Ukrainian ESOL Awards Ceremony celebration

Bedford Borough Council hosted the Ukrainian ESOL awards in conjunction with PBIC and Bedford College to celebrate the success of recent courses.

Bedford College earlier this year held a summer school and is now providing a range of ESOL (English as a Second Language) courses. We have now seen 66 students completing the course.

Cllr Colleen Atkins, portfolio holder for Community Safety Regulatory Services and Housing said, "It's fantastic to celebrate the achievements of so many at the Ukrainian ESOL awards.

"Ukrainian refugees have already been through so much; it is imperative that we support them to resettle. That includes giving them the tools they need to access employment, understand and interact with the services they need, join clubs, and make friends. We can do that by offering ESOL to students.

Dave Hodgson, Mayor of Bedford Borough added, "Ukrainian students supported by Bedford College and PBIC have embraced the courses and seen huge improvement of their English skills. We are very proud to support these students providing them with new opportunities."

Anyone wanting to learn or improve their English can get help to do so via the Bedford ESOL Advice Service website at www.bedfordesol.org.uk.