National Foundation for Educational Research is leading a five-year research programme, The Skills Imperative 2035. The project is funded by the Nuffield Foundation and is designed to identify what the labour market will look like by 2035, what 'Essential Employment Skills' (EES) will be most needed to do these jobs and who is most and least likely to have those skills. It also highlights what needs to happen to help people develop these skills so that they can successfully enter or remain in the labour market. This booklet tells the Skills Imperative story so far and summarises the key findings and recommendations from the published papers, as well as previewing upcoming reports.