What’s on this week
Over the coming weeks, our tutors will be sharing some fun activities for you and your family to get involved…
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Learn how to Fake Braid
We are continuing to show our support for the incredible people who work in healthcare by sharing a new activity…
Tangram Puzzle
Last week we celebrated the bicentenary of Florence Nightingale’s birth and #InternationalNursesDay with our Celebrating Carers event. To continue the…
An ode to Florence Nightingale
An ode to Florence Nightingale, on the 200th anniversary of her birth By Jack Gaydon ‘Thou was not born for…
Florence in Portraits
I wish there were more portraits of Florence Nightingale. I am surprised there are so few. I would have liked…
Photoshop: Victorian Effect
Photography tutor Barry shares this Photoshop tutorial on how to create a Victorian vintage effect on a contemporary portrait. Don’t…
Watercolour Postcards
Art tutor Lucy shows us how to create a selection of postcard designs using watercolour paints that you can send…
Florence Nightingale & Italian Culture
Language tutor Elinor shares a brief History and interesting facts about Florence, the city that Florence Nightingale was named after.…
Fabric Rainbow Collage
Art tutor Lucy shows us how to create a beautiful rainbow collage using scraps of fabric you may have lying…
Brief History of Nightingale’s Nursing Uniform
A brief history Florence Nightingale, was born in Florence Italy, on the 12th May 1820. Florence served as a manager…
Mary Seacole
Much like Florence Nightingale, Mary Seacole was hugely influential in the world of nursing. Tutor Joy shares a brief history…
Weekly Recipe – Goan Fish Curry
Goan Fish Curry This is how I was taught to make the dish in Candolim, North Goa. Fish curry is…
Art Deco Patterns
How to create your own Art Deco Inspired Flower Pattern. Imagine the roaring 1920’s, glamour, luxury, elegance, simple sleek shapes,…
Bite Size BSL 3
This week Susan will follow on from last week and talk about ‘family’ and some simple questions you might ask.…
Book Club Week 3
It’s the final instalment of this ‘ACL Book Club’. English tutor Jacquie will be answering any questions you have as…
It’s Doodle Time!
It’s doodle time! A doodle is an unfocused drawing made while a person’s attention is otherwise occupied. Doodles are simple…
Digital Tips – Twitter
Delve into the world of Twitter. Sophia will give you a simple yet informative run through. You’ll be hashtagging in…
Spanish with Aida 2
It’s time to learn some Spanish with Aida! This week Aida will be teaching us how to order food and…
Photo Scavenger Hunt
Go on a photography treasure hunt on your own or with family indoors or in the garden. There are hundreds…
Dye your Hair
Want to dye your hair at home and avoid a miss-hap?! Tania will show you the best techniques to apply…
Latest News, Articles & Stories
Hair & Beauty Rainbow Competition
You may have seen that we run a competition to show support for our amazing National Health Service. We challenged…
Self Care Facial #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek
Taking care of yourself is an important part of maintaining a balanced lifestyle. Set some time aside to pamper yourself…
Self Care #MentalHealthAwareness
It is important to take care of yourself as well as others. Whether it’s daily, weekly or less frequent, self-care…
#MentalHealthAwareness Week
It’s #MentalHealthAwareness week and this year’s official theme is #kindness. Small acts of kindness go a long way and mean so much to…
New Accredited courses – Enrol today!
Don’t put your dreams on hold. We have adapted our courses to be delivered both online and remotely. So whatever…
Information for furloughed apprentices
We hope you are safe and well. If you have been furloughed as part of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme,…
ACL Essex tops GCSE national league table
The national league tables for GCSEs have just been released and Adult Community Learning Essex is celebrating another year of…
How will my GCSE exam grades be awarded this summer?
As you will be aware, the Covid-19 virus has impacted the GCSE exams that were due to take place this…
Mental health and wellbeing support
During this uncertain time, the nation’s mental health is taking a hit, not to mention those who already have mental…
Coronavirus latest information and advice
Update: 08/04/2020: Following the latest government guidance, we have moved from classroom-based learning to online and flexible distance learning. We…
National Child Exploitation Awareness Day 2020
Unite with the world today against child exploitation. Do your bit and know the signs, here are some to look…
Little Learners Colchester Ofsted Rated GOOD
Well done to the Little Learners team at Colchester who have been rated GOOD in their latest Ofsted inspection. This…
ACL Charity of the Year
We recently asked our staff to vote for the 2020 ACL Charity of the Year. The charity with the most…
Gavin Jones visits ACL Chelmsford
Gavin Jones, CEO of Essex County Council, swapped roles for the afternoon and helped out in ACL Chelmsford on Wednesday…
10 Ways to Improve your Health & Wellbeing this January
Did you know, 1 in 4 of us will experience mental illness every year… Here at ACL we offer FREE…
Spot the ACL bus!
Have you spotted our new bus adverts? If so here’s how to get involved… So, If you spot the ACL…
Supported Learning Calendars
Learners in the Supported Learning Art for All class in Brentwood produced some fantastic artwork that has been made into…
Christmas Artwork Competition 2019
Thank you to everyone who submitted their artwork to the Christmas card competition. We put the entries to a judging…
Community Afternoon Tea (Supported Learning)
Working alongside Age Concern Colchester & North East Essex, we hosted an afternoon tea event at ACL Colchester. The event…
ACL Awards 2019
ACL would like to congratulate all our learners and staff who received an award at the ACL Achievement Awards. We…
“I would 100% recommend doing an apprenticeship to anyone…”
I would 100% recommend doing an apprenticeship to anyone. There are so many different courses out there to choose from and all of them give learners so many different opportunities to excel in a work place. With these opportunities and skills, joined with the knowledge of your chosen course, you are assured to be an ideal candidate for any job!
Holly from Burnham-on-Crouch
“ACL provided me with the opportunity to work around my family life…”
Hi, I’m Monika, 49. I’m originally from India and moved here 14 years ago. Whilst my kids were growing up I volunteered in schools. In order to progress to other roles I knew I needed to get GCSEs in English and maths. I have today achieved a grade 9 in my English exam which I am over the moon about. ACL provided me with the opportunity to work around my family life and I have never had such a good tutor in all my life – amazing! I had no idea that I would get the highest possible grade, I am an introvert by nature so this is just such a shock for me. I would advise anyone who is thinking about learning with ACL to do it today! I am now all ready to start my GCSE maths course this year.
Monika from Colchester
“I would advise anyone that needs a GCSE to think about ACL…”
I’m Nick, 54 and am about to start a teacher training course at Moulsham High School teaching Computer Science. I was all set to follow my dream of becoming a teacher but realised that I was lacking a GCSE pass in English. I heard about ACL and was able to enrol on the course easily. Angela, our teacher was amazing and really effective and as a result I have today received a grade 7 – hurray! I would advise anyone that needs a GCSE to think about ACL, very professional and we all worked as a team in class.
Nick from Colchester
“The skills I have learnt throughout my time on the apprenticeship with ACL has prepared me to be able to progress within my organisation…”
I started with Essex County Council in February 2019 as a Business Support Assistant in the file and data team, where I quickly settled into the team and managed to learn all the tasks very quickly. In May 2019, I spoke with my line manager about the possibility of enrolling on the ‘Business Administrator – L3’ apprenticeship. My line manager fully supported this and contacted ACL to get me enrolled. The skills I have learnt throughout my time on the apprenticeship with ACL has prepared me to be able to progress within my organisation and feel confident in doing so. I am on course to finish my Business Administrator – L3 qualification this year and I am hoping to do this with the best possible mark.
Wade from Basildon
Creative & Cultural Learning
Ever wanted to learn how to cook, draw, sculpt, speak a new language, or try something new?
Qualifications and Skills for Employment
Do you want to improve your CV, gain skills to progress in your current role, or looking for a new career?
English, Maths, Science & Digital
Whatever your reason to improve your English, Maths, Science or Digital skills, ACL can help! Our courses could be free* and support you to gain the qualifications you need…
Mental Health & Wellbeing
Learn about looking after your mental health and wellbeing, in addition to supporting your family and friends.
Family Learning
These courses offer you the opportunity to learn together to build strong relationships, develop new skills and raise aspirations for all the family.
Apprenticeships
Hundreds of courses across the county, there’s something for every learner and business.
Supported Learning
Programmes are suitable for all learners, including learners with complex needs, learners wishing to develop social and personal skills, and those wishing to gain qualifications and employment.