The Committee for Employment and Learning welcomes the opportunity to respond to the framework and consultation paper on Adult Literacy issued by the Department for Employment and Learning (DEL).

The Committee sought the views of other Committees of the Northern Ireland Assembly and would endorse the views and sentiments of the Committee for Education, Committee of the Centre and the Committee for Enterprise, Trade and Investment. These responses are attached at appendix 1.

At the outset the Committee wishes to reinforce that it has consistently held the view that adult literacy has a high priority on its agenda for action. Indeed the first two recommendations stemming from the Committee's Inquiry into Education and Training for Industry (September 2001) were:

• Recommendation 1 - Further additional funding and resources should be made immediately available to support literacy and numeracy development schemes to correct the poor levels of adult basic skills in Northern Ireland. These schemes should include provision for both personal development and social skills training.

• Recommendation 2 - Initiate and fund research into developing effective models of workplace basic skills development and the effective sharing of best practice.

Furthermore, in the recent Committee responses to the Department's draft Position Report, draft Programme for Government 2002/03 and Budget 2002/03 the Committee has consistently made improving adult literacy a high priority.

The Committee for Employment and Learning's views on the framework and consultation paper are as follows:

Due to the current serious situation of the development need in the working-age population of:

40,000 people needing intensive support;

50,000 people needing specific help; and

160,000 people requiring fairly modest help,

The Committee for Employment and Learning questions if the target number of 25,000 over the next three years is adequate. Our concern is further accentuated, as there is a significant number leaving school each year with literacy and numeracy weaknesses, which adds to the pool requiring assistance.

The Committee is very concerned that the proposals do not specify the precise groups to be targeted; this is also raised in the response from the Committee for Education. Of the three groups quoted above the proportion of the 25,000 falling within those needing intensive support, specific help or requiring fairly modest help should be clearly specified. Members stated that this important work should clearly target those requiring the greatest help and not the easiest 25,000 to achieve numerical targets per se. The Committee for Employment and Learning also requests the split of the 25000 target between New TSN areas as identified by Noble and also the rural and urban split be clearly set out.

The Committee would also wish to see the policy clearly spelt out that development of these skills cannot be seen as a one-off cure, as individuals may need more development in one, two or more years, ie the policy must make it clear that it needs to continue over time.

The Committee wishes to highlight the key role that Information Communication Technology (ICT) has to play in this important area. This was highlighted to us during our briefing by the Civic Forum on their document Educational Disadvantage: A Civic Discussion. Again the Committee stressed this in our Report on the Inquiry into Education and Training for Industry (September 2001) in,

• Recommendation 6 - Greater Government support for workplace development, community education and outreach programmes aiming to improve ICT skills, to enable everyone to operate within the ICT driven economy.

The Committee fully supports the emphasis on a family strategy, i.e. incentivising the parents or adults to enter training on essential skills so they can in turn help their children to acquire the essential skills. This not only develops adults but also avoids future generations being at a disadvantage.

The Committee recommends that further emphasis on adult literacy during teacher training to ensure teachers in the future are fully equipped to deal with all issues in this sensitive area.

The Committee fully concurs with DEL's emphasis on the problem of low levels of essential skills being fully addressed, however, the Committee is very concerned as to the lack of funding. Currently the Committee considers comments such as "if resources are available" or "availability of European funding" are not adequate. The Committee wishes to see a clear statement that this requires core funding and that the necessary financial resources will be made available for this very critical area of work.

During our deliberations it has been raised with the Committee that Further Education Colleges are not reimbursed with concessionary rates that schools receive. This places colleges at a considerable financial disadvantage. The Committee wishes this to be addressed at the earliest opportunity to avoid any barriers to adult literacy development.

Currently funding is attached to individual school pupils, thus schools are reluctant to lose pupils to other schemes/providers which may offer alternative methods of education which may be more interesting, appropriate and beneficial for certain pupils.

The Committee wishes the Department to fully consider how incentives can be further developed and indeed initiated to encourage the development of essential skills in the workplace, through trade unions and in the voluntary and community sector.

The Committee is very concerned that the inter-departmental working arrangements are neither clear, nor of sufficient strength to ensure the required outcomes are achieved. This is particularly lacking in respect of the Department of Education (DE) who do not even have a presence on the Basic Skills Committee other than through the Education and Training Inspectorate. The Committee for Education has also raised this. Proper representation is vital as the Department of Education shapes the population that DEL inherits. The Committee wish to see not only partnerships, but also clear reference to where these are already in place, how they will be further developed and who will be responsible for this development. The document makes no reference to the Belfast Education and Library Board's recent strategy on literacy, which the Committee views as a significant oversight. Again this issue is highlighted in the response from the Committee for Education.

12. Links with other Department for Employment and Learning and Executive Strategies and Programmes

Members were concerned about the absence of linkages to the Taskforce for Employability and Long-Term Unemployment. Whilst this may be due to both the Essential Skills strategy and the work of the Taskforce being considerably behind schedule, this serious deficiency must be addressed before the strategy is finalised. In addition members wished to highlight, as did the Committee of the Centre, the lack of references to the New Targeting Social Need (TSN) programme, which is a very serious deficit.

It is vital that initiatives fully use other programmes such as New Deal to maximise development opportunities and the Committee wishes the focus on essential skills in these programmes to be redoubled.

The Department must fully ensure that the development programmes for essential skills take full cognisance of the additional access difficulties for people in rural areas to ensure those living in these areas have opportunities to develop basic skills as those in urban areas.

The Committee considers it essential, that the Basic Skills Committee takes a positive role in the dissemination of best practice from within Northern Ireland and further afield, for example, from other European funded projects. It is essential that the best and most appropriate learning methods are available to all.

We are pleased there is some recognition of this. It is a crucial point. We, ideally, need to know how big the current problem is and the speed with which it is being resolved. The apparent contradiction between International Adult Literacy Survey (IALS) figures for the percentage of 16-25 years old in the lowest literacy category compared to the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA 2000) study of 15 year-old group undermines confidence in policy making. The Department for Employment and Learning and the Department of Education need reliable measures of literacy improvement.

Chairman

20 June 2002

Appendix 1

The Committee of the Centre
Room 406
Parliament Buildings
Stormont
BELFAST
BT4 3XX

Northern Ireland Tel: +44 (0) 28 9052 1821

Assembly Fax: +44 (0) 28 9052 1699

Email: stella.mcardle@niassembly.gov.uk

Dr Andrew Peoples
Clerk
Committee for Employment & Learning
Room 240
Parliament Buildings
Stormont
Belfast

Dear Andrew

I am writing in connection with the above Strategy, which was placed before the members of the Committee of the Centre at their meeting of 8^th May 2002.

After due consideration the Committee have asked me to pass on the following comments to you.

• New TSN, Equality and Gender do fall under the remit of the Committee of the Centre. Literacy & numeracy skills do have a major link to New TSN, to Equality and Gender Issues.
• The Committee is therefore concerned that the Strategy does not make any reference to New TSN, Equality or Gender and would ask that these issues be explicitly addressed in the Strategy.
• In considering the above the Committee also made reference to the fact that poor literacy and numeracy skills, underachievement and lack of accessing life long learning tend to be characteristic of young protestant males from working class background. More over, young protestant working class males tend to live in areas of low community infrastructure, which have not developed informal or formal community education programmes. This reinforces the need to have the strategy explicitly address the issues of New TSN, Equality and Gender.
• The Committee would also seek clarification if the literacy and numeracy / under achievement issue has a spatial dimension i.e. is it both a rural and urban issue?

I hope these comments are helpful for you.

Yours sincerely

Stella McArdle
Clerk

Appendix 2

Dr Esmond Birnie MLA
Chairman
Committee for Employment and Learning
Room 248A
Parliament Buildings
19 June 2002

Dear Dr Birnie

ESSENTIAL SKILLS FOR LIVING STRATEGY

The Northern Ireland Assembly Education Committee welcomes the opportunity to consider the Department for Employment and Learning consultation document 'Essential Skills for Living'.

The Committee wishes to make the following comments:

Yours sincerely

(Approved by the Chairman and signed in his absence)

Appendix 3

The Committee for Enterprise, Trade and Investment has noted the consultation document on the Essential Skills for Living Strategy.

The Committee has no comments to make but wishes the Department every success with the strategy as improving the essential skills of adult literacy and numeracy in Northern Ireland will help Northern Ireland compete in a global economy and encourage its people to participate fully in society.

Many Thanks