It was asked to consider the following questions and to make recommendations:
- What capability in languages will the UK need in the next twenty years if it is to fulfil its economic, strategic, social and cultural aims and responsibilities, and the aspirations of its citizens?
- To what extent do present policies and arrangements meet these needs?
- What strategic planning and initiatives will be required in the light of the present position?
The Inquiry's work
To scope the task and identify major issues before the Inquiry started to take evidence, a consultative report Where are we going with languages was produced in 1998.
Specialist consultants then advised the Inquiry, and written evidence was received from a wide range of individuals and organisations.
In addition, major surveys were carried out by NIACE and FEDA and around a thousand contributions were emailed to the Nuffield Inquiry Online over an eight-week period from October to December 1998.
To ensure a balance of evidence from employers, education and the general public, the Inquiry commissioned an intensive programme of interviews with individual employers in the private and public sectors.
In May 2000, the Inquiry published its final report Languages: the next generation.
Members of the Inquiry
The Inquiry's work was carried out by a committee of ten members, appointed by the Trustees of the Nuffield Foundation and drawn in equal numbers from languages education and the business world. The committee was chaired by Sir Trevor McDonald and Sir John Boyd.
Profiles of the members, who were appointed on a personal basis, not as representatives of specific organisations, are included in the Inquiry's report.
Sir Trevor McDonald OBE (Chairman), ITN journalist and newscaster
Sir John Boyd KCMG (Chairman), Master of Churchill College, Cambridge
Alan Moys (Secretary), former Director of CILT
Sir Leonard Appleyard KCMG, Vice-Chairman of Barclays Capital
Rosemary Calthorpe, Manager for Marks & Spencer plc
Professor Glynn Cochrane, Group Adviser for Community Relations, Rio Tinto
Peter Downes OBE, consultant and former President of ALL
Professor Michael Kelly, Professor of French, University of Southampton
Alwena Lamping, freelance author, editor and consultant
Frank Pignatelli, Chief Executive of the Scottish University for Industry
Dr Jessica Rawson CBE, Warden of Merton College, Oxford
Kathy Wicksteed, Language College Adviser, Technology Colleges Trust
Hugh Morgan Williams, Chairman, Canford Group and Chair, Languages National Training Organisation
