| answer text |
<p>The government is investing £2.5 billion in the National Skills Fund in England.</p><p>Since
1 April 2021, the government is supporting adults who do not hold A level equivalent
or higher qualifications to access over 400 funded level 3 courses, with Free Courses
for Jobs. This offer is a long-term commitment, backed by £95 million from the National
Skills Fund in year one.</p><p>Complementing this support for adults, Skills Bootcamps
offer free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks to give people the opportunity to build
up sector specific skills and fast-track to an interview with a local employer. The
department is expanding the Skills Bootcamp programme across the country during 2021/22
financial year, with £43 million from the National Skills Fund. There will be digital
Skills Bootcamps available in each English region and a wide coverage of technical
Skills Bootcamps. We are also delivering Skills Bootcamps in retrofit construction
skills to support the green industrial revolution.</p><p>From 2025, the department
will introduce a Lifelong Loan Entitlement equivalent to 4 years of post-18 education.
People will be supported to study throughout their life, with the opportunity to train,
retrain and upskill as needed in response to changing skills needs and employment
patterns. It will help transform post-18 study, delivering greater parity between
further and higher education.</p><p>The department is continuing to invest in education
and skills training for adults through the Adult Education Budget (AEB), investing
£1.34 billion in the 2021/22 financial year. The AEB fully funds or co-funds skills
provision for eligible adults aged 19 and above from pre-entry to level 3, to support
adults to gain the skills required for work, apprenticeships or further learning.</p>
|
|
