Which Costs More? Evening Classes or Mental Heath Care?

The BBC reports that the government's response to the Leitch Report, while driving a focus on basic skills, has left adult learners missing out on Life-long Learning.

Associate Director of the National Institute of Adult Coninuing Education (Niace) Stephen McNair is reported to have said:

"There are clear benefits in terms of public health and social cohesion from life-long learning that are not recognised by the government..." (BBC)

It seems that Niace is now using this approach to try to pressurise the government into increasing funding for education for personal development (perhaps Life-long Learning in its purest sense).

In response the government reckon they are investing a further £210 million in "informal adult learning". No small sum but only a teeny tiny % of the total LSC budget.

I suspect that what we have heard of the government's response is, at least for now, the best statement they can give to the press at this moment in time. Meanwhile I hope they do look at how feasible it is to oil the machinery giving money to "informal adult learning" on a grander scale.

Being cynical for a moment I suspect they will do it in style if it means they spend less on mental health via the NHS (in other words produce cost savings elsewhere) but otherwise the momentum they have in developing basic skills, and "upskilling" the "work force", will mean that education for recreation or personal development will probably not get much light in the near future. Don't forget, the government are trying to get the economy going, as well as improving the UK's position internationally as a base of skills and that means giving people work skills.

Evening classes for the long term incapacitated, women at home with small children, carers and the elderly, in languages and art, hardly fits that bill. So for now they are unlikely to become a pressing government priority.

Having said that, I do agree with Niace on this one. But then I am biased, any proposal that allocates more funding to FE institutions is, from my perspective, a good thing. After all, I do work for one.