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People invest £7.3 billion a year and £55 billion worth of time in learning. This is more than the Government and employers invest in learning and skills, but there are stark inequalities between groups. This report provides the most detailed snapshot seen of which groups of adults are investing in learning, and how much, and lays bare stark inequalities in learning. It calls for a new Lifelong Learning Entitlement to simplify the overly complex system, boost participation in learning by those currently most likely to miss out and boost the UK economy.

Based on analysis of Learning and Work Institute's long-running Adult Participation in Learning Survey, the research finds that younger people are three times more likely to participate in learning than older people and also invest three times as much per year (£3,900 v £1,300). This lower investment by older people is a problem given longer working lives and economic change require people to update their skills more often through life. The same is true of investment by region and country. People in London (£1,400) invest more than double per person compared to the South East (£565) and Scotland (£624).

This could put 'levelling up' at risk given the impact learning has on economic growth and individual opportunity. The data come after previous L&W research showed that Government investment in skills is set to be £1 billion lower in 2025 compared to 2010, and that employer investment in training per employee has fallen 28 per cent since 2005. Taken together, they suggest the UK is under-investing in skills and learning, and risks staying stuck in the middle of the pack by international standards. This would put future growth and prosperity at risk.

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Using firm-level data covering the 27 EU countries, the UK and the US, we show that employers tend to reduce investment in training per employee after adopting advanced digital technologies (ADT). We estimate with a control function approach firm-level production functions augmented with two factors, the training stock per employee and digital technology use. We show that ADT use and employee training are substitutes in production, implying that an increase in the former negatively affects the marginal productivity of the latter, and that a decline in the cost of introducing ADT reduces employers' investment in training per employee. These findings point to challenges in realizing high levels of firm-sponsored training for employees in increasingly digital economies.

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For more than 25 years, the Adult Participation in Learning Survey has provided a unique insight into adult learning across the UK. It adopts a deliberately broad definition of learning, reflecting the fact that learning is about so much more than formal courses and qualifications. The good news is that, after a decade of declines during the 2010s, participation in learning remains back at levels last seen in the early 2000s: around two in five adults (42 per cent) say they have taken part in learning at some point in the last three years. The survey also demonstrates a shift in the number of adults learning independently and informally, with interest sparked during the pandemic and the rise of lockdown learning and helping to fill the gap as formal and publicly-funded learning fell over the previous decade. In the same way, the step change during the pandemic in learning at least partly online has sustained: 68 per cent of adults said at least part of their learning took place online. However, that doesn't mean we don't need to see increases in formal learning - qualifications can give people currency in the labour market where this is their reason for learning, and our research has shown employer investment in training has fallen 28 per cent since 2005, holding back productivity.

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The Employer Skills Survey (ESS) has run biennially since 2011, providing a vital source of intelligence on the skills issues employers face. ESS traditionally has an inward-looking focus assessing the current skills position and skills needs of employers. It has sat alongside the Employer Perspectives Survey, which is primarily outward-looking, covering provision of and engagement with the wider skills system. In ESS 2019, the two surveys were, in effect, merged, by incorporating EPS questions as modules. In total, 81,013 respondents across England, Northern Ireland and Wales responded to the survey.

This report focuses on findings relating to training and workforce development, making up one of four thematic reports to supplement the core ESS findings on skill-shortage vacancies, skills gaps and key training measures. Most of the training measures reported are based on the full sample of 81,013 respondents across England, Northern Ireland and Wales. Some topics were modularised in order to integrate the EPS questions, including questions covering employer provision of training designed to lead to vocational qualifications and the extent to which employers sought advice on skills and training-related issues. In total, 16,057 respondents were included in this module. In addition, a separate follow-up survey explored the investment employers had made in providing training to employees in the previous 12 months (the Investment in Training Survey).

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Understanding the return on investment (ROI) in vocational education and training (VET) provides governments with information on the performance of the system and justification for public expenditure. It can help enterprises and individuals to measure productivity improvement in firms or to determine increases in the employability of individuals following training investment. However, the measurement of ROI is not straightforward. This report introduces a conceptual framework for defining what is involved in the ROI calculation and provides a guide to what type of information and data are required to calculate the returns to training for government, employers and individuals.

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This paper extends standard models of work-related training by explicitly incorporating workers' locus of control into the investment decision. Our model both differentiates between general and specific training and accounts for the role of workers and firms in training decisions. Workers with an internal locus of control are predicted to engage in more general training than are their external co-workers because their subjective expected investment returns are higher. In contrast, we expect little relationship between specific training and locus of control because training returns largely accrue to firms rather than workers. We then empirically test the predictions of our model using data from the German Socioeconomic Panel (SOEP).

We find that, consistent with our model, locus of control is related to participation in general but not specific training. Moreover, we provide evidence that locus of control influences participation in general training through its effect on workers' expectations about future wage increases. Specifically, general training is associated with a much larger increase in the expected likelihood of receiving a future pay raise for those with an internal rather than external locus of control, while we do not find any relationship in the case of specific training. Actual post-training wages for those who receive general or specific training do not depend on locus of control.

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Employee training and development enables employees to develop skills and competencies necessary to enhance bottom-line results for their organization. They may not see the immediate results of training on their return on investment, although training is crucial to the long-term prosperity of any business. In times of economic hardship, training is seen as an additional expense rather than as an investment in a business's future. Understanding the barriers to effective training before implementing training methods could save businesses time and money.

Edited published abstract. Show less

This training plan identifies the Western Australian Government's investment priorities for the vocational education and training (VET) system over the next four years. Through training and skill development, the VET system plays a critical role in ensuring that Western Australian industry has access to a well-trained and job ready workforce. The priorities outlined in the plan are aimed at ensuring that the VET system is able to target training investment at those occupational areas that are critical to the State's economic growth.

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The [Victorian] Government's objective is for a more stable vocational education and training (VET) funding system that can adapt to Victoria's changing economy and support investment to allow the training system to thrive and provide opportunities for current students and generations to come; one that facilitates quality training, so that employers have confidence that graduates are work-ready, and one that offers students a range of training opportunities, regardless of where they live. In recent years the Victorian VET funding system has undergone significant upheaval. Rapid and repeated changes to funding settings have undermined the stability of the system. The government TAFE sector has been particularly impacted, resulting in serious concerns about TAFE institutes' ability to meet the needs of industry and their communities. An independent review of VET funding will provide the advice the Government needs to craft a more stable funding system and ensure its investment in training aligns with the goals of the Government's 'Back to work' plan. In Victoria, this means growing job and training opportunities not just now but for decades to come across a diverse range of industries. Key growth areas have been identified where Victoria can build on existing strengths - in the service industries (professional services, and social and personal services) and medical technology and pharmaceuticals, new energy technology, food and fibre, transport, defence and construction technology, and international education.

The Government has asked the Review to inquire into and report on how to improve the quality, stability and sustainability of the Victorian training market, by recommending alternative VET funding models and settings that: (a) match training delivery to the growing job opportunities in Victorian industries; (b) ensure all government subsidised training is high quality; (c) allow rural and regional communities to access training that meets their local needs; (d) meet community service obligations to support vulnerable and higher needs learners to complete training and transition to employment; (e) build a strong and responsive public Technical and Further Education (TAFE) sector; (f) manage training expenditure within the existing vocational training budget while preserving a framework of student driven choices; (g) recognise the public and private benefits of training and ensure fees and student costs are not a barrier to participation; and (h) ensure eligibility to access subsidised training is fair and well-targeted.

The Review is also asked to comment as necessary on: (i) how other government policy levers may be used to support the quality, stability and sustainability of the Victorian training market. This could include the regulation of training providers; requirements for government contracted training provision; information and decision support tools for students; and implications for national training policy; (j) the implications of recommended reforms for other directly-related areas of education in Victoria (including secondary schooling and the roll out of new Tech Schools, and the higher education sector).

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This fifth survey of education and skills was conducted in January and February 2012. Responses were received from 542 employers, collectively employing 1.6 million people. Respondents came from all sizes, sectors and regions of the UK. The results have been weighted by sector on the basis of data from the Office for National Statistics so they reflect practices across the economy. The survey provides a snapshot of current trends and business opinion on education and skills issues. It measures the scale of employers' activity on training and development, their involvement in the education system and the actions that businesses believe need to be taken to boost the skills of existing employees and future entrants to the workforce. One of the key findings was that, despite current economic and trading pressures, 81 per cent of firms plan to maintain or increase their investment in training over the coming year. Employers are committed to offering apprenticeships and the proportion of businesses involved in apprenticeships has grown rapidly over the past five years, from 48 per cent in 2008 to 63 per cent in 2012. Respondents raised measures that would encourage them to become more involved in apprenticeships programs. These include qualification programs that are more relevant to business needs, government support for firms to train more apprentices, greater flexibility for employers to design bespoke apprenticeships frameworks, and ensuring that more of the young people who apply for placements are suitably qualified and motivated.

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