The first Skills for Life Survey (also known as the National Baseline Survey of Adult Basic Skills) was commissioned by the then Department for Education and Skills (DfES) in 2002. The survey aimed to produce a national profile of adult literacy, numeracy, and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skills, and to assess the impact that different levels of skills had on people’s lives.

In 2010, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) commissioned a follow up to the initial survey, with the key purpose of updating the baseline information collected about adult literacy and numeracy and setting a more functional baseline for the present level of ICT skills.

A key consideration in designing the new (2011) survey was maintaining comparability with the baseline (2003) survey, to enable measurement and analysis of changes in skills levels amongst the population between the respective fieldwork periods. A further objective of the 2011 survey was to understand the demographic, social and motivational factors related to skills levels in today’s population of 16-65 year-olds.

This report presents the initial headline findings from the 2011 survey.