23. Meeting this challenge will require a quiet and sustained revolution in aspiration and achievement. It will begin with getting the foundations right in the home and at school. Our White Paper Excellence in Schools (Cm 3681) (The Stationery Office, 1998) has begun this process, but we need to carry it forward throughout life. It will mean changing the culture in many homes and workplaces where learning is not seen as having any relevance. It is a social as well as an economic challenge.

24. The Government's role will be to help create a framework of opportunities for people to learn and to lift barriers that prevent them from taking up those opportunities. We cannot force anyone to learn - individuals must take that responsibility themselves - but we can help those who want to develop a thirst for knowledge. Together we can create a culture of self improvement and a love of learning where if people want to get on, their first instinct is to improve their skills and education.

25. Our vision will be built on the following principles:

• investing in learning to benefit everyone;

• lifting barriers to learning;

• putting people first;

• sharing responsibility with employers, employees and the community;

• achieving world class standards and value for money; and

• working together as the key to success.

26. This consultation paper sets out how we propose to implement these principles in the Learning Age. We will:

• overcome barriers through new forms of delivering learning and better advice and information (Chapter One);

• support learners (Chapter Two);

• enable learning in the workplace (Chapter Three);

• involve further, higher and adult education and other partners in delivering our aims (Chapter Four);

• set high standards (Chapter Five);

• support learning through a better qualifications system (Chapter Six).