Union Learning Fund to return five years after it was cut

The Union Learning Fund, which helped hundreds of thousands of workers gain new skills before it was scrapped in 2021, is to be brought back, the Chancellor has announced.

John Healey told Labour's conference in Liverpool on Monday: "Today, I'm also announcing the rebirth of the Union Learning Fund, set up by Labour, abolished by the Tories, now re-established by this Labour government."

What the fund does

The fund pays for union learning representatives in workplaces. These are trained volunteers who give colleagues advice, guidance and support to take up training, often courses that are already publicly funded but which many workers do not know about or feel unable to start.

It works through partnerships between unions, employers, employees and colleges or training providers, and is administered through the trade union movement.

How much it will be worth

Around 15 million pounds a year has been set aside for the revived programme, according to FE Week. Support will be open to all employees, whether or not they are union members, and could range from basic English, maths and digital skills to specialist training in growing sectors such as advanced manufacturing. The Government has said it wants the scheme to help workers in England make the most of artificial intelligence.

A history of the fund

The Union Learning Fund was set up in 1998. It spent as much as 21.5 million pounds a year between 2009 and 2012, and in 2009 to 2010 more than 233,000 learners took part. Mr Healey said that, at its height, 180,000 workers a year were getting new training through it.

It was closed in 2021 by the then Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson, and its budget of about 12 million pounds a year was moved into the National Skills Fund and the Lifetime Skills Guarantee.

Reaction

Paul Nowak, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, called the decision "common sense" and a "real boost for workers, businesses, and the economy".

What it means locally

Birmingham has large public sector, manufacturing, transport and logistics workforces with strong union representation, and many adults in the city have no qualifications. Before the fund closed, union learning projects offered workers everything from literacy classes to IT courses.