Rita and Gerald traces the history of adult learning in the UK from the mid-nineteenth century to the present. Both a celebration and a defence of adult education, it shows how lifelong learning has adapted to change over the last two centuries and why the sector is today needed more than ever.

Built around the educational stories of 150 students in six premier institutions who are studying programmes ranging from entry-level English to postgraduate degrees, the book combines a theoretical perspective with insight into human aspirations. We read how a British soldier moved past the horror of war-torn Bosnia through studying creative writing at Ruskin College; how a young woman who has cerebral palsy found a haven for learning at the Mary Ward Centre; how sisters who escaped persecution in Libya came to Camden's Working Men's College to study English and child care.

Rita and Gerald is essential reading for adult students, curriculum planners, policymakers, professional educators, and undergraduate and postgraduate students of the history and philosophy of education, and community learning.