This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Funding for English language training
28/03/2007
A strategy to provide English language training opportunities to migrant workers and others was announced today.
The Executive's English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) strategy for Scotland, supported by funding of £5 million over the next year, will create around an additional 4,000 classroom places, mainly at colleges, to remove pressures which have built up in recent years, particularly since the enlargement of the European Union.
First Minister Jack McConnell said:
"One of the great achievements of the last few years has been ending Scotland's population decline. We are now attracting many people from countries where English is not their language and they need some help to allow them to play their full part in growing Scotland's economy. Language can be a real barrier and I want to make sure we bring down these barriers and help people to settle in Scotland."
Deputy First Minister Nicol Stephen said:
"Scotland is becoming an increasingly diverse society - and is a better, more vibrant country as a result. Those who come to Scotland to work or study should be given every opportunity to participate fully in Scottish life. Learning the language is perhaps the most important step of all - that is why we need to ensure that those who come to this country are able to access high quality English language provision.
"We know there is high demand across Scotland for this. Today's announcement means that the additional 4,000 places can be deployed in the course of the next academic year.
"Language skills are central to giving people a democratic voice - and supporting them to contribute to the society in which they live."
The ESOL strategy has five guiding principles:
- Inclusion: Provision which supports migrant and refugee settlement, and aids inclusion and full participation in Scottish society and the economy
- Diversity: Provision which recognises and values the cultures of learners and the contribution that New Scots make to society and the economy
- Quality: Provision which is high quality, easily accessible, cost-effective and uses best practice in the teaching and learning of languages
- Achievement: Provision which contributes to wider national literacies targets and promotes attainment and personal and social achievement
- Progression: Provision which supports and encourages routes into further learning, employment and in local community life
ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) is delivered across Scotland by Colleges, community learning and development (CLD) and adult literacy and numeracy (ALN) partnerships, and the voluntary sector. There were almost 12,000 enrolments in college classes in 2004-05.
Classes, which are mainly part time, are generally publicly funded, via the Scottish Funding Council or local authorities.
The Executive has identified £5m from the Enterprise budget in 2007-08 to support a wide range of initiatives designed to substantially improve the quality, quantity and co-ordination of ESOL provision. This will deliver significant expansion of ESOL provision; increased numbers of teachers trained in ESOL delivery; improved ESOL teaching and learning resources; and the establishment of a national panel to oversee the co-ordination of provision and identify and address variations in supply and demand across Scotland and to support quality developments in ESOL.
It is estimated that this funding will equate to around 4,000 extra places for ESOL learners.
Research on waiting lists, undertaken in 2004, helped inform the development of the strategy. However, in recognition that there have been significant changes since then, we have commissioned more up to date research, focussing primarily on the impact which EU enlargement has had on ESOL demand. Fieldwork for this research is currently being undertaken.