TORY ministers and employers must “get a grip and ensure adult skills training is both properly funded and offered more widely,” the University and College Union (UCU) said today.

The demand came after a report from the National Audit Office warned that adult participation in government funded education has plummeted by nearly 50 per cent, with disadvantaged areas the hardest hit.

Additionally, about 40 per cent of workplaces have failed to provide any training at all in the last year, the study also found.