This study is part of a regional study in industrial South Wales on the determinants of participation and non-participation in post-compulsory education and training, with special reference to processes of change in the patterns of these determinants over time and to variations between geographical areas. The study combines contextual analysis of secondary data about education and training providers with a regional study of several generations of families in South Wales (a door-to-door survey of 1,104 representative householders), semi-structured interviews, and taped oral histories conducted in 1996-97. This study examines the relationship between patterns of participation in education and training within families and considers the respondents' own explanations for the patterns observed. The analysis uses these three indicators of participation in lifelong learning: the highest lifetime qualification so far; the age of leaving full-time continuous education; and the individual's learning trajectory. The study found that the role of parental background in children's educational attainment and lifelong learning is much stronger than has been posited in other studies. The study found considerable reproduction of learning trajectories within families--strongest among lifelong learners and non-participants, and weakest among delayed and transitional learners. Although the role of family background decreases with age of children, the study suggests that families continue to play a key role in the transition from initial to postcompulsory education and beyond. (Contains 27 references.) (KC)