Hi, on 20th February I posted the message below to the list.  Thanks to those who
responded and for the benefit of the list I've sumarised the answers/suggestions that I
got.

Hi Colleagues, can anyone help me find statistics for:
Over 25s returning to education
Trends or statistics from 1945 (or from 1965)
Male/female ratios would be helpful
Any help would be appreciated.  Sites to try or direct hits.
Thanks
Peter

The results of the searches can be summarised by this message from NIACE:

"We are not sure whether the statistics you are after would have been
> collected.  For instance we don't believe that our participation surveys
> go back that far and we do not have any DfES statistics that cover the
> years you need.  I have been looking through some of our history of
> education books and none have so far mentioned a breakdown by the age
> you suggest.  Also you might want to consider what is meant by
> "returners to learning"; would this include those at university who have
> been in continuous education?  I very much doubt that figures for
> individuals who left at say 15 or 16 and then returned at 25 could be
> traced.
>
> Some places where you could try for historical data include books
> about the history of education and the Robbins report (1963).  You
> might also like to check with the DfES (both the statistics section and
> their library) as they would have been the body that collected such
> data. You can contact the Department via email at [log in to unmask]
> or by telephone on 0870 000 2288
>
> Sorry that I can't be of more help.
>
> Many regards,"

In spite of the last line this was of great help as I had spent a lot of time looking at
various locations in vain.
The sites I looked for information in were:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=9

http://www.lsc.gov.uk/National/Documents/SubjectListing/SectorData/Statist
icalFirstReleases/default.htm Mary

http://www.hesa.ac.uk/Press/

http://www.hesa.ac.uk/holisdocs/home.htm


http://www.hesa.ac.uk/holisdocs/pubinfo/student/disab0102.htm

Thanks again for your helps
cheers
Peter


--
Peter Condon
Wood Street Learning Centre
Barnet College
0208 440 6321
[log in to unmask]
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