WEA courses

All our Care2 courses are completely free for unpaid carers (or those who have previously been carers). You do not need to receive a carer's allowance to qualify. If you are unsure, please contact our call centre advisors who will be able to assist you. Would you like to learn a little British Sign language whilst singing and signing along to some favourite Christmas Carols and popular songs? This course is a follow on from the hugely popular first course that ran at the Reading Rooms last year. You do not need to have attended the first course to participate on this one. Join guest tutor Debbie Young at the Reading Rooms in Billericay on this fun and interactive one-off free course for carers, their companions, supporters e.g. volunteers/staff and former carers as part of the Care 2 delivery. If you have an interest in learning a new language but aren’t sure about signing, come along to this fun session to learn more about BSL and deaf culture.

The 26th of December, Boxing Day, is also St Stephen’s Day. So, quite apart from wondering about “Boxing”, who was Stephen? And since we know him mainly because “the Feast of Stephen” is when Good King Wenceslas looked out, who was Wenceslas? What other myths and legends are associated with this day: in particular, what does the Wren have to do with it? A light-hearted look at the traditions of the day, suitable for relaxing with a mince pie and a turkey sandwich.

Verdi dominated Italian opera in the 19C with a series of highly dramatic works. He was an avid reader of literature and the great playwrights; most of his operas are derived from their works. His favourite writer was Shakespeare and he took great pride in his operatic settings of Macbeth, Othello and Falstaff. If you are a lover of Shakespeare, then you will learn how an operatic setting with its dramatic music and singing can provide an enhanced experience of these great dramas.