proposed adult education reforms revealed in today's Queen's Speech:

"It is important that people possess skills which are relevant to the labour market. Equally, it is important that people have access to training which will keep their skills up to date. The government clearly recognises these two points with its Lifetime Skills Guarantee and Lifelong Loan Entitlement announced today.

"Creating more high skilled, high waged employment has been the goal of successive governments. But it has proved a demanding one to achieve. Its attainment clearly needs a skills system which equips people with the skills employers need both now and in the future. It also requires economic and investment policies which will stimulate high skill employment growth.

"Given that the policy announcement today stresses the importance of focussing on those school leavers who choose not to enter university, this might well suggest that vocational education will play a bigger role in meeting the country’s skill needs in the future. Time will tell what this means for vocational education in England.

"More details on the changes to be introduced by the Skills and Post-16 Education Bill are keenly awaited."

11 May 2021

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