Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the funding available for adult education courses within (a) Coventry and (b) the West Midlands.

The adult education budget (AEB) aims to engage adults and provide the skills and learning they need to equip them for work, an apprenticeship or other learning. It enables more tailored programmes of learning to be made available, which may or may not require a qualification, to help eligible learners engage in learning, build confidence, and/or enhance their wellbeing. It supports three legal entitlements to full funding for some learners and enables a more flexible provision for others.

In 2017/18 (academic year) the total AEB allocated to providers by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) was £1.39 billion. Of this, £171.6 million was allocated to providers based in the West Midlands, of which £10.4 million was allocated to providers based in Coventry.

From 2019/20 the government will devolve the AEB to several Mayoral Combined Authorities, including West Midlands.

The ESFA does not allocate funding on a geographic basis and providers can fund delivery anywhere in England.