ABSTRACT A significant proportion of mature undergraduates study at further education colleges (HE in FE) in England. This inquiry builds on research which explores the effect of paid work or unpaid care work on mature students’ learning but offers a new perspective by considering the interaction of both forms of labour on learning in the home during COVID-19 lockdowns. The study broadens theoretical perspectives on this group by using Gouthro’s critical feminist theory of the homeplace. The research makes an original contribution by arguing that the key lenses through which we understand mature students’ experiences of learning at home are labour and relationships. Online life history interviews with 15 HE in FE mature students and a research diary were analysed using a feminist framework, The Listening Guide. Findings indicate individual further education college staff played a major role in supporting students; however, the thesis recommends that colleges recognise unpaid work as a legitimate contributor to HE learning. To enhance social justice and gender equity, a reimagination of work-based learning which develops students’ capacity to critique structural inequality at work is needed. The study recommends that colleges work on new narratives for and about mature students which counter deficit perspectives.