Courses to improve communication skills  

Communication is essential to everyday life. It helps you builds relationships, and understand the world around you. We can communicate in many ways, from writing to speaking to using sign language. Improving your communication skills helps you connect with other people.  

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Find your voice

Find your voice with one of our adult education courses. From British Sign Languages courses to adult literacy classes - build your skills. Find fun and helpful courses to help reach your goals.  Learning with the WEA is not like school. It’s learning made for adults and you’ll be taught by supportive tutors. 

Boost your literacy

Boost your English skills, and get a better understanding of grammar. Learn the basics to move onto to a Functional English Skills course. Improve your spelling and gain confidence in reading, with an adult literacy course. Improving your reading and writing as an adult is not as hard as you might think.  

Hearing loss and signing

If you are losing your hearing or you know someone who is hearing impaired, you might need to find new ways to communicate. Develop lip-reading skills and find a supportive class to manage hearing loss. Find BSL signing courses for beginners. Learn to sign basic words then build your sign language skills to have conversations.  Whether you want to learn British Sign Language for yourself or so you can talk to others, take a course with us.  

Makaton signing is different to BSL. It is a way to communicate with people with speech difficulties or SEN. Over 100,000 children and adults use Makaton to communicate. It is very useful if you want to work with people with learning difficulties or you are a carer for a child with special needs. Our Makaton courses help reach people who need you most. If you want to learn Makaton signing, sign up for one of our courses today. 

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Personal Development: Beginners British Sign Language

This is a Basic BSL course that will cover a range of different topics to help to build the learners sign vocabulary, and perhaps evoke a desire to learn more sign, to enable more communication, with the deaf community!
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Course Information

Dates:
Mon 06/01/2025 -
Mon 17/02/2025
Times:
6:00pm - 8:00pm
Duration:
7 sessions
Location:
Online
Tutor:
Caroline Cleghorn
Course code:
Q00012518
How you'll learn:
Online
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £44.40

Personal Development: How to communicate confidently

This unique 6-week course empowers you to build confidence in communication and technology. In weeks 1-3, you'll take the Communication Confidence Masterclass, where you'll learn powerful techniques to express yourself clearly, develop assertiveness, and navigate challenging conversations with ease. In Weeks 4-6, you'll become Tech Savvy for Life & Learning by mastering essential computer skills to boost your study abilities and employability. You'll learn to create an impressive CV, manage online calendars, and use online tools effectively, bridging the digital divide and gaining the confidence to thrive in today's tech-driven world.
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Course Information

Dates:
Tue 07/01/2025 -
Tue 11/02/2025
Times:
1:00pm - 3:00pm
Duration:
12 sessions
Location:
KCU Ltd at Fuller Church (Kettering)
51 Gold Street
Kettering
NN16 8JB
Tutor:
Caroline Smy
Course code:
Q00016662
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £50.40

Lipreading and Managing Hearing Loss

Come along and join our friendly lipreading group in Hayle. This class is suitable for all levels of lipreaders and is ideal for those recently experiencing hearing loss. Our experienced tutor will guide you through the basics of lipreading and show you how to practice your lipreading skills in everyday life. Research has shown that attending a lipreading class can give you greater: • Confidence to communicate with others • Control over your hearing loss, as you develop new communication skills • Independence, as you’re less reliant on others to help you follow conversation (Source RNID.org.uk) You will learn in a supportive environment alongside other learners who will be able to share their experiences of hearing loss and learn how to overcome them together
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Course Information

Dates:
Thu 09/01/2025 -
Thu 13/02/2025
Times:
7:00pm - 9:00pm
Duration:
6 sessions
Location:
Hayle Community Centre
58 Queensway
Hayle
TR27 4NX
Tutor:
Janet Corbett Marston
Course code:
Q00017043
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £50.40

Intermediate British Sign Language (BSL)

Knowing how to sign can make your communication more inclusive for everyone you interact with. Build on your skills in British Sign Language to be able to have deeper interactions with deaf people. This BSL course is suitable for you if you need to communicate with deaf people or people with hearing impairments. It can help you in a variety of contexts, for example in a voluntary or community role, or simply through social interactions. This course is aimed at intermediate learners. You will build on your existing BSL skills. If you would like to start from scratch, you can take the beginner’s BSL course.
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Course Information

Dates:
Mon 13/01/2025 -
Mon 24/03/2025
Times:
7:00pm - 9:00pm
Duration:
10 sessions
Location:
Online
Tutor:
Helen Watson
Course code:
Q00012273
How you'll learn:
Online
Availability:
8 places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £74.00

WEA Membership

WEA membership is changing: more information is coming soon!

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Membership Information

Duration:
12 months
Fee:
£15

Healthy Living; Lipreading and managing hearing loss

Come along and join our friendly lipreading group at The Centre in Newlyn. This class is suitable for all levels of lipreaders and is ideal for those recently experiencing hearing loss. Our experienced tutor will guide you through the basics of lipreading and show you how to practice your lipreading skills in everyday life. Research has shown that attending a lipreading class can give you greater: • Confidence to communicate with others • Control over your hearing loss, as you develop new communication skills • Independence, as you’re less reliant on others to help you follow conversation (Source RNID.org.uk) You will learn in a supportive environment alongside other learners who will be able to share their experiences of hearing loss and learn how to overcome them together
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Course Information

Dates:
Thu 16/01/2025 -
Wed 26/02/2025
Times:
10:00am - 12:00pm
Duration:
6 sessions
Location:
The Centre, Newlyn (Penzance)
Chywoone Hill
Newlyn
Penzance
TR18 5AR
Tutor:
Janet Corbett Marston
Course code:
Q00016909
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £50.40

Healthy Living; Lipreading and managing hearing loss

Come along and join our friendly lipreading group at The Centre in Newlyn. This class is suitable for all levels of lipreaders and is ideal for those recently experiencing hearing loss. Our experienced tutor will guide you through the basics of lipreading and show you how to practice your lipreading skills in everyday life. Research has shown that attending a lipreading class can give you greater: • Confidence to communicate with others • Control over your hearing loss, as you develop new communication skills • Independence, as you’re less reliant on others to help you follow conversation (Source RNID.org.uk) You will learn in a supportive environment alongside other learners who will be able to share their experiences of hearing loss and learn how to overcome them together
View details

Course Information

Dates:
Thu 16/01/2025 -
Thu 20/02/2025
Location:
The Centre, Newlyn (Penzance)
Chywoone Hill
Newlyn
Penzance
TR18 5AR
Course code:
Q00017038
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £50.40

Lipreading and Managing Hearing Loss

Come along and join our friendly lipreading group in Hayle. This class is suitable for all levels of lipreaders and is ideal for those recently experiencing hearing loss. Our experienced tutor will guide you through the basics of lipreading and show you how to practice your lipreading skills in everyday life. Research has shown that attending a lipreading class can give you greater: • Confidence to communicate with others • Control over your hearing loss, as you develop new communication skills • Independence, as you’re less reliant on others to help you follow conversation (Source RNID.org.uk) You will learn in a supportive environment alongside other learners who will be able to share their experiences of hearing loss and learn how to overcome them together """
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Course Information

Dates:
Thu 16/01/2025 -
Thu 20/02/2025
Location:
Hayle Community Centre
58 Queensway
Hayle
TR27 4NX
Course code:
Q00017040
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £50.40

Makaton

Ever heard of Makaton? It's a unique language programme, and over 100,000 people are using it to communicate in the UK today. It combines symbols, signs, and speech to make conversation easier for people who have communication difficulties. This Makaton course is ideal for you if you want to learn an inclusive communication tool. It can help you interact with people who have speech, hearing, or learning difficulties. This Makaton sign language course covers the essentials of hand signals, fingerspelling, and signing. Learn to introduce yourself. Develop knowledge to be able to sign about basic topics such as numbers and colours.
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Course Information

Dates:
Tue 21/01/2025 -
Tue 08/04/2025
Times:
1:00pm - 3:00pm
Duration:
11 sessions
Location:
Easington Lane Community Access Point
Easington Lane
Houghton - le- Spring
DH5 0LE
Tutor:
Maria Hambley
Course code:
Q00019291
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee:
Free

Personal Development: Beginners British Sign Language

We welcome you to join our friendly and engaging introduction to British Sign Language course at Hayle Community Centre, Hayle. British Sign Language (BSL) is a language used by D/deaf people to communicate using hand shapes, facial expressions, lip patterns, gestures, and body language. It’s an entirely different language to English. BSL is the preferred language of over 87,000 Deaf people in the UK for whom English may be second or third. This course is suitable for beginners
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Course Information

Dates:
Wed 05/03/2025 -
Wed 23/04/2025
Times:
7:00pm - 9:00pm
Duration:
6 sessions
Location:
Hayle Community Centre
58 Queensway
Hayle
TR27 4NX
Tutor:
Janet Corbett Marston
Course code:
Q00012690
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £50.40

Healthy Living; Lipreading and managing hearing loss

The act of looking is so closely bound up with the act of writing. Novels depend upon those moments when an author presses the pause button and allows their characters to just stop and look at something. This course will explore how photos, especially, can be used as a vital stimulus for creative writing. Over two days, you will explore the work of some of the world’s finest photographers, from Andre Kertesz to Garry Winogrand, all projected upon the screen. You will then be encouraged to look even closer and see where these images take your own writing. The course will also consider how established writers have engaged with the art of photography, from John Berger to Susan Sontag, Tony Harrison and Geoff Dyer. Most importantly, you will encourage you to find a way of using your own photos as a way of unlocking your own hidden powers of writing and observation. Come along and join our friendly lipreading group at The Centre in Newlyn. This class is suitable for all levels of lipreaders and is ideal for those recently experiencing hearing loss. Our experienced tutor will guide you through the basics of lipreading and show you how to practice your lipreading skills in everyday life. Research has shown that attending a lipreading class can give you greater: • Confidence to communicate with others • Control over your hearing loss, as you develop new communication skills • Independence, as you’re less reliant on others to help you follow conversation (Source RNID.org.uk) You will learn in a supportive environment alongside other learners who will be able to share their experiences of hearing loss and learn how to overcome them together
View details

Course Information

Dates:
Thu 06/03/2025 -
Thu 10/04/2025
Times:
10:00am - 12:00pm
Duration:
6 sessions
Location:
The Centre, Newlyn (Penzance)
Chywoone Hill
Newlyn
Penzance
TR18 5AR
Tutor:
Janet Corbett Marston
Course code:
Q00016904
How you'll learn:
In venue
Availability:
10+ places remaining
Status:
Available
Fee range
Free to £50.40