Adult learning, in all its forms, is a pre-requisite for a dynamic local democracy where councils play a crucial role, politically, socially, and culturally. Local government has recognised that investment in adult learning provides significant benefits for the wider welfare and wellbeing of the community. This investment has not come solely through adult education budgets and has seldom been the province of one single organisation. Whether through a learning partnership, or under a different label, in many places there has been active engagement with a variety of adult learning activities linked to a whole range of other policy priorities, such as improved health, environment management, neighbourhood regeneration, youth and citizen engagement, support for parents, and development of a wide range of community and third sector activities. There is now, as the recent Foresight report on mental health and wellbeing outlines, clear evidence to show that adult learning leads to active citizenship, a delay in the impact of degenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's, greater tolerance and an improved satisfaction with life. In this article, the author argues that adult learning has a critical role to play in the rapidly changing landscape of local government, not least in developing the essential tools of participative and representative democracy.