The government's £600m a year Skills for Life strategy has produced real successes. But as the Leitch report recognised, the challenge ahead is more formidable still. Much of the success so far has been in literacy. Significantly less progress has been made in strengthening numeracy - yet moving up just one level (from entry level 3 to level 1) leads to a 9% productivity gain. Learners who make that leap earn on average 9% more year after year through their lives.