Hi

Does anyone know of or have experience of ESOL (inc. Life in the UK) courses in Essex - Billericay, Basildon or Chelmsford areas? The gov website doesn't really give too much info so not sure whether private or the local college is the best way forward.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

Hi

Does anyone know of or have experience of ESOL (inc. Life in the UK) courses in Essex - Billericay, Basildon or Chelmsford areas? The gov website doesn't really give too much info so not sure whether private or the local college is the best way forward.

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks

I'm originally from Clacton and I think they do the ESOL courses in Colchester because my sister checked for us last year when we thought we might move back there (we went to Shropshire instead). Just call your local college and if they don't run the courses themselves they'll tell you the nearest one that does.

If your wife goes to college in the first year of her arrival in the UK she'll have to pay for the course as if she's a foreign student. My wife has just started an ESOL evening class at our local college (2 hours per week) and it's costing £180 per term for the first year. Next year she'll be able to go for the same price as any other British student.

The ESOL course my wife needs to take for her ILR visa is, at our college, a 30 hour course and costs £90 (after she's been here for at least a year). In another thread a poster said at their college it was a 40 hour course costing £120 so it does vary from college to college.

You can try Colchester Institute. Also there is a place on Barrack street n Colchester Centre (sorry can't remember the name) but they also have ESOL classes. If you are nearer to Chelmsford try at Anglia Ruskin University. I know that Essex Council are recruiting right now for ESOL teachers as there is a demand for them, so you should be able to find somewhere. You should try giving them a call or email.

If problem i suggest you try this site www. thailand-uk forum

Edit

Didn't check the site well enough, sorry

Edited October 13, 200916 yr by Mossfinn

Thanks for the info guys. Will take a look around when we get there.

Thanks for the info guys. Will take a look around when we get there.

Have a look at the colleges in your area and then either call them up or find their websites. The two nearest colleges to me both do ESOL courses, so I imagine they are all doing them in one form or another these days.

Thanks CharlieB

ESOL courses are free, at least my wife's one was and that of everybody in her class.

Brigante7.

ESOL courses are free, at least my wife's one was and that of everybody in her class.

Brigante7.

Courses are only free after the person has been living in the UK (on a settlement visa) for more than a year. Anybody wishing to study during their first year in the UK are treated as foreign students and have to pay accordingly .

No ESOL courses are free any more. They are part funded. The take-up was obviously too high for them to completely fund them.

local authority esol courses are free to "low earners" not sure what the ceiling is but i think about £25k per year.

In otherwords if you earn more than £25k and your wife wants to do a course, when she applies and gets assessed they will want to see your payslip as proof of income.

and from what I hear, the ESOL fees will going up when the Tory Govt gets in as it costs too much and doesn't fit their Immigration propgram

Where did you hear that? Do you have a link?

Why doesn't immigrants learning English fit the Tory immigration program?

Whatever the Tory thinking, Labour definitely do see immigrants as a cash cow.

My wife got her spouse visa in 2000 when the fees were still those set by the previous Tory government. Her spouse visa cost £260 and her ILR was free; whether one applied in person or by post.

Then Tony and Gordon saw an easy way to get some money.

So under Labour the cost of a spouse visa has risen to £600 and ILR is £820 by post or £1020 in person.

£260 to £1420 in less than 9 years; more than 5 times as much!

Not to mention the massive increases imposed by Labour for FLR, naturalisation, visit visas, etc., etc.

Despite the Tories massive opposition when Labour first introduced the new fees, and massive increases to the old ones, I doubt very much that they will do anything about reducing them after the next election.

Where did you hear that? Do you have a link?

Why doesn't immigrants learning English fit the Tory immigration program?

Whatever the Tory thinking, Labour definitely do see immigrants as a cash cow.

My wife got her spouse visa in 2000 when the fees were still those set by the previous Tory government. Her spouse visa cost £260 and her ILR was free; whether one applied in person or by post.

Then Tony and Gordon saw an easy way to get some money.

So under Labour the cost of a spouse visa has risen to £600 and ILR is £820 by post or £1020 in person.

£260 to £1420 in less than 9 years; more than 5 times as much!

Not to mention the massive increases imposed by Labour for FLR, naturalisation, visit visas, etc., etc.

Despite the Tories massive opposition when Labour first introduced the new fees, and massive increases to the old ones, I doubt very much that they will do anything about reducing them after the next election.

And British Citizenship around that time was only £100 as well.