The Government has today (Dec 09) announced that 400 free courses will be made available to tens of thousands of adults across the country.
The courses, which range from engineering to healthcare to conservation, will be available to adults without a full qualification at Level 3 (A-Level or equivalent).
The plans mark a move towards the Government’s commitment to level up skills across the country, regardless of age or background, which for so long have been limiting factors in how people access further education.
The Government is making use of £95m worth of funding from the £2.5bn National Skills Fund in order to deliver the courses, which will be made available from April 2021.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said:
“As we recover from the pandemic, we are focussed on making sure that individuals and businesses can build back better than before.
“Throughout our lives we may all need to boost our skills, or gain new ones. These free qualifications will help open doors to better employment opportunities for thousands of adults and support businesses to access the workforce they need to grow.
“Our new Lifetime Skills Guarantee promises to help you get the skills you need at every stage of your life. I’d urge all those eligible to see what course they can.”