'A Sort of Metamorphosis': the Role of Trade Unions in Widening Participation in Lifelong Learning

There has been insufficient attention paid in recent years to the extent to which 'modernisation' of trade unions has included changes in their approach to education and training. The present article draws on both policy statements and recent developments in practice to argue that a transformation is indeed under way in trade union education and training, as it begins to engage with the overall framework of lifelong learning. However, it also seeks to show that there is a lack of theoretical underpinning to such developments, which can best be understood as a response to processes of social and economic change, using perspectives drawn from reflexive modernity.