The Numeracy for Life Committee, a House of Lords cross-party special inquiry committee that had a defined remit over a time limited period to consider oral and written evidence on Numeracy for life, today published its report. (Tuesday 3rd November 2026.)
The committee is chaired by Lord Agnew of Oulton (Founder and chair of the Inspiration Trust MAT) and includes our Patron, Baroness Bull, and Lord Hampton, a teacher at Mossbourne Community Academy who also spoke about dyscalculia in a recent House of Lords debate.
The report titled, ‘Making it Count: Numeracy for Life’ https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5902/ldselect/ldnumeracy/67/67.pdf calls for more Government action to improve numeracy skills. It is based on the evidence from a range of witnesses, including teachers, academics, charities (we submitted evidence), education providers, financial experts, Government officials, a Minister, and former Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak.
The report highlights that low numeracy is a significant issue affecting millions of people throughout their lives, with consequences for education, employment, financial independence, health and wellbeing.
We are pleased to see that ‘Supporting pupils with mathematical difficulties and dyscalculia’ is explicitly mentioned in the report and in the recommendations.
It reads:
‘Dyscalculia is a specific learning disability characterised by persistent and severe difficulties in processing and understanding numerical magnitude. These difficulties affect a person’s ability to learn and understand mathematics and, without appropriate identification and support, can persist throughout life.
The evidence on dyscalculia and mathematical learning difficulties suggested that the system does not yet offer sufficient recognition, understanding or support.
Professor Brian Butterworth recommended official recognition of dyscalculia by the Department for Education.
Professor Camilla Gilmore stressed that teaching that helped children with dyscalculia is good for all children learning mathematics. Visual representations, structured practice, explicit language, carefully sequenced examples and opportunities to explain reasoning are not only support strategies for pupils with learning difficulties, they are more general examples of good teaching.
Recent research was synthesised for the Committee by the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST), and highlighted that dyscalculia remains under-recognised and under-diagnosed in the UK, despite affecting around 6% of the population with significant lifelong consequences.
We heard that: “Evidence suggests a child with dyslexia is up to 100 times more likely to be diagnosed and supported than a child with dyscalculia.”
Children can experience difficulties with mathematics for many reasons: gaps in prior teaching, low confidence, anxiety, working memory demands, language demands, other Special Educational Needs and Disabilities, as well as the congenital condition of dyscalculia.
However, educators are not always able to distinguish between these differing causes and there is clear evidence that teachers feel unprepared to identify and support pupils with dyscalculia. This matters because different causes require different responses.
Maths learning is sequential, with new concepts building on ones learned before. This means early intervention is key.’
The key recommendation from the report regarding dyscalculia is:
‘Given the low rates of awareness among educators, Government should ensure teachers receive pre- and in service training on dyscalculia so that pupils with the condition receive early intervention and targeted support’.
However, many of the other conclusions and recommendations would positively impact children and young people with maths difficulties or dyscalculia such as:
- Numeracy should not be treated as less important than literacy in Government education policy
- Parents and carers need more guidance on the sort of simple activities that can help children build their numeracy skills and be ready for school.
- The reformed curriculum must ensure a proper focus on building familiarity with basic number skills as a precursor to more advanced concepts
- The Government should support schools to identify gaps in pupils’ mathematical understanding early, particularly in number fluency during Key Stages 1 and 2 and during the transition to secondary school.
And later in GCSE years and beyond:
- The Government should provide further education colleges and other post-16 providers with sufficient funding and specialist teaching capacity to deliver effective GCSE mathematics resits. Resit entry should always be based on individual readiness and supported by diagnostic assessment and targeted, high-quality teaching.
- Schools should pass information about a learner’s mathematical strengths and gaps to the further education college or provider responsible for their post-16 teaching
- The Department for Education should work with employers and FE providers and awarding organisations to ensure that the proposed stepping-stone qualification has a clear and meaningful purpose. Its content should consolidate foundational mathematical knowledge, its achievements should be recognised by employers, and it should provide a demonstrable route towards Level 2 mathematics.
- The Government, alongside Skills England, should ensure that occupational standards, apprenticeships and technical qualifications make numeracy expectations explicit and provide clear progression pathways for young people who have not achieved Level 2 mathematics. These pathways should enable learners to develop transferable numeracy skills and continue working towards Level 2. Qualification requirements should be proportionate to the genuine numerical demands of the course or occupation.
We are particularly encouraged to read that the report recommends that post-16 options need to be clearer and more coherent and that the post-16 system should distinguish between learners at different starting points with systems in place to ensure young people aren’t made to sit re-sits too soon.
We would especially like to see Prof. Brian Butterworth’s recommendation of an official recognition of dyscalculia actioned by the Department for Education.
Adulthood
For adults, dyscalculia is mentioned only once in the adult chapter (as an example of when specialist support may be needed), and not in the adult recommendations. However, the conclusions and recommendations cover many aspects which are applicable.
For example, the committee recommends that the Government provides flexible, practical and accessible numeracy learning throughout adulthood and that there should be clear signposting for adults who may benefit from improving their numeracy so they can find suitable support.
Some key recommendations are:
- The Government should designate adult numeracy as part of an existing ministerial brief and publish a nationwide cross Government adult numeracy strategy for England. The strategy should set long-term objectives, minimum expectations, common outcome measures and reporting requirements, and establish that every adult should have a clear route from initial engagement and assessment to suitable provision and, where appropriate, towards Level 2.
- The Government should establish a ‘no wrong door’ approach under which relevant public-facing services, including jobcentres, primary care, housing services and probation, routinely signpost adults who may benefit from improving their numeracy to suitable support.
- Adult numeracy provision should respond to the circumstances and motivations of different groups rather than imposing a single model of learning. This should include appropriate provision for older people, to help them re-train for work, prepare for retirement, and manage health conditions.
Whilst we welcome the Committee’s acknowledgement that difficulties with numeracy can have lifelong consequences, we would like to see greater recognition of the experiences of adults who have grown up without a diagnosis, appropriate support or even an understanding of why they find mathematics so difficult.
There is a real danger that adults with dyscalculia might be overlooked within broader discussions about adult numeracy. The consequences of inadequate identification and support extend well beyond the classroom and do not simply disappear when leaving the education system.
Adults with dyscalculia may require more targeted support, specialist understanding and different approaches to learning, particularly when returning to education, undertaking GCSE resits, accessing or progressing in employment, or managing everyday financial responsibilities.
The Committee’s recommendation for a more accessible and coherent system of adult numeracy provision is therefore welcome, but Government must also explicitly recognise dyscalculia. Support should not end when someone leaves school, nor should adults be left to navigate the lasting consequences of an unrecognised learning difficulty without appropriate help. There needs to be a clearer pathway to dyscalculia identification, understanding and appropriate support throughout adulthood.
Summary and Conclusions following the report
We are heartened by this report and its recommendations that suggests awareness of dyscalculia and maths difficulties is growing.
We are particularly encouraged by the recommendation that the Government should ensure teachers receive pre- and in-service training on dyscalculia so that pupils with the condition receive early intervention and targeted support.
However, recognition of dyscalculia must extend beyond the classroom: it is a lifelong learning difficulty, and the support available to adults must reflect that.
The Government has undertaken to respond in writing to the reports of select committees, if possible, within two months of publication. (January 2027).
The report is also likely to be debated in the House of Lords over the coming months: we will update in due course.
We hope that the Government will action the recommendation on dyscalculia training and support in schools, include a clear definition of dyscalculia on Government education and health websites and ensure there is a clearer pathway to dyscalculia identification, understanding and appropriate support throughout adulthood.
We will do all we can to lobby the Government to ensure that these recommendations are actioned and that people with dyscalculia are given the early intervention, support throughout education and into adult life and work that they need and deserve.
What can you do to help?
Now is a great time to write to your MP: we have template letters and details on how to do this here – https://dyscalculianetwork.com/write-to-your-mp/
Share both the Numeracy Committee report https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld5902/ldselect/ldnumeracy/67/67.pdf and our report with them, as well as personalising it with your thoughts about the recommendations and how important it is that they act upon them.
Also ask your MP to raise questions about the report.
Thank you.
