The country's most comprehensive annual report on the standard of learning offered to young trainees and adults in England has been published by David Sherlock, chief inspector of the Adult Learning Inspectorate.

In it he calls for both a 'step change in quality' across the adult education sector and a radical streamlining of available qualifications, vocational and occupational.

A spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills told ePolitix.com:''The chief inspector said things in adult learning are on the move for the first time and praised government for policy and funding going in right direction. Cutting contracts of weak work based learning providers does not affect learners if it is planned - no more long contract chains and rip off franchise merchants, short monitoring inspection now introduced and working."

Parliamentary under-secretary of state for Young People and Learning, Ivan Lewis MP, told ePolitix.com: "The challenge from the report is essential if we are to achieve our new ambitions for high status vocational education, and is an exciting opportunity to re-build the high status of vocational education.

"The government's success for all and national skills strategy launched in July are focussed on raising standards so that young people have access to world class training and employers needs are met. QCA, SSDA and the LSC are for the first time working together on root and branch reforms of vocational qualification framework. Qualifications matter and have enormous currency - employers still ask for people with five GCSEs.

"We are now implementing for the first time a unitised adult learning qualification system with credit transfers.

"We will be ruthless about rooting out poor providers from the market place and must simplify access to adult learning, getting the balance right between state and individual contribution.

"It is very exciting that a record 230,000 young people are undertaking Modern Apprenticeships and it shatters the myth that vocational education is second class. However it is essential that in the future more of these young apprentices are supported to complete their courses successfully.

"There has been much progress since last year with improvements in key skills tests and the introduction of the entry to employment scheme. The LSC has taken decisive action on the providers named in the report - they have terminated the contracts of 22. Thirteen have been re-inspected and their provision is now satisfactory."

Tim Yeo, shadow secretary of state for health and education said:"This report today shows that 40 per cent of the learning providers inspected had unsatisfactory management arrangements, or as David Sherlock said providers are 'Not so much ill-managed as un-managed'.

"Conservatives have confirmed their commitment to revive adult and community learning in their recent document 'Unskilled Labour' , We are also committed to tackling the basic skills crisis in our economy, that leaves seven million adults functionally illiterate, through the Better Schools Passport and adult learning.

"The government should be focus more attention on solving this crisis, instead of shoe-horning thousands of young people into university to meet their arbitrary 50 per cent participation target''.

David Rendel MP, Liberal Democrat education and skills spokesperson, said:"Learning and training in the workplace are vital components of the British economy. Labour must finally abandon the philosophy which provides A-Levels for the best and apprenticeships for the rest. Vocational courses can be of great benefit to people of all abilities.

"The current system of awarding bodies is disjointed and confusing for would-be learners. We urgently need to tackle causes of trainee drop-outs and to persuade employers to engage fully in work-place training."

Forum Response: The Association of Teachers and Lecturers

Gwen Evans, ATL deputy general secretary told ePolitix.com:''The education system itself needs to pay attention to David Sherlock's comments because entitlement and access to work place learning for education staff, including support staff, cannot be taken for granted.

'No-where is the confusing array of awards criticised in the report worse than for early years and primary practitioners.

'If the education workforce is to develop to meet the needs of the 21st century, we must get better training into the workplace. ATL members know that they are being short-changed but in the current climate of education funding constraints they are not optimistic that this report will bring about the necessary step change.

"If the government is to achieve the improvements in standards in education, to which both they and we are committed, some rapid action is called for."

Forum Response: Institute of Directors

Richard Wilson, business policy executive at the Institute of Directors told ePolitix.com:"We naturally welcome the fall in the proportion of work-based learning providers classified by the ALI as inadequate.

"However, the ALI's conclusion that 46 per cent of all work based learning is inadequate is a national disgrace.The LSC should withdraw funding from the poorest providers of training that show no sign of improving.

"The LSC should have no truck with those providers who persistently fail their learners."

Forum Response: British Retail Consortium

Russell Hamblin-Boone head of public affairs for the British Retail Consortium told ePolitix.com: "Public investment in education, training skills and expanded childcare support is essential for not only increasing productivity but continuing economic growth, job-creation, and regeneration.

"The UK's poor record on education, skills and training, especially in vocational skills, has a direct and negative impact on the productivity of the retail sector.

"The retail sector has already shown its own commitment by promoting vocational qualifications and developing skills in its workforce by establishing Skillsmart - the sector skills council for the retail sector.

"Work based learning in the retail takes many forms and applies to all ages. Much work based learning is delivered through in-house company programmes. A new series of dedicated vocational qualifications is being developed by Skillsmart in recognition of the skills needed to work in retail."

Forum Response: British Youth Council

Blossom Young, BYC chair, told ePolitix.com:"BYC welcomes David Sherlock's report and supports many of the points he raises."Ensuring that a high standard of training provision is available to young people and adults is paramount to ensuring a skilled workforce, and enabling individuals, particularly young people, to access better employment opportunities in life.

"Better management of training organisations, a higher level of training standards, and better supportand information for young people and adults will lead to increased numbers of people remaining in training and gaining qualifications."Many young people do choose to leave a formal education environment at 16, and should have easy access to a high standard of training in a range of vocational and occupational areas, with the option to combine this with more traditional and academic learning.

"It is important that a good range of options for young people remain; flexibility about the range of subjects and ways to attain qualifications are vital in encouraging more young people to remain in training."The difficulty lies in working through the maze of options available, and here it is important that the right guidance is available for young people wanting to commence learning, perhaps through support workers, and better links with services such as Connexions.

"Sherlock highlights the "unnecessary and confusing plethora of vocational and occupational qualifications", when perhaps it is not the range of subjects that needs to be narrowed but the number of courses and accrediting bodies for these subjects.

"It is important for young people and adults undertaking training to know that their qualification will be well recognised, and it is important that this recognition exists with employers."It is vital that young people out of formal education structures have access to excellent training provision, and this can only happen through raising standards, better access to support and guidance around options, and better recognition of informal and vocational training."

Forum Response: Open University

A spokeman at the Open University told ePolitix.com:"The Open University welcomes the attention that government and the inspectorate is giving to creating a coherent framework of adult learning and to improving the standards of work-based learning.

"There is still more work to be done in creating a learning environment which is supportive of lifelong learning - for example, in which adults are able to transfer credit between learning providers, and, in particular, in which learners can be supported as they progress from further education into HE level provision.

"This is an area in which the Open University has a key role to play, through its nationally-available access courses, its open entry policy, and its systems of supported open learning."