High Peak MP praises expansion of adult learning as just what the area needs

That is why I am backing the new expansion of education and training for adults which will help people to retrain and find new, well-paid jobs throughout their career.

At the heart of this long-term investment is the lifetime skills guarantee.

It will give adults, without an A-level or equivalent qualification, the chance to take free and flexible college courses which are valued by employers.

The offer will be available from April, paid through the £2.5 billion national skills fund, and the full list of available courses will be published shortly.

Higher education loans will also become more flexible, allowing people to spread their studies across their lifetime and go on high-quality vocational courses.

More than £1.5 billion in capital funding will be invested in college buildings and facilities, ensuring excellence for students.

In the House of Commons last week, I took the opportunity to directly urge the education secretary to ensure this policy is targeted in a way that helps deliver the skills we need, including construction, engineering, quarrying, telecommunications, and broadband rollout.

Getting the right skills is key to delivering the infrastructure High Peak needs to build back better.

This package of measures extends training to these vital areas.

Digital skills boot camps will receive £8 million and next year, boot camps will be extended to construction and engineering.

The free online skills toolkit, launched earlier this year, helps people to train in digital and numeracy skills.

It has now been expanded to include 62 new courses.

Major employers like Microsoft, Citi, BAE Systems and Greene King have praised this expansion of skills.

It also builds on the Chancellor’s £30 billion plan for jobs.

This is a positive development in an ongoing process of opening up opportunity and it could make a huge difference to so many people across the High Peak by helping them get the skills they need at every stage in their career.

Robert Largan is MP for High Peak.