Ian's inspiring WEA learner story

Arts & Crafts

A new lease on life

Ian joined the WEA to grow his technical skills, but what he found was a creative community and the tools needed to start his own business. Read all about his journey with the WEA.

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Throughout his recovery treatments, Ian discovered the WEA - a place that sparked his curiosity and excitement. As a creative soul with a passion for the arts, he found himself drawn to the Sewing for Business course.

The WEA offered him hope and direction. A friend had spoken highly of tutor Mandy, a remarkable individual known for her fantastic courses. When Ian stepped into the WEA class, he immediately felt a surge of life and inspiration, filling him with positive energy.

“As soon as I walked in and I looked around I felt so alive, I felt so excited and just stimulated in a really healthy way”

Ian, WEA learner

The WEA course not only ignited his creativity but also had a huge impact on his personal growth. Ian felt a newfound sense of purpose, invigorated by the supportive community around him. He had struggled with feelings of disconnection and loneliness, but now, being part of this creative community, he felt a deep sense of belonging.

“ This creative community has been really inspiring and the fellow students that I'm working alongside, they're going to be part of my network going forward.”

With the newfound skills he built at the WEA, Ian is filled with excitement about the future. He aims to complete the current course and continue his learning journey through additional courses. His ultimate goal is to establish his own business and make his mark in the world of design.

The WEA has given Ian the tools he needed to thrive, and he is confident that he and his fellow students will be the next wave of independent design talents in Merseyside.

With determination and a supportive community by his side, Ian is ready to embrace the world and make a difference through his passion and talent.

Video transcript: good morning everybody it's lovely to

see you all so today we're just carrying

on with what we've been doing. The WEA is for

anybody to come and learn whatever they

are interested in. It is designed for

adults, it's made to capture adults

interests and hobbies so this is a basic

a very basic penny so we're going to be

working you're still going to learn

you're still going to get a

qualification but you're not going to be

intimidated

here you get to build a community

working alongside people

that you can identify and relate to but

also learning fantastic skills which are

really vocationally led our students

also get transferable skills from this

course they learn english skills edition

multiplication dealing with numbers

which is very vital to just use in

everyday life i'm hoping to eventually

you know start my own business and get

that going learn new things freeway

good morning everyone good morning how

are you

good weekend how was your weekend we

give people a chance we reach people

where other organizations cannot reach

them it doesn't matter whether you're

learning online or in the classroom you

still get the same support it's still

face to face some people learn from home

some people prefer classes i think this

is what makes us unique i want to attend

this course because i want to improve my

angles in the speaking and writing and

reading people like online learning

because of the flexibility

they can fit it around their work their

families other commitments have left the

oil so this means that the tomatoes are

cooked

in my classes i love creating the

atmosphere of family

people learn when they belong and people

learn when they are part of something

come on tell them the truth

one of the things that i found is that

we all like-minded people here we all

kind of connect on the level of what we

like doing what we're doing it's very

encouraging if you've been out of

education or out of work for a while you

might feel a little bit anxious about

going into a course atmosphere but

it's so laid back and it's so friendly

and everybody just helps each other out

it's the highlight of my week really

literally isn't it we all get on like a

house on fire we're all coming really

excited

we've become like a little family

once a week family

we see loads of changes like a butterfly

they transform into people who might

have been quite shy coming on a course

like this to becoming confident

i sit every single session every day

people trying and stepping out of their

comfort zone sharing things with their

peers

coming here has really given me a sense

of purpose being able to have the means

and the practical skills to be able to

create one's own employment and some

financial stability is incredible it's

also given me friends

i love being here like oh

everyone's amazing it's made a massive

difference to my life because

it's been like my lifeline

for so many years

I was feeling useless and coming here

has given me all my confidence back

again. I've got the fire in my belly now

and i'm just so excited about the future.