THREAD: Great to see lifelong learning feature prominently in Queen& #39;s Speech. Main purpose is to put into law those bits of Skills for Jobs White Paper that need legislation. Inevitably there& #39;s more questions & detail needed so here& #39;s my thoughts. https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👇" title="Rückhand Zeigefinger nach unten" aria-label="Emoji: Rückhand Zeigefinger nach unten"> https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skills-for-jobs-lifelong-learning-for-opportunity-and-growth">https://www.gov.uk/governmen...

1. Lifetime Skills Guarantee is great but needs to be broader. It gives adults entitlement to free first level 3 (A level equivalent). We should extend to e.g. 2nd L3s for those retraining, L2s etc; broaden to modules; and widen list of approved subjects, trusting people more.

2. Lifetime Loan Entitlement also a good idea, income-contingent loans for 4 years of post-18 education. To be a success, we need support with maintenance costs, more flexible learning, & to inspire adults to learn. Why? Biggest reasons for not learning are time & not wanting to.

3. Local Skills Improvement Plans. Groups of employers setting skills priorities, DfE intervene if colleges don& #39;t meet. But how does this fit with Skills Advisory Panels and why DfE intervening not local government? And where is link to livability, regen etc? Too many plans...

4. Wider vision. As well as links to levelling up, livability, regen etc (which I think needs partnership with local gov), we also need to increase apprenticeships for young people, integrate with Restart etc. That& #39;s about policy & delivery not legislation, but is key.

5. Funding. To deliver transformational change, we need more funding. After a decade of cuts, the Govt is now increasing funding. So far, about 1/3 of the £1.9bn per year @LearnWorkUK called for. All eyes on the Spending Review later this year... https://learningandwork.org.uk/resources/research-and-reports/time-for-action-learning-and-skills-for-economic-growth-and-social-justice/">https://learningandwork.org.uk/resources...

6. The Queen& #39;s Speech is obviously not the place for funding & detail. So the announcement today is welcome. Hopefully this thread gives a sense of the scale of further action & long-term focus on delivery needed to deliver on Govt& #39;s aims.