Lifelong Education Commission `s comment on the Government’s response to the Augar Review

The Lifelong Education Commission, hosted by ResPublica, welcomes the announcement of the Government’s response to the Augar Review. There is much to praise in the provisions that have been announced, many of which align with the LEC’s proposed amendments to the Skills and Post-16 Education Bill as well as our manifesto on the Levelling Up White Paper.

Yet future policy changes must recognise the important distinctions between mature learners and those who have recently left school. There are three areas where we believe the Government can do more to reinvigorate lifelong and part-time access to Higher Education for adult learners.

First, the LEC is pleased to see that the Government is committed to levelling the playing field between academic and technical education. We welcome the proposal to put student finance packages for Higher Technical Qualifications on a par with degrees from AY2023/24, including allowing learners studying HTQs part-time to access maintenance loans, as they can with degrees. We urge the Government to approve the decision to reduce the fees charged for university foundation years so that they cost no more than an equivalent course in a Further Education college.

This improved access to Higher Education must also go hand-in-hand with increased funding for FE providers to ensure that both remain viable paths for learners to gain intermediate and higher qualifications. This includes making available the funds for FE colleges to offer competitive salaries for technical and professional lecturers to stop the labour drain into schools, HE institutions, and the private sector.

Second, the LEC is concerned that the introduction of minimum eligibility requirements for access to learning finance may unfairly exclude those who would benefit the most from higher qualifications. In this light, we welcome the provisions for exemptions to these minimum eligibility requirements for students aged 25 and over, part-time level 6 students, learners who have achieved a level 4 and 5 qualification, and those who have completed an integrated foundation year or an Access to HE qualification.

The Government could go still further with these exemptions. Retraining and refreshing skills ‘on the job’ often relies on lower-level qualifications, so the exemption for part-time learners should be extended to those studying levels 2–5 as well. We agree with the argument that work-based learning and experience often leads to the development of skills and talent that supersede poor prior academic performance. Extending access to finance to all part-time students at all levels, including but not limited to mature students, would therefore be in line with the Government’s ambitions to encourage flexible and lifelong learning.

Third, the LEC welcomes the announcement of a consultation on the Lifelong Loan Entitlement. The government is right to point out that the current cohort of level 4 and 5 learners is, on average, mature, more likely to be from an ethnic minority background (18%), and from deprived neighbourhoods (24%). Learners with these characteristics are certainly more likely to be debt averse, and older adults from all backgrounds are in any case much more likely to have existing financial commitments through rent and mortgage payments, and costs from healthcare and family support.

We want to grow uptake across the board, while also considering how any changes may affect these more financially constrained learners. The LEC therefore strongly encourages the Government to consider converting the LLE into a Lifelong Learning Entitlement that includes means-tested grants for the most disadvantaged learners, including funds to cover the costs of maintenance for mature students.

Andy Forbes is Head of Development and Dr Marius S. Ostrowski is Senior Public Policy Researcher at ResPublica, leading policy research and development for the Lifelong Education Commission. They are on Twitter as @AndyFor22064103 and @mariusostrowski.