Impact Forums: Summary Basic Skills and PIAAC
1. Key policy drivers – in country
Country / InformationWales / No single policy in Wales on Essential Skills but Basic Skills and ESOL seen as important focus in 2015-16.
New policy statement on Communication, Numeracy, Digital literacy and Broader employability to be published at end of 2015.
Policy Statement on Skills – focus on skills for work and skills of the workforce.
Data on achievement and changes drawn from National Survey of Adult Skills in Wales, (2010), indicating improvements since 2004 in literacy at all levels but little change in numeracy. Those in work performed better than unemployed people.
Welsh Government commissioned ARAD Research to conduct a literature review of adult essential skills policy and programmes.
Focus on level 2 skills and qualifications; refocus of the Employer Pledge.
Essential skills in the work place and Work Ready programmes to continue until new adult employability programme established, working with DWP and other Government departments.
Working towards a consistent assessment toolkit for essential skills for Wales.
Wales Essential Skills Toolkit (WEST); began November 2014 for completion January 2016, covering screening for L and N; Initial Assessment for LLN and digital sills; Diagnostic Assessments; Learning materials; MIS integration and technical support.
Work Ready – via WBL network; linked to JCP; for individuals 18 years+ and on DWP benefits – extended to March 2016 when Skills for Employment Wales programme will take over.
N Ireland / Essential Skills Strategy in NI, frames basic skills; refreshed response by DEL in the light of PIAAC; review of GCSEs is on-going; reduced funding impacts upon basic skills in community contexts especially
England / PIAAC report including insight into England data; BIS responses to PIAAC identified different ways of interpreting data; NFER analysis of PIAAC: International evidence, learning from high-performing countries; majority of people who struggle with LLN are in employment.
Embedded/integrated basic skills in programmes for apprenticeships and traineeships; reform of GCSEs; reductions in funding for informal LLN impacts on basic skills for ‘stepping stones/access’ as well as for older people.
Scotland / Scottish Survey of Adult Literacies 2009 (www.scotland.gov.uk/publications)
Adult Literacies, Scotland is current policy driver
Strategic guidance for community planning and adult learning
Core principles in the Statement of Ambition – lifelong learning; life-wide learning and learner centred approaches
ESOL strategy
National Youth Work Strategy
2. Participation and engagement
Country / InformationWales / Case studies from Welsh Water showed the impact of engagement through the work place.
Role of Trades Unions, working with employers, in encouraging and supporting engagement was illustrated.
Individuals indicate the wider impact of engagement and participation on their identify, their families and children in particular, as well as job security and confident employees.
N Ireland / No real picture of full-range of participation; examples of how engagement initiatives can work ( limited by short-term funding) were discussed; data published on participation by DEL only embraces DEL provision.
Widening participation in HEIs recently set up; Union Learning has a focus on participation of those with lowest basic skills levels.
England / UKCES Employers’ surveys offers insight data; NIACE participation survey published annually. Many questions raised re progression routes; diversity of responses to LLN were reported by those at the forum; understanding the real demand for LLN is difficult to ascertain.
Scotland / Presentation to I F by Cath Hamilton (Education Scotland) indicated that 2k interviews had been conducted: 27% some literacy challenges; 73% skills for contemporary society; 26% with other challenges; 18% not really skills challenges.
Presentation by Jim King – Scottish Prison System – approx. £6m contract across 15 prisons and 8k prisoners.
Engagement/motivation through arts, embedded approaches in vocational programmes; themed learning eg fashion; health; use of the gym; family learning; homework clubs.
Not all prisons engage in such activities or they use more traditional approaches to basic skills teaching and learning.
3. Wider outcomes processes
Country / InformationWales / Case studies: identified impact on individuals and their workplaces.
Evaluation report on work of pilots of Citizens’ Curriculum; diverse models of change identified in England could be helpful to colleagues in Wales.
N Ireland / Much provision in business not ‘captured’ but significant investment in ‘soft’ skills development which are seen as important for the workplace but no real information on what data is being captured by whom; paper from NIACE on basic skills and social inclusion was shared and discussed.
England / Citizens’ Curriculum development was explained and discussed; WEA research into wider outcomes as well as on capture of social value; Ofsted framework to include social outcomes in future so this will drive necessity to identify wider outcomes; basic skills and social policy paper (NIACE) shared.
Scotland / Literacy as social practice fundamental to ABS in Scotland, so wide number of ‘vehicles’, themes, purposes etc adopted, which impact on wider outcomes.
4. Evidence of impact on other policy areas eg health, housing, crime, citizenship, environment
Country / InformationWales / Citizens’ Curriculum pilot demonstrated the impact on people who are dealing with homelessness; hostel-living; coping in disadvantaged areas; dealing with physical and mental health issues and seeking support with moving on in their lives.
Future developments likely on health and Civic engagement; work with ESA claimants and Work Programme providers.
N Ireland / Action on Mental Health; Volunteering; adult learning in many other policy context eg drugs and alcohol; homelessness; employers; health were all identified but the provision and impact is often invisible; challenge to capture data in these areas and identify contribution of basic skills to policy effectiveness.
England / Citizens’ Curriculum on-going research in 14 sites could help to inform how basic skills contributes to other policy areas; Hamlyn foundation on Family Learning and numeracy using digital and face to face learning could be examined for insight/data; list of case studies identified from members of the group to illustrate impact; Skills for Health possible source of data.
Scotland / In relation to offenders:
Basic skills are a key aspect of education in the secure estate. Priority is give to those who screen below SQA level 3 (entry level 3 England/Wales)
Individual Learning Plan offered to all who serve more than 6 month sentence.
Basic skills seen as a key to reducing re-offending but no causal effect established through research – some correlation evidence.
Prison officer role being reviewed to see how they might help with learning.
5. Policy influence: local, regional and national
Country / InformationWales / The I Forum discussed possible future involvement in PIAAC and whether members felt it worth advocating participation to government. It was agreed it could help but participation is expensive.
N Ireland / No co-ordinated voice for adult learning across NI: Impact Forum could be an exemplar of what’s needed; must work with Super Councils.
England / See item 3
Scotland / Purposeful Activity Review being undertaken in relation to the prison population – this could help more learning to be available?
6. Sharing of policies and practices from other UK countries
Country / InformationWales / PIAAC briefing note was shared – giving context.
PIAAC survey on findings for England and Northern Ireland were shared from a paper presented by NIACE. The challenge and the policy response from England was outlined. This was to help Wales to reflect on its own data.
The Citizens’ Curriculum, pilot, was shared – as a response to PIAAC. Report on pilot work in St Mungo’s Broadway, London, working with homeless people; this includes challenges experienced, responses to them, impact for learners, staff, organisation and the critical success factors.
Pilot of Citizens’ Curriculum in Rochdale, Lancashire was discussed; this was felt to be a strong evidence-base to present to Welsh Assembly Government.
N Ireland / Citizens’ Curriculum from England shared; learn from GCSEs for adults in England; what could be learned from Recovery Colleges in England?
England
Scotland / PIAAC experiences in England/N Ireland shared via paper from NIACE. It is possible that the outcomes of the OECD country report on basic skills could reveal some evidence to inform Scotland and Wales (non-PIAAC participants). This will be published in autumn 2015.
The Citizens’ Curriculum (England) could draw on social practice approaches and experiences in Scotland. The approaches appear to have many aspects in common.
7 Sharing of policies and practices from other EU countreis
Country / InformationWales / AONTAS, the National Adult Learning Organisation, Ireland as national co-ordinator of EAAL, reported on participation in PIAAC and the results published in 2013. 2 papers shared with data on literacy and numeracy skills re Problem Solving in Technological Rich Environments (PSTRE). Data on health, parental education, political engagement and volunteering.
Slovenia representative also reported in response to PIAAC, outlining their work in 7 key sectors and their links to the Adult Education Master Plan.
N Ireland / Consultant from Canada used by DEL to inform responses to PIAAC (bringing different perspective from a participating English-speaking country with better results); EAAL framework helpful and encouraging to inform where NI ‘fits’ in bigger picture.
England / BIS study on comparative evidence from high performing countries included Netherlands and Germany could help to inform developments in England re basic skills
Scotland / It had been planned to link with Wales as well as a representative from Slovenia but the link was not possible using the video/e.systems available.
8. Actions and issues
Country / InformationWales / Unionlearn has a key role in negotiating with and behalf of employees the right kind of learning support and courses which help them both as employees, parents etc and help them to be effective at work.
Employers/Trades Unions partnerships are key to successful workplace learning; how can such partnerships help SMEs where Trades Unions are, generally, not present?
Wider impact of essential skills learning clearly evidenced through case studies.
Questions were raised as to whether the Citizens’ Curriculum approach could be adopted to meet the diverse policy requirements of the 4 UK Administrations eg in Wales it was seen, at this stage, as an engagement tool for progression to level 2.
Future involvement in PIAAC raised issues around purpose and cost – it would have to be funded by several government departments. To what might the data revealed lead? Who might fund the survey? Who might fund the policy and programme responses to the data? General support but also suggestion that effective practice in Wales should be identified, compared and replicated rather than start again with data gathering.
The impact of the Citizens’ Curriculum pilots was felt to be powerful evidence to use as advocacy to governments.
N Ireland / Forum for adult learning needed; impact forums welcomed; NIACE Wider Outcomes tool shared in meeting; must be better at joining up especially re health; must find ways to work with Super Councils; consider using research from other UK countries to piggy back on the evidence and extrapolate to NI context to support other policies eg health; any lobbying of Stormont to be made collectively rather than by individual organisations.
England / Questions re how learn about concerns and developments from other UK countries: JE to inform each forum about others’ developments; Case studies to be gathered about wider impact and influence on other policies; possible to explore what research in English-speaking nations? What impact on BIS funding from other funding streams eg Big Lottery; Trusts and Foundations? Gather stories about informal/formal progression; What’s the trajectory for the Impact Forums in relation to the UK-wide conference?
Scotland / Little data on impact of basic skills on offenders and offending – more research needed? Could long-time offenders with high levels of skills help with research?
Is the judiciary aware of the impact of low levels of basic skills on individuals, behaviour etc as well as the benefits demonstrated by the work in prisons?
Future impact forums were discussed. How can they be put to best use without duplicating other forums and agendas? What USP offered by holding the Impact Forums? We must await the details of the proposals approved by the EC.
Evidence from diverse sources re what works, for whom, where and how could be brought together and presented at other forums, especially the Strategic Forums and politicians, to support joint, joined-up advocacy
Community empowerment is an area that is under-developed re forums and bringing organisations together.
Similarly, justice, offending and prevention initiatives could be areas for further exploration/development.
Possible greater exchange of policies and practices between the four UK administrations, especially re PIAAC, basic skills, literacies as social practice and the development of the Citizens’ Curriculum…?