Always on
This project successfully funded on 8th July 2023, you can still support them with a donation.
ESOL for refugees and migrants
Weston-super-Mare, North Somerset, United Kingdom
Aim: We'll provide more English classes for free to refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants so that they can access education and employment.
What do we do?
For a year, up to eight volunteer teachers have been delivering high-quality classes. We work to raise aspirations among diverse language communities and to promote equality. So far, classes have been free at the point of delivery because most of the learners have little access to funds.
Who are the learners?
Our learners are mostly refugees or asylum-seekers who speak a wide range of languages and are drawn from 16 countries; 35% are from Ukraine and 27% from Afghanistan. We have over 60 learners coming to three sessions a week at three levels.
Why do they want to improve in English?
As most of the learners are of working age, they would like to find work in the UK. Many of them have degrees and have worked in professional jobs at home but their English language skills are not yet good enough for them to work at that level here.
We regularly assess learners against the IELTS scale so that they can see progress:
When they have reached their desired level, they can go to a public exam centre to attempt the official test.
A young man from Ukraine joined us in July 2022 at a Band 3.5. He has recently taken the test and achieved the following results, leading to an unconditional offer of a place at a Russell Group university, to start in October 2023.
What will we do with funds?
We have not advertised the classes; numbers have increased by word of mouth. We will provide books and teaching materials to the teachers. We will rent more rooms to put on additional exam-focused classes. We will pay teachers.