This project starts from the observation that participation rates in Adult Learning and Education (ALE) have significantly declined over the past 15 years. This has caused significant concern to many stakeholders in the areas of economy, business, education and wider social policies. Apart from facilitating economic and societal benefits at a larger scale, research has also demonstrated individual benefits of learning in the areas of health and wellbeing. Within the UK, devolved administrations in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are in charge of education and training and design their own policies in finding answers to their own countries’ economic and societal needs; within England, adult learning has in some areas been devolved as part of regional government ‘settlements’.

This project is funded by the British Academy with the Researchers at Risk scheme for Ukrainian academics, and funds Dr Ievgeniia Dragomirova for three years from 2022-25. Her research in Glasgow and in Belfast will extend her previous interests in third age learning, and has a particular focus on older migrants who have recently entered the UK from places in crisis.

“White Water Writers" is a psychology-based intervention which gives groups of aspiring authors the opportunity to collaboratively write and publish their own full length novel in a week.