The annual learning and development survey from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has suggested there are doubts among learning and development managers over the effectiveness of e-learning.

According to the survey, 57 per cent of such people now offer e-learning as part of the training they provide, yet just seven per cent listed it as one of the top three most effective training methods.

"We still have a long way to go to embed [e-learning] effectively in the organisation. It’s clear from our survey that it is still not fully appreciated by learners or by training managers," said Martyn Sloman, learning and development adviser from the CIPD.

He also said that the training method is "here to stay", having become a permanent fixture over the last ten years.

Large employers are most likely to use e-learning, according to the survey, with a 79 per cent uptake of e-learning among firms with more than 5,000 employees.

Earlier this week, research published by the CIPD revealed that more than half of firms (53 per cent) said their learning and development work had not been influenced by the government’s skills agenda following the Leitch report.