Each year we set a theme for Learning at Work Week and provide activity ideas and promotional resources you can use. Using a theme is a great way to create a powerful, integrated Learning at Work Week, especially if you use a learning campaign model, which we recommend.
This year, the national theme is Many ways to learn.
The theme explores the different ways we can learn and build skills as we go, and how we can create inclusive opportunities for lifelong learning that benefit personal, professional and work lives.
As with all Learning at Work Weeks, we stress the importance of understanding the barriers and motivators that people may have for engaging in lifelong learning at work, and their learning needs and wants. This can support the creation of engaging and inclusive learning activities for the week. We also encourage social activities that bring colleagues and peers together to share, teach and learn from each other.
Remember - you can shape and interpret the theme in the best way for your organisation and workplace, so it aligns with your goals and needs. You can also use one of the strands or use your own theme if that works better for you. Check out our planning resources and inspiration guide for theme examples and how to use them, as well activities you can deliver to reach your Learning at Work Week objectives – from taster sessions, to workshops, masterclasses, talks, exhibitions and more. If you're new to Learning at Work Week, start here!
Many ways to learn
Our three activity strands are:
- Learn to learn
- Learn for life
- Learn for work
Learn to learn
We are more likely to engage in lifelong learning opportunities if they align with our values, help us reach our life and work goals, and we know that we can be successful learners. Talking about learning itself as a topic and highlighting the different ways we can learn can help to build confidence and motivation, especially if we haven’t learned actively for a long time.
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Start with the why – finding the purpose and meaning in our work and wider lives can motivate us and others to learn. Run sessions on why it’s important and how to find the ‘why’ in what we do. Promote the benefits of taking part in your communications for Learning at Work Week.
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Learning – what's stopping us? – provide reflection opportunities to explore our personal barriers to learning and what might motivate us to learn new things.
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Ways to learn – highlight in communications and sessions the different ways we can learn and develop from social learning activities to free online opportunities, from following key thinkers on social media to organisational resources, from coaching and shadowing to formal courses.
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Test and learn – encourage individual and group-run micro-experiments - to test and learn what works to improve our personal and working lives.
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Strong starts – offer assessments to help people recognise their strengths and transferable skills acquired through life and work. These can form a positive basis for further learning and job development.
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Learn to learn - create opportunities for people to explore how they can develop themselves as learners. Share top tips and tools for building learning skills. Highlight how our abilities are not fixed but can be developed through effort and building resilience by adopting a growth mindset.
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Peer champions - work with learning representatives and champions in the lead up to Learning at Work Week to gain insights into colleagues’ learning needs and wants, barriers to learning and aspirations, and how best you can promote the week. Grow or launch a learning champion network for Learning at Work Week with a recruitment drive for all parts of the organisation.
Learn for life
Lifelong learning offers many benefits. As well as developing our capabilities, understanding, values and ideas, it can increase our capacity to reflect, as well as promote health and happiness, especially if we learn with others. Tapping into the knowledge and experience of colleagues can enrich our understanding and point us in the direction of new learning opportunities, interests, and passions.
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Build that habit – run sessions on how to form new habits for learning and for life – from starting small to stacking - so we can apply what we learn for positive benefits.
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Creative challenges – being creative together can bring meaning and purpose into our lives, build new skills and help with work-life balance. Invite colleagues to set up creative groups for Learning at Work Week with a series of timed challenges over the week supported by ‘how to’ sessions and guides, e.g., learn an a capella song over three days like in this car ad; paint or draw an animal; write a poem, sew a quilted bag. Provide opportunities to showcase the results!
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Tried it, liked it – provide tasters on a range of topics so that people can try new things without a formal commitment – this can help build motivation for learning especially for colleagues who have low confidence. Signpost to further learning for things they enjoy. Mix up the formats to highlight the different ways we can learn, from hands on activities to short talks. Invite colleagues to deliver sessions on their interests, passions and talents – from language tasters to creative and craft activities, from painting and photography to making healthy snacks, from fitness and wellbeing to being sustainable.
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Learning on a budget – there are so many free ways to learn covering every topic – from financial skills to language skills, from how to get better sleep to soap casting. Ask colleagues to share their favourite websites and apps from trusted sources.
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Age well – we are never too young to start ageing well. What we learn and do now can make a big difference in our later lives. Look out for the special Learning at Work Week resources on how to age well from Campaign for Learning and The Open University.
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Reading for pleasure – 2026 is the National Year of Reading! With declining rates of reading for pleasure by children and adults, now is the time to reconnect to our very human love of stories. Invite colleagues to recommend and discuss books for both children and adults, explore the barriers to reading for pleasure, provide guides on how to choose books for children, invite local authors to give a talk, and run competitions to win a bestseller.
Learn for work
There are many ways we can learn for work, from peer-based learning, coaching and mentoring, training and courses, skills and knowledge exchanges, talks, masterclasses and online resources. Providing a mix of formats and opportunities, timed and scheduled to overcome time barriers, can promote the message that all types of learning and development are valued, and that learning is for all.
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Partnerships for learning – internal partners can offer planning support, insights into motivations and barriers for learning, and act as champions and promoters across the business. Internal and external partners also provide insights, expertise and knowledge to share in learning activities. Think creatively about who a partner might be and what they can offer.
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Digital futures – being digitally confident is crucial for the modern workplace, especially as things evolve with the introduction of AI. It also opens up many learning opportunities too. Help to close the digital skills gap faced by 21.7 million working age people, including people with higher level skills and qualification, with focused sessions on the 20 essential work tasks needed in today’s world.
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Many paths – highlight job and career development pathways at work through talks and inter-departmental presentations. Promote reskilling and upskilling opportunities. Provide career coaching opportunities for colleagues to explore their learning, development, and career goals, and explore the idea of non-linear careers. Signpost to impartial career advice services for colleagues who want to explore options outside of work. Provide different types of mentoring opportunities, including one-to-one, co-mentoring, group mentoring, reverse mentoring and peer mentoring.
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Learning on the go – explore ways to learn as we work, with development built into the working day, from AI prompts and coach bots to bite-size and nano learning.
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Hands on AI – run sessions on the different ways AI is being used at work and how it can support a range of tasks from administrative jobs through communication, idea generation and research. Ask colleagues to share their AI successes and what they’ve learned from using it, including good practice and potential pitfalls.
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Sharefest – draw on the rich knowledge, skills and expertise in your organisation and foster connections by asking colleagues to share what they know including tips and tools, e.g., the research team on how to ask powerful questions to get insights; the marketing and communications team on writing clearly; the project management team on how to set and track goals; the IT team on tools to keep you safe in the digital world. Create offline and online opportunities for colleagues to ask ‘Does anyone know how to...’ questions.
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In the know – knowledge exchanges can provide insights that shape services and products, drive innovation and build collaborations; and foster critical knowledge transfer between colleagues and different generations. Run panel sessions and Q&As on hot topics such as tech and AI trends, sustainability, wellbeing and innovation and what it means for your organisation and colleagues. Invite internal and external specialists, including speakers from colleges, universities and partner organisations.
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Knotty problems – explore the world of problem-solving and the skills needed to address challenges, from analytical thinking to creativity, from teamwork to influencing. Invite senior people and troubleshooters to talk about solving real-life problems.