Introduction Older people are interested in learning: the National Adult Learning Survey (NALS) showed that 67 per cent and 47 per cent of those in the 50-59 and 60-69 age groups respectively are learners. And additional research (Learning in Later Life: Motivation and Impact) shows that those who participate in learning report a range of benefits: 58 per cent reported that learning improved their enjoyment of life; 56 per cent reported an improvement in their self-confidence; and 36 per cent that learning had helped them cope better with everyday life. But the picture isn't entirely rosy: NALS shows that 21% of the 50 - 55 age group and 30% of the 60 -69 age group indicated that they were not interested in learning (higher percentages than for any other age group). And the numbers saying they feel 'too old to learn' increases by decade from aged 40 - 49 (12%), 50 - 59 (22%), 60 - 69 year olds (30%). So, how can we help older people to tackle the barriers to learning they face? How can we ensure that learning opportunities offer older people what they want? And are we really sure that we know what they want? Please turn to Part Two if you would like to go immediately to the good practice lessons and recommendations. The rest of Part One provides background on the Celebrating Older Learners Seminar. Celebrating Older Learners Seminar The Celebrating Older Learners seminar on 19 March 2001 sought to address some of these issues by an exploration of some of the learning activities underway across England. Specifically, the seminar provided an opportunity for delegates to discuss what works – and what doesn't - and to extract some of the key elements in successfully developing provision for older learners. The seminar also provided a valuable opportunity for Government and the Learning and Skills Council to hear and discuss practitioners' views about later life learning more generally. Over 70 delegates attended the event, drawn from a range of organisations including further education colleges, voluntary organisations, Learning Partnerships and local authorities. Seminar Feedback The majority of seminar participants who responded described themselves as 'very satisfied' or 'satisfied' with the event. Comments included: 'The whole day was very interesting…particularly the opportunity to network and hear about other projects'; 'A welcome opportunity to speak directly to someone from the Learning and Skills Council about the concerns of older learners'; and 'Good opportunity to hear about new ways of doing things'. The majority of respondents also described the speakers and presenters as 'good'. Malcolm Wicks was rated particularly highly: several delegates described his input as 'excellent'. The key criticism of the event was its length – several delegates thought that a full day event would have allowed more time for discussion and enabled everyone to hear about all four projects. This report This report is divided into two parts: Part One discusses the aim of the Celebrating Older Learners seminar and provides the text of the speeches given by Malcolm Wicks, Lifelong Learning Minister, and John Sharman, Learning and Skills Council. It also offers background information on the four projects which were presented at the event. Part Two is based on the group and plenary discussion sessions where delegates sought to distil the essence of a successful project; and to extract the key lessons which others might find useful in planning and running their own activities. Part Two translates the points made into a) good practice and b) recommendations. Your views on this report This report seeks to offer useful information, both for delegates who attended the Celebrating Older Learners seminar, and, more generally, for practitioners who work with older learners. Your views on the report are welcome. Please send any comments to: Jayne Lievesley, Access to Learning for Adults Division, Department for Education and Employment, Room E8d, Moorfoot, Sheffield S1 4PQ. E-mail: jayne.lievesley@dfes.gsi.gov.uk.

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