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Return to Learn Course - Oct 2010

'The course enhanced my life socially, the new people are friendly and supportive. The new skills, techniques and general understanding of the study progress have strengthened my confidence and determination to achieve. My tutor, course content and delivery were exceptional. My tutor was both likeable, knowledgeable and patient. We were able to structure the content of our work, understand the criteria and complete on time. Thank you once again the whole experience was a joy.'

'It has definitely given me a renewed enthusiasm and self belief to go back to college and university and fulfill my long term ambition to gain a higher education degree. I was also very fortunate to have a WEA tutor who believed in me and encouraged me to write a short story or novel which i am currently researching. Thank you very much WEA'

Return to Learn courses - Bury, Greater Manchester

The WEA's programme with the Trade Union UNISON (external link) was 20 years old recently. In one of our programmes the tutor asked the learners to comment on their experience. Here is what they said:

'I would recommend this course to anyone. I was very nervous about doing it but I have ended up with 6 certificates and the weekend away was brilliant.' Karen Morris - Smithills School

'I am so glad I have completed the Return to Learn course. It has meant so much to me on a personal level. I did not achieve well at school and didn't gain any qualifications to speak of. It has taken me till the age of 46 years to get back into learning. I plucked up the courage and started the course. I have really enjoyed it, especially the writing. Everyone is friendly and our tutor was lovely too. I was surprised at how well I have done on the course and I have gained a qualification. If anyone gets the chance to join the course my advice would be go for it! If anyone wants to gain something worthwhile DO IT! If I can do it anyone can.' Julie Pye - Horwich Parish School

'When reflecting back over the six months that I've been attending Return To Learn my confidence has rocketed and all aspects of my grammar have improved. The main skills I have developed are my spelling, grammar and computer skills. At work when writing reports, I have found I am getting a lot faster on the computer. My tutor Linda has always been positive in her feedback. Linda would always return your call, I called her one day not knowing she had gone away for the weekend. Linda found time to speak to me which showed me that not only did I need to finish the course for myself, but I owed it to Linda for being so dedicated to her work. Thank you Linda. When I first started Return To Learn I thought it was going to be easy but the course has been challenging and has pushed me to the limit. With a lot of encouragement from Linda. I thoroughly enjoyed the course and made a lot of new friends and would recommend it to people in the future.' Cecilia Wilson - Prestwich Gardener Unit

'Having just completed the Return to Learn course, I feel so proud of myself. I attended the initial meeting and felt very apprehensive but determined that I was going to become a learner again after 20 years. Walking through the door of the first session was a daunting experience but I’m glad I did it as the whole course was enjoyable. It wasn’t an easy ride and there were parts that were challenging but I amazed myself that I completed every assignment asked of me. The other students were a friendly bunch and I needn’t have worried at all. The residential weekend we went on was a bonus. It was a luxury to have a weekend to myself and I passed 4 exams in literacy and numeracy while there which was a bonus. I would recommend the course to anybody who is thinking about returning to education. There is a lot of work but it is manageable if you are organised and really rewarding. I am only sorry it is not going on longer.' Jane Davenport - Gaskell C.P.School

Re-published with thanks to the Bolton Unison Website.