Adult Learners Week celebrating our lifelong learning journey
This Adult Learners Week the Albanese Labor Government is encouraging all Australians to explore new opportunities and skills through lifelong learning. This year's theme, Follow Your Compass: Learning for Life! , encourages Australians to embrace learning as a pathway to achieving their personal and professional goals. Adult Learners Week (1–8 September) is an international celebration of lifelong learning and adult education. 2026 marks the 31st anniversary of Adult Learners Week in Australia, with International Literacy Day falling on Tuesday 8 September.
The Albanese Government is committed to expanding opportunities for lifelong learning through programs like Free TAFE – which has removed the barriers to Australians enrolling and completing courses in critical industries – and Skills for Education and Employment (SEE) which offers free, local access to foundation literacy, numeracy, language and digital skills.
Adult learning and community education helps people develop foundation skills that support workforce participation, productivity and social inclusion. Strong foundation skills help people engage in work, education and everyday life, while supporting a stronger economy and more connected communities. Through the National Skills Agreement, the Government is investing $3.7 billion in additional funding over five years to support foundation skills, including $53 million to support the National Foundation Skills Strategy 2025–2035.
The impact of lifelong learning can be seen in the experiences of people like Anita Ligthart, 50, from Murray Bridge in South Australia. Anita accessed the SEE Program to build her confidence and strengthen her skills after being out of the classroom for more than 40 years. Anita learned how to use digital applications and work across online platforms while strengthening her reading, writing and numeracy skills, and building strong connections with classmates.
“Before enrolling in SEE I had little knowledge of how to navigate computers or any digital device. The program provided me with new skills, but I have also had the chance to improve on skills I already had … even though I hadn’t used them in forever,” Anita said. “Now I have met the entry requirements for further study and enrolled in a Certificate IV in Leisure and Health.” For more information on activities and opportunities across the country, visit the Adult Learners Week website Quotes attributable to Minister for Skills and Training, Andrew Giles: “Adult Learners Week is a celebration of the simple but powerful idea that it is never too late to learn.
“Every day, Australians are returning to learning to build confidence, gain new skills, change careers or take the next step towards their goals. “We’re supporting Adult Learners Week – and investing in even more foundation skills education – because lifelong learning changes lives, strengthens communities, creates opportunities and builds a stronger nation.”