National policy stresses the key role of adult learning and skills in securing economic recovery. This close linking of adult learning policy to the recession agenda raises important questions. How has the recession impacted on the implementation of adult learning policy? What has it meant for service delivery? And what have been the consequences for different groups of learners and types of learning? In the search for answers, National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) embarked on a project to research the impact of the recession on adult learning across the English regions. The research consisted of in-depth interviews with colleagues in senior roles in organisations responsible for policy implementation, together with a literature review. The findings provide insights into both the way that the recession is progressing across the country and the complex and changing challenges that it poses. In the process, they highlight some of the implications for the future direction of adult learning policy.