Summer cooking camp - Fruit kebabs and chocolate

Listen to the whole interview of Debbie on community radio

It is often easy to forget the importance of socialising with other people. Social interaction is crucial to both mental and physical health, especially face-to-face communication in the days of social media. Community centres can play a fundamental role in increasing engagement and involvement within the community and its people, allowing the public to support and learn from one another.

Language is our primary method of communication. Therefore, any language barriers can cause difficultly and misunderstandings to arise. English is one of the most commonly spoken languages across the globe, with an estimated 2 billion speakers overall. However, only an estimated 1,132 million of these are native English speakers, showing the tremendous impact that learning English as a second language is having worldwide. By taking part in our ESOL course at the centre, you are instantly opening up the ability to communicate with a wider variety of people across the entire world. ESOL is an invaluable course to participate in, as English is commonly referred to as one of the most difficult languages to learn. This is due to the several types of pronunciation, the order of words in a sentence and the endless variations in the English dialect. Nevertheless, with the help of the brilliant teachers at the centre, the English language can be quickly understood. Covering the fundamental aspects of the language; speaking, listening, reading and writing, ESOL provides the skills to communicate with others and allows you the access to a whole wealth of new opportunities. Having the expertise to speak more than one language instantly makes you a more employable candidate. People who are bilingual are said to have better workplace skills, with the increased ability to multi-task, problem-solve and be more creative and innovative. Having English as a second language not only increases job prospects, but it also provides many social and cultural opportunities. Improving your communication skills allows you to make new friends, explore new hobbies, discuss your interests with others and overall allows new opportunities to be discovered. Furthermore, ESOL not only helps to improve language skills, but also allows both the students and teachers to interact. Our students have an abundance of knowledge and experience to share with the community, demonstrating how our teachers learn plenty of new things every day alongside providing their own knowledge for the students on the course. By delivering this course, the community is enriched with diversity, allowing people to communicate and interact when they otherwise would not have done. Our courses are extremely popular so please contact Kensington Community Learning Centre to join one of our ESOL courses and begin learning!

Arguing and conflict between parents is unavoidable, but have you ever thought about the impact of this on your child? Here at Kensington Community Learning Centre we are taking part in a campaign and offering a completely free course for everyone to try and #SeeItDifferently. At the beginning of this month, 3rd-9th February, it was Children’s Mental Health Week in the UK. It is incredibly important to recognise and understand the mental health of young people as it is so easy to forget about the state of your child’s mental health alongside the stresses of everyday life. Taking the time to attend our See It Differently workshop can be the first step towards understanding. The bond between a parent and a child is crucial, but so is the relationship between parents. Parents are the people children model their behaviour from and look up to, so the consequences of frequent conflicts between parents can have a lasting impact. The course allows parents and carers to gain an insight into the emotional, behavioural and developmental influences that conflict has and the varying methods of overcoming this. Arguing is normal and in most instances, it will have little negative effects on the child. However, if the child constantly sees intense, angry and unresolved arguments, serious issues can arise. Learning how to overcome these problems will undeniably have a lasting positive impact on your child, so come along! The course begins Monday 24th February at 1pm and is FREE for anyone to come down and learn the skills needed, even if you do not think conflict has any major involvement in your life. Both parents/carers in the family do not need to attend, just yourself is enough if that is more suitable. Reserve a spot on the course by either calling 01512601006, sending us an email at info@kclc.co.uk or on our Facebook page! #SeeItDifferently.

KCLC has been established as a C.I.C for over 10 years and in that time have become a hub in the local community. In order for us to fully stay in touch with what services are needed in the local and surrounding area, we constantly ask for feedback and opinions. That is why we would like to invite EVERYONE to our consultation event on Thursday 19th September at 2pm. So please feel free to come along, have YOUR say, find out what is happening and help to shape the future of KCLC!

"We have a busy March packed with great social clubs including an International Women’s Day Craft Workshop, a Tequila Masterclass and our very popular Technology Workshop. There are three trips this month; we return to the British Music Experience with a session that ‘ Brings back The Beatles ’. A great opportunity to share and hear stories from older neighbours who lived and breathed 1960s Beatlemania in our city! We are also visiting The Bluecoat, with a guided tour of the building and a viewing of the current exhibition. And at the World Museum and Planetarium we’ll be enjoying a ‘From Earth to the Universe’ , giving us an insight into the theories of ancient astronomers and today’s grandest telescopes. We also have our very first Creative Writing session, and a celebration of St Patrick’s Day at the Baltic Market." - Liverpool Cares For more information you can visit the Liverpool Cares Website

Win, free raffle, board games evening,

Come along for an great event showing how new technologies can benefit the people of Kensington and Liverpool! Everyone is welcome Time: 4pm-6pm Date: Wednesday 24th October Place: Kensington Community Learning Centre CIC, 291-299 Kensington L7 2RG (opposite McDonalds)

KCLC are proud to support Good Things Foundation in bridging the digital divide. "Today, 11.3 million adults in the UK still lack the essential digital skills that are necessary for life and work. And in just ten years almost 7 million adults in the UK – 12% of the adult population - will be left behind as a result of digital exclusion. With more and more services moving to digital platforms to save money, the digital literacy needed to use these services is not keeping pace. Those without digital skills are likely to be the most vulnerable and excluded. Providing everyone in the UK with the essential digital skills they need by 2028 will lead to a benefit of £15 for every £1 invested, and a net present value of £21.9 billion. Although Government and other organisations are prioritising digital inclusion, we know more can be done, and more quickly, with greater commitment and by working in partnership across sectors. That’s why we’re calling on Government and other organisations to commit helping us get everyone in the UK online by 2028 - in order to realise these £21.9 billion of benefits. By working together, we can make the UK the first 100% digitally included nation in world." - Good things Foundation You can join the campaign and download the full report here: https://www.goodthingsfoundation.org/bridging-the-digital-divide