Government Cuts Cash for Adult Continuing Education Yet Again

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Tue 11th Jul 2006

Milton Keynes Council's Adult Continuing Education service (ACE) is facing severe cuts in funding again - despite praise from government inspectors for the quality of service the Council provides.

Support from the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) for courses starting in the autumn has been slashed for the second year in a row - bringing the total cuts to more than half a million pounds, which is a cut of more than 25% over two years.

The cuts will mean an unavoidable hike in the cost of some courses, including those covering traditional areas such as GCSEs and A levels, as well as more specialist - but equally vital - topics such as British Sign Language. Some of these courses will cost £315 per year instead of £60-160, out of reach of people who are less well off.

The cuts will kick in from September, effectively leaving ACE with 11% fewer places on courses for people to learn essential skills such as literacy, numeracy and English.

The cuts come despite a re-inspection of the Council's ACE service by the Adult Learning Inspectorate in March 2006, which gave the service a clean bill of health in all areas.

Councillor Euan Henderson, Liberal Democrat cabinet member responsible for Lifelong Learning, said: "This is a real blow, as ACE offers many excellent courses for people who wish to enrich their lives. There will be less choice - and less chance of helping people turn around their lives, such as the man who overcame immense personal difficulties to gain 4 high grade A levels with ACE, and then went on to university."