Removing the barriers to adult learning – a new approach in East Cardiff

The pilot scheme, delivered by the CAVC Family Learning team, is one of a series of Welsh Government funded citizens curriculum pilots, where adults get to design their own curriculum.

Using the local secondary school, Eastern Community High Community Campus, and local primary schools, staff from CAVC reached out to parents by holding family engagement events, talking with parents in the playground and running surveys to find out what they wanted to learn about and remove any barriers to learning.

Lesson content was co-created from scratch, based on the needs of adult learners, with popular topics including managing the family finances and the impacts of the cost of living crisis and a range of topics relating to self and community safety, being an issue of concern locally.

As part of Eastern Community High’s community focused schools approach, parents were given the opportunity to take lessons at the school for 3 hours a week. Not only did this transform the lives of parents it also has had a positive impact on children to see a parent in school learning. Research has shown this can lead to an improvement in children’s attendance and attainment.

Key to the success of the initiative was actively listening to the needs of adult learners and co-creating a programme led by the adults which also identified organisations to provide support and giving people the confidence to learn.

Building trusted relationships with Family Engagement Officers within local schools provided opportunities to break down barriers for adults to attend the sessions in a familiar school setting and provided a network of support that built confidence and positive relationships.

Cabinet Secretary for Education, Lynne Neagle said:

“This week is Adult Learners Week, a chance to celebrate the achievements of learners, and to inspire people to discover how learning can positively change their lives.

“The Citizens Curriculum Pilots are helping to deliver this aspiration by taking different approaches to engage learners and improve outcomes. This is working effectively in practice here in East Cardiff where whole families are benefitting from this new scheme.”

The pilot scheme which ended in March 2024 has created a significant cultural shift in the approach to adult education at Cardiff and Vale College. It’s legacy means staff have a better understanding of how to engage with adult learners, a greater awareness of the potential of the new curriculum and a close relationship has been built up with not only Eastern Community High School, but also many of the primary schools in the area.

Research has found that adult learners who have benefitted from these kinds of schemes feel more employable and have a greater sense of wellbeing.

Returning to education after a catastrophic illness, Katie Martinson enrolled on to the ‘Money Smart Kids’ financial capability course, at her son’s school, Eastern High Community Campus. Still battling her speech and motor function difficulties, but motivated to help her son’s financial literacy, she took the classes to gain financial knowledge and has since completed an accreditation qualification in budget management.

As her confidence grew, Katie played a pivotal role in the co-creation of the course, suggesting areas of financial capability that families need help with, researching digital apps that would benefit budgeting and sharing best practice with other students.

Wayne Carter, Senior Head of Academic Studies, Foundation and Adult Learning at Cardiff and Vale College said:

“It has been a humbling experience to listen to learners sharing stories of the impact learning has had on them, their children and their families. In our sessions, many of the adult learners talk about the hope that they feel, the sense of belonging they have found, and their excitement about their futures. 

“The provision offers second chances for adults to develop their own skills whilst supporting their children’s education. Families tell us about the positive outcomes of the programme such as, improved mental health and well-being, building positive relationships with their children, other parents, their local school and community.”

In total 260 adults were engaged on the scheme, 245 completed their course and gained a qualification and 23 new courses were created.

Josh Miles, Director of the Learning and Learning and Work Institute, who manage the Citizen's Curriculum pilots said:

 “What makes the Citizens’ Curriculum truly different is the way it’s developed and taught. It’s not about some clever curriculum writers coming up with the topics they think students should learn. Rather, it’s about working with learners around what they want to learn and how they want to learn it.

“We’ve worked with some excellent partners including Cardiff and Vale College and local schools in Cardiff to develop the Citizens’ Curriculum. We’re now looking at embedding this approach across adult learning provision, making sure Wales is a nation where it’s never too late to learn.”

Welsh Government will have invested £60m of capital funding by 2025 to support Community Focused Schools throughout Wales to safely open their facilities to families and the wider community.

£6.5m has funded Family Engagement Officers who are employed by schools, part of their role being improving pupil attendance.

A trial of Welsh Government funded Community Focused Schools Managers is continuing, to develop better engagement between schools and their communities.