Individual Learning Accounts

Foreword
Executive summary
1 Definition and objectives of Individual Learning Schemes
	1.1. What are individual learning schemes?
	1.2. Rationale and objectives of individual learning schemes
2 The design of Individual Learning Schemes
	2.1.  Coverage
	2.2. Financing
		2.2.1. Cost-sharing
		2.2.2. Sources and methods of funding
	2.3. Governance
		2.3.1. Initiative and responsibility for implementation
		2.3.2. Actual management
	2.4. Type of training
	2.5. Level of support and combination with other possible funding
3 Participation in Individual Learning Schemes and outcomes
	3.1. Participation
		3.1.1. Participation levels
		3.1.2. Trends in participation
	3.2. Type of training
		3.2.1. Type of qualification
		3.2.2. Nature and duration of training
	3.3. Impact of individual learning schemes
		3.3.1. Alignment with labour market objectives
		3.3.2. Impact on training participation and employment
4 Do individual learning schemes manage to reach the most disadvantaged groups?
	4.1. Participation of the more disadvantaged groups
		4.1.1. Low-skilled and low-income groups
		4.1.2. Non-standard workers
		4.1.3. Other groups
	4.2. Obstacles to participation and policies to alleviate them
		4.2.1. Co-financing and income support
		4.2.2. Administrative burdens
		4.2.3. Information and counselling
5 Training quality in Individual Learning Schemes
	5.1. Certifying training providers and programmes
	5.2. Providing information on the quality of programmes to the general public
6 Emerging policy conclusions and trade-offs
	6.1. Governance and processes need to be kept simple
	6.2. Financial support needs to be high enough to promote participation and allow real increases in qualification
	6.3. Targeting may help to reduce deadweight losses and the participation bias against the low-skilled, but it can come with other costs
	6.4. Accompanying measures are needed to increase the participation of under-represented groups
	6.5. The link with employer-provided training needs to be taken into account
	6.6. Individual learning schemes reinforce the need for quality assurance
	6.7. Financing arrangements have distributive and sustainability implications
	6.8. Could ILS be used to increase participation in lifelong training among workers in new and non-standard forms of work?
	References
		Annex A. Detailed information on individual learning schemes
	Notes