From September 2026, learners in the UK will have access to the Lifelong Learning Entitlement (LLE), higher education funding that can follow them throughout their working lives.
This new government strategy changes the concept of a student. As the scheme expands, it will attract a wider and more diverse cohort who will take up the funding to become learners for life.
Pete Moss, Business Development Director at Ellucian, explores how students’ needs, expectations, and engagement is changing with the introduction of the LLE and the factors that will keep them coming back to update their skills.
How will LLE Change the Profile of UK learners?
Students will still have the option to study for a three-year degree after the LLE becomes available. Those that choose this route will enrol at familiar points in the academic year and follow a largely fixed academic pathway to graduation.
However, these students will share their physical and online campuses with many different types of learners in the future.
Lifelong learners will include working professionals, parents, career changers, and continuous upskillers who expect flexible, personalised and relevant education opportunities throughout their lives. These learners will want to return to higher education to keep their skills updated in fast-moving fields such as AI and green technology. Cohorts may also include older adults studying for their first degree or seeking to maintain intellectual and social connections.
This broader profile of learners is already changing what students expect their institution to deliver.
What do Lifelong Learners Expect from Their Institutions?
The expectations of lifelong learners may be very different from those of traditional full-time students. Their goals, study schedules and working experience might vary widely, so what they value most will depend on their individual circumstances.
Lifelong learners will have three key priorities:
Flexibility
Lifelong learners may join at any point in the academic year and study part-time, online, in hybrid formats, or in short bursts around work and other commitments. Contact between LLE students and their institution may therefore be brief or spread out over long periods of time.
Unlike traditional full-time students, those studying as their careers develop will want to learn, pause and return when it suits them, and to access courses around work and family commitments.
They will expect the flexibility to move their credentials seamlessly between different tertiary institutions. They will not expect to have to use cumbersome and often time consuming transfer exercises that many APL/APEL processes create.
Importantly, every student will expect a meaningful experience, regardless of the length of their studies or how often they return to update their skills.
Personalisation
Learning will need to be much more tailored to the unique needs of each LLE student, which means modular or stackable courses that reflect prior career achievements and allow students to progress at their own pace towards their individual goals.
Students will expect direct access to real-time data they can use to track their learning, and guidance from career advisors that is focused on their ambitions, so they have ownership of their learning journeys and are well supported in their long-term success.
Relevance
New learning pathways preferred by LLE students will be those which re directly relevant to current careers and emerging skill areas, from AI, to sustainability, and digital literacy. Learners will increasingly expect courses and modules to be designed in partnership with employers, industry, and local training organisations to make sure they reflect the latest workplace demands.
A co-designed course on AI ethics or renewable energy should give LLE learners practical skills and experience, for example, with clear links to positive career outcomes. Students can then be confident that every course they take contributes to their success and long-term ambitions.
In a 2025 survey by the Learning and Work Institute, 42% of adults reported taking part in some form of learning over the previous three years. As lifelong learning becomes the norm, institutions that put their students first and deliver agile, career-relevant learning will stand out when learners are deciding where and what to study.
What Opportunities do Lifelong Learners Bring to Universities?
Lifelong learners will experience higher education differently over time.
As learners continually return to study throughout their working lives to build their portfolio of micro-credentials and short skills-based learning, they may want to explore new career pathways, deepen their expertise, or pivot into different roles and industries. A healthcare professional who has a positive experience taking a short course in data analytics for patient management is much more likely to come back to the same institution to study a clinical leadership or financial planning module. This opens the door for institutions to attract a much wider group of learners and build stronger relationships with them for longer, including students who may never have considered studying at university before.
With the right business and industry partners, learners will benefit from hands-on experience and a clearer understanding of the challenges different sectors face. This will strengthen their potential for career advancement and reinforce their ongoing commitment to lifelong learning.
Digital transformation will be essential to support lifelong learners at scale. Students will want information at their fingertips which they can use to track progress and plan their next steps. This same information will offer universities a clear and timely understanding of the skills students want to develop so they can anticipate gaps and continually develop new course offerings for students based on the latest trends.
How can Universities Transform from One-Time Educators to Lifelong Learning Partners?
As the LLE changes students’ learning needs and expectations, higher education must evolve in step with them, giving senior leaders significant food for thought as they consider the road ahead.
Lifelong learners will choose those institutions that have the systems and cultures in place to support them, not only at the first touchpoint of enrolment, but at every point they return to continue their studies.
The direction of travel is for the sector to become the trusted lifelong learning partners students want to guide them to new skills and opportunities, help them adapt and support their success in the constantly shifting world of work.
Learn how Ellucian Journey can help universities meet the expectations of lifelong learners.
