This paper seeks to explore the uneasy and at times conflicting relationship between globalisation, the regeneration of communities adversely affected by industrial change, and the role of adult learning in building social capital. The paper presents a series of case studies where communities are utilising adult learning to develop alternative community futures. In doing so, it seeks to challenge the ‘simple story’ that has developed around the fate of the British Coal industry and that of the communities – pit towns and villages for the most part – on which it was based.

The Association for Adult Education (AAE) is implementing a program for the Ministry of Employment. The broad aim of the program is to strengthen the role of the local NGO so as to increase employment, the environmental protection and to promote the culture and equal opportunities of both sexes. Please see attachment.

Midlothian, Scotland, is a metropolitan area with a population of over 80,000 people. Midlothian Council, the local state, is the biggest employer in the region, employing over 4,000 people. Unison Midlothian, as the largest trade union in the council with over 2,000 members, is currently linking the development of social capital to lifelong learning through various initiatives. This paper explores trade unions historic and significant role in building learning and social capital particularly in disadvantaged communities.

Propelled by the forces of globalisation, rapid change and the need for social inclusion, national, regional and local governments are transforming their view of education. The imperative to increase social, intellectual and human capital in order to survive in an increasingly dynamic and complex employment and community environment now drives the development agenda. The aim is not just to provide learning, lifelong, for all citizens of a city, region and nation, but to actively create the culture of learning that will encourage and enable them to participate in it continuously. Education is no longer the preserve of the education department, it pervades every sphere of local and regional government and affects the way that governance is organised and managed.

The aim of the series was in part to act as a scoping exercise for a much larger study looking at the social, cultural and economic effects universities can have on their localities and regions and the people living there.

Over the last three years local authorities in England have been implementing the latest UK government policy on education and training provision for 14-19 year-olds and Kent County Council is no exception. Sue Dunn, KCC’s Head of Vocational Education, now feels it is time to evaluate the programme’s progress and Pascal has been awarded the 15 month contract (beginning September 2007) to carry out the work. The UK Department for Education and Skills (DfES), with the aim of encouraging young people to stay in education until at least the age of 18, in 2003 embarked on a programme to offer further education college-based education and training to secondary school pupils from age 14.  Objectives of the policy include ‘the provision of better vocational routes to equip young people with the knowledge and skills they need for further learning and employment’ and ‘to re-engage the disaffected’.

This Pascal/Grundtvig project, Learning in Local and Regional Authorities (LILARA), is funded by the European Commission from 2005-2007. Co-ordinated from Stirling (Scotland), the other partners (some of whom are also Pascal associates) are based in Norway (University of Akershus), Hungary (University of Pecs), Italy(University of Catania, Sicily), Ireland (University of Limerick) and France (Toulouse Business School). In the first year, the partners developed and tested a new, electronic learning needs audit tool with local authority staff in selected councils across Europe.

CityRings is a strategy for enhancing lifelong learning by linking cities and regions in ICT-enabled learning city networks. Norman Longworth highlights the application of this strategy in the European Commission's Pallace project (Promoting Active Lifelong Learning in Australasia, Canada, China and Europe).