In England, adult education became widespread as industrialization fed the demand for popular democracy. A marked shift from practical to leisure-based adult education occurred after World War II. More recently, policymakers have acknowledged the broader aims of education, including social inclusion and creation of a learning society. More than 90% of adults in England consider learning very or fairly important. At any given time, one in seven adults are actively engaged in formal learning. The three main groups of obstacles deterring participation in adult learning are practical/material, structural, and attitudinal barriers. Recent skills audits in England highlight a deficit in basic and intermediate skills among adults. A range of measures to broaden the social profile of people participating in adult, further, and higher education have been introduced or proposed in recent years. The measures range from targeting certain groups to making fundamental changes in funding methods. Although the positive relationship between education level and financial rewards is clear at the individual level, the returns of education are more difficult to identify at the organizational level. (Eighteen tables/figures and a glossary are included. Contains a bibliography listing 147 references, a list of 24 useful Web sites, and an appendix containing additional data.) (MN)