Hackney Action for ESOL

Save ESOL Day - Sunday 13th March

2011

Hackney Action for ESOL is organising a Save ESOL Day against cuts on 13th March,
from 12:00. Save ESOL Day is in preparation for the
national day of action against the cuts to ESOL funding Hackney Facts
on 24th March 2011. Access to English for Speakers of
Other Language (ESOL) courses is crucial for society, Over half of Hackney residents come
from ethnic minority groups.
social cohesion and the economy. People who move to
the UK need English language skills to access training, In 2000, a survey was carried out
gain employment and participate in society. The funding amongst over 23,000 pupils in
made available to attend these classes is under serious Hackney to find out the most
threat. common first languages. There were
95 named languages in the survey;
the most widely spoken were
The Government has repeatedly called for improving English, Turkish, Yoruba, Bengali,
integration and a Big Society. Prime minister Cameron Gujarati and Punjabi.
recently said: “There are practical things that we can do
[...]That includes making sure that immigrants speak the Hackney’s 2004 Household survey
language of their new home.” ¹ ESOL classes for parents estimated that in 4 out of 5
and other family members of children in Hackney school households a language other than
English was the main language used
have a hugely positive impact which extends beyond just at home¹.
learning English. Parents who learn English in the school
setting become more confident in contributing to the life The ESOL Advice Team at The
of the school, they become more knowledgeable about Learning Trust has assessed over
the education system and become better able to help 500 learners with ESOL needs from
their children with their learning at home. As far as
community cohesion is concerned, the loss of such classes would have negative
ramifications far beyond that of just losing the opportunity to learn English.

Learning English not only helps immigrants take an active role in society, but it also
allows them to contribute to the country’s economy. Migrant workers contribute
more to the economy and in taxes than they receive from it. Of the 686,000
registrations for National Insurance Numbers (NINOs) for overseas adults in 2008/09,
only 3.7% were claiming an out-of-work benefit within six months of registration.²
The positive contributions of migrants to UK business, economics, politics and
society have been well
documented.³ The government has made the assumption that employers should
provide English language support once people are in work or that employees should
pay for lessons themselves. This presents obvious problems for those who are
unable to access the labour market due to a language barrier. Many employees in
low paid work are unable to afford ESOL classes and their employers currently have
little incentive to provide lessons. A long term consequence of this will be to confine
those with ESOL needs to low-paid, low-skilled employment.

This event is the opportunity for ESOL learners living in Hackney and their family to
get together and say no to the cuts. Learners will have the chance to express their
opinion, video record why ESOL is important for them and how the cuts will affect
their lives. The event will finish with a march to Hackney Town Hall where learners
and teachers will speak about the cuts.

Changes to ESOL

From 01st August 2011, proposed changes would:

*limit public ESOL funding to people from ‘settled communities’ – although it remains unclear what ‘settled
community’ means. Asylum seekers (after their first 6 months) and people on Section 4 support1 may continue
to be eligible but this is yet to be confirmed.
*limit full fee remission to people in receipt of ‘active benefits’, i.e. Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) or Employment
Support Allowance (ESA);
*remove full fee remission from people on other benefits, including Working Tax Credit, Housing Benefit, Income
Support, Council Tax and Pension Credits, who will have to pay between £400 and £1700;
*end funding for ESOL in the workplace.
In addition, it is expected that the £4.5 million ESOL Learner Support Funding (LSF) will be axed from 2011. This
 Useful links:
Action for ESOL th
1. PM’s speech at Munich Security Conference, Saturday 5 February 2011. www.number10.gov.uk/news/speeches-and-transcripts/2011/02/pms-speech-at-munich-
http://actionforesol.org/in-the-media
security-conference-60293
2. DWP (2010) National Insurance Number Allocations for 2009/2010 http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd1/niall/index.php?page=nino_allocation
3. ManyNATECLA (National
examples of contributions Association
made by for inTeaching
refugees can be found of English
the recent Employability anda other
Forum Making Community
Difference: Refugee successes in the world of work,
Employability Forum 2008. See also Reed, H and Latorre, M (2009) The Economic Impacts of Migration on the UK Labour Market, IPPR
Languages to Adults)
www.ippr.org.uk/publicationsandreports/publication.asp?id=649
http://www.natecla.org.uk/news_details.asp?NewsID=570

Sunday 13th March

12:00: Meet at London Fields Park. Activities available:
- picnic
- face painting for children
- storytelling for children
- banner making
- video corner
- music
- world map to mark where you are from

14:00: March to the Town Hall, followed by a balloons release and speakers.

Facebook page: www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=187294477975198&ref=ts

London Fields – North Side – near the children’s play area

Martello Street
Hackney
E8 3PE

Buses
30, 48, 55, N55, 254, 106, 236, 254, N254, 276, 277, 394, D6, W15
Tube Stations
Bethnal Green, 0.9 miles, Central Line, Zone 2, (9 minutes walk)
Railway Stations
Hackney Central, 0.8 miles, London Overground (8 minutes walk)
London Fields, West Anglia Line, 0.3 miles, (3 minutes walk)
Cambridge Heath, 0.9 miles (9 minutes walk)

For more information, contact Alice on 07976 274516