News & Events
Archive 2024
Here you will find details of MESH organised events and initiatives held in 2024.
ESOL Lunchtime Showcase, 2 Dec 2024 12 noon
ESOL Learners as Volunteers
Volunteering, be it inside or outside the ESOL classroom, can provide enormous benefit in terms of developing language and employability skills, fostering a sense of belonging and integration, building confidence and helping in the community. In this session we are putting ESOL learners on centre stage as we explore the theme ‘ESOL Learners as Volunteers’. We will hear both from ESOL learners who are volunteers and institutions working with ESOL learner volunteers. Register HERE.
MESH Regional Networking event 6 November 2024, 10.30 & 16:30
New Initiatives supporting ESOL Learners across the region
New Initiatives supporting ESOL Learners across the region
At this session, we will focus on new initiatives in the delivery of ESOL across our region. Exploring new initiatives can open up pathways to collaboration and generate ideas for the further development of ESOL and related provision across the region. Please join us online for a session exploring these initiatives, including a range of new resources for use in the classroom. Register online. We offer this session in two time slots: 10.30 am or 4.30pm.
ESOL Lunchtime Showcase, 2 October 2024
Supporting Volunteer Teachers
Volunteers are a vital resource in the ESOL classroom, either supporting specific learners or leading sessions in community sector environments. Some community sector provision, such as informal conversation sessions, could frequently not survive without the dedicated support of volunteers. In this session, we showcase initiatives that help to support and develop the skills of volunteer teachers as an integrated and complementary facet of the ESOL sector.
MESH Regional Networking event 10th July 2024, 10.30 to 1.30
Contributions towards rethinking the ESOL curriculum
Contributions towards rethinking the ESOL curriculum
There is broad agreement that a new approach is needed to the delivery of adult ESOL in England. In this session, we will consider new ways of thinking and explore some new approaches to the delivery of learning in the ESOL classroom. The session will foreground participatory learning, reflective practice and other ways of creating new opportunities in the classroom and beyond. This event will take place in Sheffield city centre. You can register and find more details HERE.
ESOL Lunchtime Showcase, 14 May 2024 12:00
ESOL for migrant health professionals
In this session, we explore the possibilities for supporting migrant health professionals who are looking to work in the health sector in the UK. English competence in professional context needs to be demonstrated, most usually through either the Occupational English Test (OET) or IELTS. Which is best? In both cases, the costs can be prohibitive and people often need support towards achieving their goal. In this session, we will explore this area and ask how ESOL providers – both community sector and FE/AE institutions – can support forced migrants towards employment in health professions. You can register for this free event HERE.
MESH Regional Networking event 20th March 2024, 10.30 to 1.30
Collaborative ESOL: Working together for learners
Collaborative ESOL: Working together for learners
Our first Regional Networking event of 2024 focuses on exploring spaces of collaboration between formal and informal ESOL provision. This face to face event features contributions from Esther Derbyshire of Shipley College, Christina Simpkin of Kirklees Third Sector Leaders, and colleagues from Stand and Be Counted Theatre Company. Please join us at Safety First Community Centre in Bradford for this exciting, free event. You can register and find more details HERE.
MESH AGM, 21st February 2024
All are welcome to join us for our Annual General Meeting on Wednesday 21 February 2024, 12:00 to 13:00. Please come and support us as we review our work and our financial position. Your attendance and support is greatly appreciated. We are grateful to be hosted by Shipley College for this event. If you are unable to join us at Shipley College, you can also join this event online. Please register and find further details HERE.
Increasing Access to Higher Education for Migrants
Open Forum & Lunchtime Showcase, 25th Jan 2024
A collaboration between MESH, Migration Yorkshire and Yorkshire and Humber NATECLA. Our focus is on the challenges faced by migrant groups in gaining access to and experiencing Higher Education in the UK. Some of these challenges are about English language, some about visa restrictions and immigration control, some about qualification equivalence, some about funding. The list is long and complex. This online forum provides an opportunity to hear from and raise issues with a range of experts from the Higher Education sector, including academics and access specialists from the Universities of Leeds and Sheffield, and those with personal experience of facing these challenges.