Oral question asked in the House of Lords, by Lord Bilston (Labour). It was answered on Thursday, 20 April 2006.

Education: Adult Learning

Question: My Lords, the Association of Colleges estimates that 200,000 places will have been lost by 2008. In addition, due to the Government’s requirement that colleges further prioritise courses for 16 to 19 year-olds and courses for adults without basic skills—I welcome that—500,000 places will be lost by 2007–08. My noble friend will also be aware that fees continue to rise, possibly by as much as 60 per cent in the three years from 2004–05 to 2007–08. I wonder, therefore, if the Minister and the Government would take into account the public’s ability to pay the increased fees, recognising the wide disparity in incomes in various parts of the UK. Will the Government consider a variation on the fee assumption for each region based on average wage levels?

Answer: My Lords, my noble friend is absolutely right: some difficult decisions have had to be made within an overall budget that remains constant, and an FE budget that has risen by 48 per cent in real terms since 1997. We have decided to prioritise three key areas that we think essential for our society and economy: adult basic skills and first level 2 qualifications, which are essential for employability, and we now want to include first level 3 qualifications for those under 25. That results in an increase in fees for those on adult courses not subject to those discounts. However, the average increase for funded courses for the individual or their employer will be from 32.5 to 37.5 per cent, which will increase the average fee per hour from £1.42 to £1.94. While recognising that some difficult decisions must be taken—there is a regional dimension—we are confident that it will be possible to sustain numbers and that this will not lead to a decline in adult education, as some fear.

Secondary information