Our skills system is being reshaped by longer working lives, rapid technological change and shifting labour market demands. Through our FE News live series, Learning for a changing world, we're bringing together voices from across the sector to explore how education and skills provision can evolve to meet these challenges. 

Our second episode, Never too late to learn, focused on how we better support adults to retrain and upskill throughout their working lives. Gavin O’Meara (CEO of FE News) and I were joined by Mark Morrin, Head of Research at the Lifelong Education Institute, and Sam Rasiah, Founder of The Slink Academy, for a discussion which explored both system‑level challenges and lived experience of mid‑career change. 

The conversation made clear that lifelong learning is no longer optional – but it also highlighted the practical barriers that continue to hold people back. Here are three key priorities that stand out from our conversation.

1. Lifelong learning must be designed for real lives, not linear careers

A consistent theme was that the current system remains focused on early life education, rather than supporting learning across a 40-to-50-year career. 

Demographic, economic, and technological changes are driving a growing need for adults to reskill. People are living and working longer, careers are becoming less linear, and advances such as AI are accelerating how quickly skills become outdated. 

However, the system has not kept pace with this reality. Adults face a complex set of barriers, including funding constraints, limited time due to work and caring responsibilities, and a lack of accessible, high‑quality careers guidance. For many, confidence is also a significant factor, particularly if their earlier experiences of education were not positive. 

Even when adults are motivated to learn, navigating the system can be difficult. Identifying the right course, understanding labour market value, and accessing relevant advice all remain challenges. Crucially, much of the risk – financial and otherwise – still sits with the individual. 

If lifelong learning is to become the norm, we must design a system that reflects how people actually live and work. This means clearer pathways, better information and guidance, and a more balanced sharing of responsibility between individuals, employers and the state.

2. Flexibility, modular learning,and recognition of transferable skills are essential

The panel was clear that traditional, long‑form, and rigid learning models do not always work for adults – particularly those balancing multiple commitments or exploring a career change. 

Instead, there is a growing need for shorter, more flexible and modular approaches to learning. These should allow individuals to build skills incrementally, access learning at different points in their careers, and respond quickly to changing job requirements. 

Mark pointed to the importance of micro‑credentials and smaller units of learning, suggesting that the Lifelong Learning Entitlement could go further in supporting more granular, flexible provision. 

This was echoed strongly in Sam Rasiah’s experience. Her transition from a career in academia to running a fitness business highlighted both the potential and the challenges of mid‑career change.  

Achieving sector‑specific qualifications from Active IQ provided her with a strong foundation, with targeted mentoring and the application of transferable skills – such as communication, coaching and leadership – proving equally critical in enabling her to apply that knowledge in practice and successfully navigate her career change. 

However, a key systemic issue was also highlighted: the limited recognition of transferable skills across sectors. Despite holding advanced qualifications, she encountered barriers when applying for roles outside her previous field, often due to rigid qualification requirements. 

This points to a wider challenge. If we're serious about enabling career mobility, we must do more to recognise prior learning and transferable skills and ensure that qualifications – particularly modular ones – are credible, portable, and understood by employers.

3. A more aligned and locally responsive system is needed

The discussion also explored the role of devolution in shaping the future of adult skills. There is clear potential for devolved approaches to create more locally responsive provision, aligned with regional labour market needs and employer demand. 

I outlined how this can lead to more targeted, employment‑focused programmes and stronger employer engagement in curriculum design. In principle, this should improve outcomes for learners by linking training more directly to job opportunities in their local area. 

However, there are also risks. Greater variation between regions can lead to fragmentation, particularly for employers operating across multiple locations and for learners seeking clarity on pathways. This reinforces the importance of maintaining consistency, quality and portability within the system. 

More broadly, the conversation pointed to the need for a more joined‑up approach. Adult learning sits at the intersection of education, employment, and economic policy, yet funding and delivery mechanisms often operate in silos. 

A whole‑system approach is needed – one that aligns funding, qualifications, employer engagement and local delivery models. Without this, even well‑designed initiatives risk being limited in their impact. 

Looking to the future 

What came through most strongly in this live show is that lifelong learning is central to both individual opportunity and economic resilience. As careers become more “squiggly” and less predictable, the ability to retrain, adapt, and progress will be increasingly important. 

Three priorities stand out: designing a system around real working lives, expanding flexible and modular learning with stronger recognition of transferable skills, and creating a more aligned, locally responsive system. 

There was also a clear call for action – to accelerate progress, reduce complexity and ensure that lifelong learning is not just available, but accessible and meaningful for all. 

Ultimately, success will depend on whether we can move beyond viewing education as something that happens at the start of life, and instead embed learning as a continuous, supported and valued part of every career. 

Watch our Learning for a changing world full episode: