This Article has been written by the Learning and Skills Council. 

What is informal adult learning and what is its measurable economic and social contribution to society? 

Informal adult learning, sometimes referred to as adult and community education or simply adult education or, in LSC funding terms, adult safeguarded learning describes an offer of learning opportunities taken up for their own intrinsic value; this encompasses a huge variety of learning activities, all essentially (though not necessarily) non-vocational.   

While the primary purpose therefore may not be to gain a qualification, thousands of people each year participate in this type of learning for enjoyment and are driven by their desire for personal fulfillment and/or intellectual, creative and physical stimulation.  In the last learning year (August 2008 to July 2009) around 620,000 people enrolled on over 880,000 courses funded by the LSC.  

The Government’s White Paper ‘The Learning Revolution’ published in March 2009 intends to create a ‘movement’ around informal adult learning which covers all of the provision funded by the LSC through the Safeguard. Apart from the obvious benefits engagement with this form of learning gives those who participate, informal adult learning has also been shown to make a profound and measurable wider contribution to our nation’s well-being, e.g.: 

• for the low-skilled, and for those with a bad personal experience of formal education, an informal approach can and does provide a way back into formal, skills-based learning[1] and more rewarding work, by building confidence[2] and interest
• it brings people and communities together, challenges stereotypes and contributes to community cohesion[3] 
• in an aging society it is seen as not only helping to unite generations but also helping people remain active and independent into old age[4]. 

Critically, informal adult learning has become a central theme of the Government’s commitment “to creating the kind of society we can be proud of”.[5]  

In short, supporting informal adult learning gives added impetus to expanding and maintaining a learning society capable of transforming individual lives and boosting the nation’s well-being.  

What exactly does the LSC buy with the budget set aside for the adult safeguard, and what are the deliverable objectives? The LSC invests an agreed budget of £210 million each year in informal adult learning opportunities. 

The funding is mainly divided between local authorities and further education colleges across England to support universal access and frontline engagement for adults, their families and their communities – but with a particular focus on targeting those who are furthest away from the traditional routes to learning and progression and therefore least likely to recognise the benefits that education can bring.   

The funding targets some of the most challenging situations and delivers measurable, tangible and meaningful outcomes as well as securing softer benefits and outcomes such as community cohesion and breaking inter-generational cycles of underachievement.   

In addition to supporting the overall objectives identified above, by sub-dividing the safeguard budget into 4 key informal learning components, more focused deliverables have also been identified: 

Is it working?

Analysis of the latest data[6] for informal adult learning supported through the safeguard in funding year 2008/09 shows: 

a total cohort of 620,000[7] adults were supported by the £210m safeguard budget, of whom 155,000 learners (or 25% of the total cohort) were from a disadvantaged postcode area 475,000 (or 77%) participated in personal and community development learning activity, and 86% (408,500) of these adults paid £32m in course fees, increasing the PCDL budget by 21% to £185m 66,500 adults paid no fees in this category and a further 143,000 adults were targeted by the other 3 categories and paid no fees, this shows that a total of 209,500 adults (or 34% of the cohort) were fully supported by the safeguard and 410,500 adults (or 66% of the cohort) were co-funded[8]  

the simple, average cost per learner for activity funded through the safeguard was £340, (excluding fee income) compared to around £1,168 per learner through the Adult Learner Responsive budget over the same period – (1,243,000 learners supported through approximately £1.45 billion)

24% of informal adult learners were male (148,950) and 76% (or 468,990) learners were female

the average number of guided learning hours per learner was 29

the age profile of learners shows that 40% of the cohort were 50+; 25% were 60+ and 16% were 65+ 

In September 2008 a positive Ofsted report entitled The role of adult learning in community renewal; NLDC Programmes found that NLDC projects successfully brought communities together and noted that approximately a third of the provision included in the survey focused on helping learners to develop skills associated with community leadership, democratic involvement and the ability to secure and manage community assets.

A second Ofsted report published in May this year, entitled Evaluation of the benefits of family learning for participants, their families and the wider community, noted:  

‘A considerable number of the families attending the sessions observed lived on low incomes, were unemployed, had low educational achievement, low levels of motivation and little social confidence.’  

The report also found that LSC funded family learning programmes had a considerable and positive impact on the achievements of both children and adults.  Furthermore the wider benefits and progression outcomes for adults included increased involvement in school life, gaining employment, and an increased social network.

Conclusion 

The funding set aside to support informal adult learning is successfully engaging under-represented groups and hard to reach learners using good networking, creating effective partnerships and often using third sector agencies. 

LSC policy is to target a balance of the funding on disadvantaged groups and to ensure that those who can afford to pay fees do so, in order to fund even more learners who are experiencing disadvantage.This type of learning supports a number of key government initiatives and departmental delivery targets, and contributes to PSA Targets - cohesive communities, fairness and opportunity for all, better quality of life, a secure and fair world and combating the downturn.  

It also helps to address 'broken' communities, broken families, re-engagement of adult NEETS, and people with learning disabilities, supports the integration of migrants, keeps an ageing population happier and fitter and promotes better learning for children through parental education.

The cost-benefits are substantial for a relatively modest investment.The analysis of LSC data and research carried out by Ofsted and other organisations such as NIACE indicate that LSC safeguard funding is, indeed, reaching the intended target learner groups and having a positive impact on both the individuals and the communities in which they live. Our strategic ambition through the informal adult learning reforms (signaled in the recent white paper) is to increase the reach and impact of informal adult learning to ensure that many more individuals can aim high, realise their potential and maximise their talents. 

 Adults and Lifelong Learning

LSC

October 2009