Lifelong Learning Entitlement
Opening Up Opportunity for Every Adult in Nuneaton
For too long, people in Nuneaton have had to make an impossible choice: keep working, caring and supporting their families, or take a leap into full‑time study with all the financial and practical pressures that come with it. I’ve heard this from parents on the school run, from carers juggling impossible schedules, and from workers who want to retrainbut simply can’t step away from their jobs.
That’s why I’m so proud to share that, from September 2026, adults in our town will have access to a brand‑new, flexible student finance system — a once‑in‑a‑generation reform that finally recognises how people actually live their lives.
A New Era of Learning for Working People
For the first time in history, adults will be able to access student finance for shorter, bite‑sized courses and for retraining later in life. This means you can build up qualifications gradually, module by module, instead of having to commit to a full three‑year degree all at once.
This is a game changer for Nuneaton.
North Warwickshire and South Leicestershire College (NWSLC) has been selected as one of the first 130 approved providers in the country to offer these new courses. Applications open this September, and I couldn’t be more delighted that our local college is leading the way.
As Marion Plant OBE FCGI, Principal and Chief Executive of NWSLC, put it, this is “a hugely important development for adult education and skills training,” and I couldn’t agree more.
Why This Matters for Nuneaton
Our town is full of hardworking people who balance jobs, caring responsibilities and family life. But the old education system wasn’t built for them. It was built for 18‑year‑olds going straight from school into full‑time study.
That model simply doesn’t reflect the reality of modern life.
These reforms mean:
Flexible learning that fits around work and family
Funding equivalent to four years of post‑18 study (currently worth up to £39,160)
Maintenance support available in smaller, manageable amounts
Opportunities to retrain, even if you already hold a degree
Courses focused on priority skills like computing, engineering, architecture, economics, and health and social care — all areas where Warwickshire needs more skilled workers
This is about unlocking potential that has been held back for far too long.
Building Skills for the Future
These changes form part of the Lifelong Learning Entitlement, a national programme designed to help people gain the skills our economy needs. It supports the ambition for more young people to be in apprenticeships, higher training or university by age 25, and it will help close skills gaps that hold back growth.
For Nuneaton, this means more people able to step into good jobs, more local employers able to find the talent they need, and more families benefiting from higher wages and better opportunities.
Backing Nuneaton’s Working People
People in Nuneaton are among the hardest working in the country. I see it every day — in our schools, our hospitals, our shops, our factories, and in the countless unpaid hours people give to caring for loved ones.
For too long, residents have had to choose between maintaining their livelihoods or developing new skills. These reforms finally change that. They give people the chance to explore new careers, retrain later in life, and get on in the world without sacrificing the stability they’ve worked so hard to build.
Applications for student finance open in September 2026, for anyone starting courses or modules from January 2027.
This is a huge step forward for our town — and I’m proud that Nuneaton is at the forefront of this national transformation
