REFUGEEACTION

MARCH 2017

A snapshot of ESOL provision in EnglandLOCKED OUT OF LEARNING

Successful integration is essential both for thewellbeing of refugees and for the UK as a whole.It ensures that refugees are able to fully contributeto and participate in Britain’s economy and localcommunities. However, too often refugees facebarriers to their integration. One such barrier is thedifficulty in accessing English language classes.This is despite a growing body of evidence thatfinds learning English is vital for effective integra-tion, and recent polling data showing that almosttwo thirds (60%) of people think the Govern-ment should fund English for Speakers of OtherLanguages (ESOL) for refugees.1Waiting lists foraccredited classes can extend to more than athousand, with many potential learners facinglengthy delays before they can start lessons. Thiscan have a long-term impact on the social, civic,and economic integration of refugees into UKsociety – meaning that they are not able to fullyunlock their potential.

In May 2016, Refugee Action published a reportentitled ‘Let Refugees Learn’ which set out thedifficulties faced by refugees hoping to accessEnglish language lessons. The report analysedthe current policy environment regarding ESOLprovision and, through a series of case studies,highlighted the impact of current policy on thelives of some of the refugees that RefugeeAction works with.2

“Refugees have a strong drive and desire tolearn English as part of building their new life inBritain.” – Let Refugees Learn report.

Here we complement that research with infor-mation gathered from ESOL providers and or-ganisations supporting them around the country.Our findings reinforce the report’s conclusionsthat barriers to ESOL provision are growing,caused by huge cuts in government funding overrecent years which make it impossible to meetthe strong demand.

This means that refugees and asylum seekersare finding it increasingly difficult to access theEnglish language teaching that will enable themto start rebuilding their lives and contributing totheir new communities.

English language as a tool for integrationThe evidence that English language is an impor-tant element of integration is overwhelming.The Casey Review, published in December 2016,clearly highlighted the link between Englishlanguage skills and integration. It identifiedEnglish language as “a common denominatorand a strong enabler of integration”, with animpact both on social and economic integration;the report recommended prioritising improvedEnglish language skills as a way to reduce exclu-sion, inequality and segregation.3

“Research has shown that language compe-tency is key to expanding people’s socialnetworks, as well as increasing access to work,and thus has positive spillover effects to manyaspects of integration.”– APPG on Social Integration interim report into Integrationof Immigrants.

Last August, meanwhile, the All Party Parliamen-tary Group on Social Integration launched aninquiry into integration in the UK’s immigrationsystem, and the interim report – released on5 January 2017 – highlighted English language asa key measure of integration. The report statedthat “all immigrants should be expected to haveeither learned English before coming to the UKor be enrolled in compulsory ESOL classes uponarrival.” The Government was encouraged toincrease ESOL funding accordingly.4 A recentstudy released by the University of Sussex hasalso pointed to the centrality of English languagein the integration of refugees that have beenresettled to the UK.5

War had broken out in Syria just as Nour wasabout to start his studies in computer program-ming, and he was forced to flee with his family.“We lost everything in my country, our homeand some of my friends. I felt like all my dreamsand goals had stalled.”

When he arrived in Birmingham last January,Nour was determined to get into university andget back to his studies. But he needed to passan advanced English exam to get into universityin the UK. He benefited from ESOL lessonssoon after he arrived, supplementing his lessonswith library books and YouTube tutorials.

“I had studied English before, but I felt verynervous. Even saying ‘hi’ the first time to speakEnglish with people who are speaking Englishis very difficult….I learnt quickly but it was veryhard work.”

Learning English meant Nour could dream bigagain. “When you start to speak English fluentlyit means you can get a good job and make yourdreams come true,” he adds. “I’m working hard.I want to create a company like Microsoft. Youwill see – I will achieve my dreams and goals.”

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Introduction

NOUR’S STORY Nour is 24 and from Syria.

“When you start to speak English fluently

it means you can get a good job and make

your dreams come true ”

Nour, 24, arrived in the UK in January 2016 as part of the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme.

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ee Action

For those ESOL providers who have managed tokeep their waiting lists to a minimum, this hassometimes been attributed to access to one-off,short-term extra funding to meet the continuedhigh level of demand or due to a conscious deci-sion to allocate limited resources towards ESOLclasses. Manchester Adult Education Serviceand Tower Hamlets College, for instance, haveboth acquired additional funding for English lan-guage classes from the Department for Commu-nities and Local Government and the EuropeanSocial Fund, respectively. However, these ap-proaches are not always sustainable in the longterm and it seems that, while providers are work-ing to keep waiting lists to a minimum, it cansometimes be to the detriment of other areas oftheir service, such as class sizes or availability ofchildcare.

The majority of those that we spoke to indicatedthat they feel ESOL provision has become morechallenging over recent years and that their abil-ity to provide a complete service is decreasing.The numbers presented here are just a snapshotof the current situation in England, howeverscaled up to the whole of the country could indi-cate that many thousands of refugees are forcedto wait at least a year – and sometimes longer –to gain access to the English language learningthat they require.

Of the providers and organisations that wespoke to, waiting lists for prospective studentsconsistently stretched to over 500, and in somecases to more than a thousand. The highest wait-ing list stood at 1,100, however some providerspointed out that their waiting lists reach theirpeak at the end of the summer term. Leeds CityCollege, for instance, indicated that their list –which currently includes 943 potential learners –could be expected to double to around 1900 bysummer 2017. Similarly, BEGIN pointed out thattheir waiting list grows throughout the course ofthe year so, whilst in February 2017 it stood at777, it could be expected to grow significantlyby spring/ early summer 2017 (in line with theJune 2016 peak of 1,483).

Waiting times, moreover, can range from as lowas a few weeks to two years, and in some caseseven more. We were told by Leeds City Collegethat current learners are prioritised for continuedstudy, meaning that if 1,500 existing learnersdecide to continue their classes only 500 spacesremain for new joiners. This can lead to peoplehaving to apply to classes for several years in arow, and remaining on waiting lists during thistime. Bolton College sees potential learners waitan average of 20 months before starting classes;some wait two years.

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However, despite the evidence, ESOL funding inEngland has shrunk by 55% in recent years –from £212m in 2009 to £95m in 2015. Since thelaunch of Let Refugees Learn, we have seensome progress; in September 2016, the Govern-ment announced that it would commit £10mover a five-year period in order to ensure ESOLprovision to resettled Syrian refugees in the UK;and the Controlling Migration Fund (CMF) –which specifically sets out to “[mitigate] theimpacts of immigration on local communities” –has made a total of £140m available to this aim,with £100m over four years ring-fenced for “localservice impacts” for local authorities in Englandwhich can include funding for ESOL provision.6

Yet local authorities will be under no obligationto fund ESOL through the CMF, and – as oneESOL provider pointed out to us – the £10mcommitted to resettled Syrians, whilst a verywelcome step, is “just a drop in the ocean”, andonly applies to a narrow segment of the refugeeand asylum seeking population.

Key findings

During January and February 2017, RefugeeAction carried out a survey of ESOL providersand organisations offering advice and referrals toESOL providers across the country.7 We spoketo a total of seven providers, offering ESOLlessons to students in Birmingham, Bolton,Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, and Not-tingham.8 The picture that emerged shows asqueezing of ESOL services, with providers andtheir partners affected by relentless governmentcuts and a lack of resources. Our findings echoeda survey carried out in 2014 by the National As-sociation for Teaching English and CommunityLanguages to Adults (NATECLA) which foundthat over 80% of providers have significantwaiting lists of up to 1,000 students for ESOLcourses.9 Whilst providers are making attemptsto continue to provide services despite a reduc-tion in their means, many have long waiting lists– extending in one case to over a thousandpeople – and waiting times that can, in somecases, last several years.

Languishing on lists

Several providers reported refugees waiting over a year for English lessons – and in one area the wait can be up to two years.

Of the providers surveyed, the average waiting list size was over 700 people.Some providers had waiting lists for lessons stretching to more than 1,000 people.

Providers say the situation is getting worse – the main reason is government cuts,with funding failing to keep pace with high demand.

Limited childcare provision is cited as a barrier to women being able to attend classes.

Some providers have been forced to cut the number of ESOL hours offered by over half in recent years.

Due to unmanageable numbers, certain providers have stopped taking new applicants for the first time in recent memory in order to cope with the backlog.

Waiting lists for prospectivestudents consistentlystretched to over 5OO

Even in the cases of providers that accept stu-dents on a rolling basis, demand still far outstripssupply. In the case of the City of Liverpool Col-lege, for instance, despite their two-semestersystem we were told that people routinely waitfor over a year to start ESOL classes. Usually,this involves an eight to nine month waitingperiod for an interview from the admissionsteam, and a further six to ten months beforethe prospective student actually starts classes.This can frustrate students who are not directlyassigned a class following assessment. Man-chester Adult Education Service also pointedthe numbers belowout that waiting times fromassessment to enrolment can be frustrating, andset people up with false expectations.

ESOL: An added worry?

Notably, the majority of the providers that wespoke to indicated that the situation is becomingincreasingly challenging. The City of LiverpoolCollege, for instance, estimated that their levelof provision currently stands at around 50% ofthe provision available three years ago.

Providers pointed to the impact that more thanfive years of funding cuts has had on their abilityto maintain ESOL to a high standard, along witha concomitant increase in demand for classes.Four of the providers believed that they had seena clear worsening in their ability to provide ESOLclasses, and one suggested that the gradual de-cline in ESOL provision has accelerated furtherover the past year as a result of the Govern-ment’s decision in summer 2015 to cut ESOLPlus Mandation funding.

SARAH’S STORY Sarah is 26 and from Syria.

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Coping under pressure

Sarah’s hope is to learn English in order

to be able to speak with people, work,

and volunte er.

Though Sarah studied some English at universitywhilst completing her degree in education, shetold us that she has been struggling to commu-nicate since arriving in the UK. Even things assimple as taking a bus become complicatedwithout knowledge of the language.

Refugee Action spoke to Sarah six months afterher arrival, and she was on a list waiting to startESOL lessons. Four months after being assessedfor her level, Sarah was still waiting to be placedin a class. Sarah was worried that even if shewas taken on by the college, it would be too farto travel given her childcare responsibilities.

“It’s hard because I have children. I told them Iwanted to learn English and was promised acollege closer to me but it didn’t happen.”

Sarah told us that she was anxious to learnEnglish, and already felt left behind. She explainedthat her uncle, who is in the USA, told her thatshe should be learning it already.

“He said that after one year you should be OKwith your English but until now I haven’t doneanything with my English.”

Sarah*, 26, arrived in the UKfrom Syria in September 2015.

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Refugee Action was told by several of the providers we spoke to that people could remainon waiting lists for months and even years.

One provider pointed to the adverse effects this can have on the mental health of peoplewho may already be experiencing social isolation.

Refugees and asylum seekers are often particularly vulnerable; in addition to the traumaticexperiences that many have had prior to arriving in the UK, many have been obliged to movehouses and even towns several times since their arrival, thus uprooting themselves andweakening social safety nets.

The uncertainty and false expectations caused by long waits for English classes to begincan cause extra stress and may exacerbate feelings of isolation or hopelessness.

*Sarah is a pseudonym and this photo is of an actor.

Many of the colleges and organisations that wespoke to indicated that they were being forcedto take drastic steps to maintain their levels ofprovision, even in the cases where their waitinglists and times had not risen. All of the collegesthat we spoke to have taken the conscious deci-sion to keep ESOL provision high on their list ofpriorities, doing their best to continue to providehigh-quality ESOL classes in an incredibly chal-lenging environment. However, they pointed outthat this can lead to inevitable trade-offs betweenthe need to accept high volumes of people andthe desire to offer manageable class sizes oradequate learning hours.

South and City College Birmingham, for instance,was the only provider that told us their waitinglists have actually shrunk in recent years. Yet theyhave also taken the decision to increase classsizes to between 18-22 students, as opposed to12 (as was the case a decade ago). The City ofLiverpool College and Bolton College both indi-cated that over the past ten years they havereduced the number of ESOL hours offered to

students per week by over half; from 12 hoursto 3 hours and from 9 hours to 4, respectively.Manchester Adult Education Service and BoltonCollege have both shut certain or all of theirleisure courses, including, for instance, ModernForeign Language classes, in order to channeltheir Adult Skills budget entirely towards ESOL.

Both the City of Liverpool College and Manches-ter Adult Education Service have even gone sofar as to close their waiting list to new applicants;the reason given was a desire to provide lessonsto those already waiting, and the fact that listscan become unmanageable if left open.11

We were told that ESOL provision is seen as‘risky’ for providers due to the uncertainty overavailability of adult funding. The Government’sfailure to maintain levels of funding for ESOLencourages such an attitude, and may lead tofurther drops in provision in the future asproviders begin to increasingly question thelong-term viability of ESOL provision.

For many, the waiting doesn’t end when theyhave secured a place on an ESOL course. Anumber of providers pointed to a lack of childcareas a major barrier to potential learners with chil-dren or caring responsibilities. The City of Liver-pool College has seen a reduction in the numberof places available in its nursery, meaning thatnewer learners find it difficult to benefit fromthese facilities. Birmingham, similarly, has areduced ability to offer childcare – pointing tocuts to the Learner Support Budget as a directcause of this. Only one of the colleges thatBEGIN works with offers an on-site nursery, andprospective learners face a wait for this. More-over, we were told that Learner Support funding(that providers often use to fund childcare) doesnot always cover total childcare costs, oftenproviding only for ‘learning’ times and thusexcluding travel in the case of those seekingchildcare in off-site facilities.

In our Let Refugees Learn report, we pointedto the specific challenges faced by women inaccessing ESOL classes. These included caringresponsibilities that can get in the way of Englishlanguage lessons. Refugee Action’s staff workwith refugee women across the UK and haveidentified further barriers to learning English suchas ineligibility for certain types of funding, over-subscription of entry level classes, and lack ofchildcare or timetable clashes meaning thatwomen with children are simply unable to attendclasses.

Given the fact that a higher proportion of womenthan men are single parents – or more likely totake on a caring role within their family – limitedchildcare provision will often have a greaterimpact on women, tipping the balance evenfurther against them.

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Childcare: An additional barrier for learners

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In recent years, some providers have had to

cut the ESOL hours offered to students

by more than half

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Refugee Action believes that the UK shouldprovide those seeking sanctuary with the toolsto fully integrate into their new environmentsand successfully build a new life for them-selves. Access to high quality English provisionis absolutely essential to this.

Speaking to ESOL providers and organisationssupporting them, it is clear that challenges existin ensuring that people that need English lan-guage classes have access to timely, adequateESOL provision. In many cases, these challengesseem to be growing. This is despite the effortsof those providers to prioritise ESOL lessons,sometimes to the detriment of other areas,and to do all they can to keep waiting lists to aminimum.

Ultimately, it is the responsibility of the UK Gov-ernment to invest in Britain’s future and localcommunities. This includes ensuring that it putsenough resources in place so that studentscan continue to benefit from the high-qualityprovision offered by ESOL providers. With this inmind, Refugee Action calls on the Governmentto act on the following five essential recommen-dations:

1. Create a fund to specifically supportrefugees learning English.

This should enable all refugees that requireEnglish lessons to have free, accessible ESOLfor their first two years in England. It would bebeneficial to the refugees involved, to their newneighbours and communities, and to the UK asa whole. Our analysis shows this would costaround £1,600 per refugee per year. This wouldrequire the Government to invest £42m a year toachieve this goal. This is in addition to the £10million committed for providing ESOL lessons to

Syrians benefiting from the Vulnerable PersonsResettlement Scheme, as we believe thatall refugees – regardless of nationality – shouldhave the opportunity to learn English.

The cost of two years’ ESOL for each refugeeis effectively fully reimbursed to the taxpayerfollowing an individual’s first eight months ofemployment at the national average wage; andwithin 15 months at the lower wage of £18,000per year.

2. Publish an ESOL strategy for England.

This should set clear national targets for ESOLprovision and attainment; enshrine refugees’access to ESOL as an entitlement; and ensurethat refugees do not wait to enrol in ESOL andto access the provision they require. The strategycan draw on the experience of those alreadyin place in Scotland and Wales.

3. Ensure full and equal access to ESOL,particularly for women.

Female refugees’ ability to attend English lan-guage classes can be improved, ensuring theyhave access to childcare facilities that will makethis possible. In addition, in all cases where ESOLproviders are located far from the homes ofrefugees, and public transport is required toparticipate, funding should be made availablefor travel costs.

4. Provide asylum seekers with the right to access free English language learning.

This would support their integration from thepoint they initially make their asylum claim. Cur-rently, people seeking asylum are not eligible forgovernment-funded English language teachinguntil they have waited 6 months for a decision

Recommendations for improvingESOL provision

on their asylum application, at which time theycan receive partial funding to cover 50% of thecourse.

This learning can be delivered through a combi-nation of formal and informal means; however,given the very low levels of income which asy-lum seekers are required to live on, it is essentialthat this teaching is available without charge.Free English teaching from the point of claimingasylum is currently available in Scotland andNorthern Ireland.

5. Facilitate a national framework for community-based language support.

Community support for refugees wishing tolearn English can be a vital complement to (butnot replacement for) formal, accredited ESOLlearning for refugees. The Government shouldbring together civil society, the private sector,local government and other key stakeholders, todevelop a framework which enables all inter-ested parties to pool resources and good prac-tice to increase the provision and quality ofcommunity-based language support.

1 Ipsos MORI (2017), upcoming release as part of ongoing immigration series in partnership with Unbound Philanthropy. Latest data available at: https://www.ipsos-mori.com/researchpublications/researcharchive/3732/Immigration-one-of-the-biggest-issues-for-wavering-EU-referendum-voters.aspx (last accessed February 2017).

2 See Refugee Action (2016) ‘Let Refugees Learn: Challenges and opportunities to improve language provision to refugees in England’ (London). Available at: http://www.refugee-action.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/letrefugeeslearnfullreport.pdf (last accessed February 2017).

3 Dame Louise Casey (2016) ‘The Casey Review: A review into opportunity and integration’ (London). Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/575973/The_Casey_Review_Report.pdf (last accessed February 2017).

4 All Party Parliamentary Group on Social Integration (2017) ‘Interim Report into Integration of Immigrants’. Available at: http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/themes/570513f1b504f500db000001/attachments/original/1483958173/TC0012_AAPG_Interim_Report_Screen.pdf?1483958173 (last accessed February 2017).

5 See Sussex Centre for Migration Research website, available at: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/migration/research/integrationcitizenship/refugee-resettlement (last accessed February 2017).

6 See Department for Communities and Local Government (2016) ‘Controlling Migration Fund: mitigating the impacts of immigration on local communities – Prospectus’ (London). Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/566951/Controlling_Migration_Fund_Prospectus.pdf (last accessed February 2017).

7 Refugee Action carried out semi-structured telephone interviews with ESOL providers and organisations working with them. The majority of those we spoke to were colleges offering direct provision of ESOL lessons, however others (for instance BEGIN) provide advice and referral services for potential ESOL learners.

8 The providers that we spoke to were: South and City College (Birmingham), Bolton College, Leeds City College, the City of Liverpool College, Tower Hamlets College (London), Manchester Adult Education Service at Manchester City Council, and Basic Educational Guidance in Nottinghamshire (BEGIN).

9 NATECLA (2014) ‘Migrants on huge waiting lists for English courses as government funding is cut again’, available at: http://www.natecla.org.uk/news/779/ESOL-waiting-lists (last accessed February 2017).

10 Sarah’s story was taken from our Let Refugees Learn report, released in May 2016.11 In the case of the City of Liverpool College, it is the first time in recent memory that the college has been forced

to do this. They pointed out to us that they would soon be reopening waiting lists to accept new potential learners.

Refugee ActionVictoria Charity Centre11 Belgrave RoadLondon SW1V 1RB

Tel: 020 7952 1511campaign@refugee.org.uk@RefugeeActionwww.refugee-action.org.uk

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