WEA courses

Learning to draw is a precious skill that encourages mindfulness and creativity. A quote from the late artist Paula Rego: ‘Sketches always have more vitality than paintings because you're finding things out through doing them.’ Inspired by a range of artists, this course will build your confidence and expertise in willow charcoal and white pastel on mid toned (not white) pastel paper (could be brown parcel paper). Our topic will be still life – in this case Christmas baubles! Learning to see and analyse real objects is the best teacher for developing your own drawing style. Suitable for beginners and those wishing to develop their skills.

Studying online is a fun and effective way to learn. This course will teach you to use Canvas so that you can get the most out of WEA courses. You’ll learn digital skills to support you to study WEA online courses. This Canvas course is ideal for you if you’re considering taking a WEA course but feel unsure of your digital skills. It’s appropriate for complete beginners, so don’t worry if this is new to you.

On this short course we will create nature inspired Christmas cards using watercolours.

Would you like to learn techniques to relax and wind down? When we’re stressed or anxious it’s hard to feel calm. Anxiety affects over 8 million people in the UK at any time. But you don’t have to live with constant stress or anxiety. There are simple techniques you can learn to manage it. This stress management course is ideal if you want to learn habits to reduce stress and anxiety. It can help you lead a healthier and fuller life

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.

Polish your writing skills in English. This ESOL level 2 course teaches you advanced knowledge to help you write and analyse a variety of texts in English. Improved writing skills can open doors to work and study options in the UK. This ESOL course builds on skills you learnt at level 1. Perfect your writing skills in English while practicing critical thinking. This is an English course for adyults. It is aimed at speakers of other languages. ESOL courses are divided into 3 areas: reading, writing and speaking & listening. If you are helping others access ESOL classes in the UK, you have come to the right place. This course is funded by the West Midlands Combined Authority

If you find the Festive season challenging or lonely, or you just need to have a break from all the chaos and the bad TV, join tutor Jane Williams, who will break up Christmas Day with this fun and interesting look at the 12 days of Christmas Carol. She will go through each of the gifts given on each of the Twelve Days, according to the carol, and see how one might celebrate them in food. So join Jane on the 25th of December for this one off online session.

The Christmas story has probably inspired more art than any other subject. From medieval icons of the Virgin and Child to the Renaissance paintings of the shepherds and the wise men; and from stained glass windows to Christmas cards, the story has been at the forefront of western art. This study day will examine the historicity of the gospel stories and how they have been interpreted by artists through the centuries. A wide range of art will be shown and there will be space for discussion and for learners to offer their own suggestions and experiences.

This time of year, means different things to different people and yet the experience of hope and renewal in dark times is a universal theme. We will share our memories of this time and, as one memory sparks another, we can reflect on them together. These reflections could touch upon the nature of memory, on culture and identity, or on finding hope in difficult times. There is no need to be a good 'story-teller' as the memories shared will be short, snapshots of lives lived.The aim is to be inclusive as possible and accommodate those with some hearing difficulties.

Are you bilingual? Ever thought about using your language skills to help out in the community? Did you know you can get many jobs with languages? If you speak English and another language fluently, you could make a great community interpreter. This community interpreter course gives you an introduction to the language and interpreting skills needed for this type of work. It can teach you foundational concepts to test your community interpreting skills informally with family or friends. This course can prepare you to help members of your family or community to overcome language barriers in their everyday lives. It can also help you decide if you’re interested in pursuing community interpreting jobs. This course is funded by the West Midlands Combined Authority.