A learner from Scotland who won the Scottish Union Learner of the Year award earlier this year has featured in a short film about his win alongside tutor Stephen McGuire.  

Sean Paul Gracie, 24, completed a string of WEA Multiply courses led by WEA tutor Stephen McGuirk as part of a workplace programme at the Royal Strathclyde Blindcraft Industries (RSBi). 

RSBi Glasgow is a well-established furniture design and manufacturing service and is committed to providing opportunities for people with disabilities, as well as helping towards the economic regeneration of the local community and beyond.

Sean Paul, who has global development delay and autism, joined RSBi as part of an RSBi schools programme aged 18, where local students from ASN (Additional Support Needs) schools are given the opportunity to complete a placement in a supported workplace.  

He was presented with his award by First Minister John Swinney in a STUC (Scottish Trades Union Congress) event in Dundee in April. He said, “I still can’t believe I won this award. I used to find learning really hard, and I didn’t feel confident, but the support I’ve had from my union and Tutor at RSBi has helped me so much. 

“The classes made me feel included and I began to really enjoy learning for the first time and became more confident. I’m proud of how far I’ve come, and I hope this shows other people who feel the same as I did about learning, that with the right support they can achieve anything they put their mind to.” 

Both Sean Paul and tutor Stephen McGuirk have since appeared in a short film put together by Scottish Union Learning which highlights the impact of education within the workforce and how this helps to bridge the gaps between social mobility and upskilling. 

Well done to Sean Paul, who recently completed a course in Digital Skills with us, and Stephen.

Our WEA Member events always get excellent feedback; with the broad range of topics we cover, you’re sure to find something to spark your curiosity.  

We have added a monthly Creativity for Wellbeing session to our programme this year. These are a chance to take time for yourself and try something creative, with no experience needed. The benefits of taking part in creative activities are profound – in the same way as learning is hugely beneficial – so invest time in yourself and your own health and wellbeing by building creativity into your life. Our sessions are a great way to get you started and the tutors usually recommend ways you can continue after the session is over. 

All our member sessions are completely free and they are held on Zoom. If you haven’t been to one before, why not check out December’s programme and if you see an event that catches your eye, book a place!  

Attendees are muted but can type in the chat if they wish. Some attendees choose to have their camera on but many keep it turned off.  

What’s coming up: 

Reading a Christmas Carol 
4th December 5pm-6pm 
Some of you may have attended Mark Crees’  ‘Dickens Out Loud’ talk earlier this year. The feedback was excellent, so we have invited Mark back to deliver another session, this time focused on the Dickens festive classic ‘A Christmas Carol’. Mark will be telling us more about the background to the story and reading some of his favourite excerpts. 
Book now 
 

Creativity for Wellbeing: DIY Festive Wrapping Paper 
12th December 1:30-2:30 
Join Abbie Cairns for another creative taster session, this time she’ll be sharing ideas and tips for creating home-made wrapping paper for the festive season.  No experience needed, come along and have a go! 
Book now  
 

Christmas Quiz! 
18th December 5pm-6pm 
Join us for a Christmas Quiz.  You’ll mark your own answers and the aim is to have fun. This will be our last session before the Christmas break – put on your Christmas jumper and participate in some festive fun! 
Book now 
 

Creativity for Wellbeing: Journaling for the New Year 
9th January 2026 
Join Nicky Torode for another journaling taster session, this time the focus will be on planning and goal setting for the year ahead. Nicky’s last journaling session was very popular so I hope you can join us. No experience needed, come along and have a go! 
Book now 
 

The History of Yoga Poses 
15th January 2026, 5pm-6pm 
This topic was suggested by one of our regular member lecture attendees. This will be WEA tutor Georgia Daniel’s first member lecture.  
Book now
 

Story Club: Education 
Tuesday 27th January 2026, 5pm-6pm 
This will be the launch of our new Story Club series of member events. The theme for the first session is ‘Education’. Mark Crees will be leading the first Story Club and we are looking for your input to gather a collection of story recommendations that fit the different themes. We also have opportunities to volunteer; if you can help out, we’d love to hear from you. 
 

And in case you missed it – here's what we covered in November. Remember, you can catch up with past events in the members’ area.

From belly pads to poke bonnets: the weird world of Regency fashion 
6th November, 5pm-6pm 
Social historian Jo Bath joined us for this session looking at women’s fashion in the Regency period. Although we might picture Jane Austen heroines in Empire line dresses, Jo highlighted the wide range of styles and strange fads in women’s fashion at this time. 
“Absolutely fantastic. The whole fashion scene is enthralling. In a way, there's nothing new. Thank you so much, Jo, for an absolutely brilliant and interesting talk. I've learnt a lot. Your talks are always excellent.” 
“Fantastic talk - funny and very informative - thank you.” 
Catch up here

Creativity for Wellbeing: Flash Fiction 
13th November, 12:30-1:30   
WEA Tutor Patrick O’Reilly delivered a workshop about a relatively new literary format: Flash Fiction. During the session, Patrick guided us through the process of creating a story in a single sentence. We also talked about where AI could fit into the creative process. 
“Thank you. First time I’ve considered writing anything creative rather than work focused” 
“Thanks so much. I've started writing a short story with mine already” 
Catch up here
 

How to help your gut biome thrive 
20th November, 5pm-6pm 
WEA tutor Catherine Wilcock delivered a talk about our gut biome: what it is, and how to keep it as healthy as possible. We learned about how your gut can affect both physical and mental health and also learned about some food that can cause gut issues in some people. Ways to increase the amount and range of fruit and vegetable and other plant based foods was also discussed.
“Thank you! Really helpful and interesting!” 
“Many thanks Catherine - great information and advice.” 
Catch up here
 

Calligraphy and Family Trees 
27th November, 5pm-6pm 
WEA tutor Fiona Mitchell talked about using calligraphy for family trees. She outlined the steps to create your own family tree and shared examples of completed calligraphy family tree projects. 

“Thank you Fiona for such an informative and interesting talk"
“Thanks Fiona - a really enjoyable talk” 
Catch up here

How to join our member events 

Sign up for a free place via Zoom and you’ll be sent an invitation with a joining link. You don’t need to install any software – you can join from your browser, but there is also the option to use the dedicated Zoom app if you prefer.  

Once you join, you can choose whether to have your camera on or off. All members are muted, but you can ask questions or make comments in the chat.  Join and leave any time during the session, so why not choose a topic that you like the sound of and drop in to see what you think. 

We know that the regular Thursday slot doesn’t suit everyone, so we are varying the times and days of the week from time to time. If you would like to send us feedback on the programme or the scheduling we’d love to hear from you – suggestions always welcome! 

As President of the Council, I chaired the WEA Council meeting earlier this month. 

Simon Parkinson, WEA's CEO and General Secretary, delivered an update on external engagement, including WEA's activities during Get the Nation Learning Week. WEA has also recently been featured in FE News. The article highlighted the renovation work at Whitehawk Learning Centre in Brighton. Jacqui Smith, the Minister of State for Skills has been invited to visit the centre in Spring 2026, once classes are running.   

Simon also shared his disappointment at the narrow focus of the Post-16 White Paper; there is no provision for workers over 24 and little mention of re-skilling older workers. WEA will continue to make the case for the importance of funding lifelong and lifewide learning.   

WEA's Director of Governance and Purpose, Kathleen Formosa, presented some governance updates, including election processes for Association Officers, and proposed changes to the Local Advisory Panels. The suggestions were debated and agreed by the Council, subject to approval by the board of trustees.  

Katie Shaw, Head of Charitable Purpose, presented the plans for the next three WEA member conferences, taking us up to 2028, our 125th anniversary. The Council discussed the proposals and made some suggestions, expressing support for varying the location and offering travel bursaries to ensure the events remain accessible.  The proposals to link the conference themes to the WEA strategy was well received and Council members also recognised the merits of organising the conference and awards as two separate events in future.  

The current branch network was raised as a topic for discussion by a Council member. I proposed bringing more information to the Council alongside input from the branch working group. This will enable the Council to review the current provision and explore different models for locally organised activity.   

All the Council recommendations will now be taken to the board of trustees for ratification. 

If you would like to play a part in future decision making by volunteering for a governance role at the WEA, please contact [email protected] to register your interest.  

Matt Pointon
WEA President

We are setting up a new Story Club for WEA members. We will run six Story Club sessions in 2026 and each will have a different theme.  We would love your help to gather a list of stories for each theme. 

Education - January 2026 

• This could be a story that takes place in an educational setting like a school, university or adult education class! Or it could feature someone teaching or learning. It doesn't have to be formal education, it could be a character who is learning and developing new skills or knowledge over the course of the story. 

Wellbeing - March 2026 

• This could be a funny story that makes you laugh, or it could be a story where a character does something to improve their wellbeing, such as taking up a new hobby or making new friends. Or you can recommend a story that you find uplifting and inspirational. 

Solidarity - May 2026 

• This could be a story about people standing in solidarity with others. It might be colleagues sticking together to stand up for their rights, it could be people in a community coming together to set up a soup kitchen or help save their local library.  

Migration - June 2026 

• This could be a story about someone who has moved to a new country and their experiences of starting again. It could be a story that is set in a country that becomes unstable - what causes people to flee their home? It could be a story about how it feels to be an outsider, or what makes someone feel welcomed by a new community. 

Community - September 2026 

• Stories for this session might cover characters who make new friendships or become more active in their community. There might be an event or activity that causes people to come together to solve a problem. It could feature a character who volunteers either formally or informally - perhaps someone who is offering support to someone in their local community. 

Disability and mental health - November 2026 

• This could be a story that features a character who is disabled.  The story could feature someone who has challenges with their mental health. This session will be an opportunity for empathetically exploring stories from a range of different perspectives.   

Can you recommend stories - which can include TV shows, films, short stories, graphic novels, poems, quick reads, audio books etc - that fit any of the themes above? Some stories might tick more than one box.  If you have suggestions, please add them to the form below.

Ever planned a weekly shop or saved for a holiday? The government does something similar twice a year, and the Autumn Budget is almost here.

This matters for lifelong learning. Why? Because the budget tells us:

• The overall pot for education
• Government priorities
• Whether adult learners might benefit

But here’s the reality: adult education funding has fallen from £7bn in the early 2000s to £1.7bn today, and cuts keep coming.

Learning changes lives. It boosts confidence, supports mental health, and strengthens communities. That’s why we’re fighting to protect it.

Join us:
✔ Write to your MP 
✔ Become a member
✔ Follow us on social media (Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, X)

Boost your donation to the WEA by 25p for every £1 you donate

Gift Aid is reclaimed by us from the tax you pay for the current tax year. Your address is needed to identify you as a current UK tax payer. Please complete the form below to register for Gift Aid.

If you pay Income Tax at the higher or additional rate and want to receive the additional tax relief due to you, you must include all of your Gift Aid donations on your Self-Assessment tax return, or ask HMRC to adjust your tax code. Please let us know if you need to want to cancel this declaration, change your name or home address or no longer pay sufficient tax on your income.

Kincardine Film Screening 
Dear Auld Hame: The Story of Kincardine is a short documentary film that explores and celebrates Kincardine’s industrial past and legacy. From its beginnings as a shipping port and salt mining centre, to its strong association with forestry and coal mining, Kincardine is a town constantly in flux. Dear Auld Hame investigates these legacies and how it has shaped and touched the lives of Kincardine residents.   

The film blends archival material (film, photographs and ephemera), newly shot footage, and contributions from local Kincardine residents and members of the Kincardine Local History Group, to explore this unique town’s history, characters and future. 

The project was supported by the Kincardine Community Association and funded by the WEA and Fife Council.  

The screening took place at the Kincardine Masonic Hall on Friday 3rd of October 2025, and had over 40 members of the local community in attendance.  
 

Introducing the WEA Story Club 
The Government has announced that 2026 will be the National Year of Reading.  

The National Literacy Trust has been tasked with leading the National Year of Reading and they will be working with many partner organisations, including WEA, to encourage reading for pleasure across all ages.  

We will be launching a new Story Club for members in the New Year. We will have 6 sessions in 2026 and each will have a different theme. The chosen themes are:   

Education  - January 2026 
Wellbeing - March 2026
Solidarity - May 2026 
Migration - June 2026 
Community - September 2026 
Disability and Mental Health - November 2026 

You can pick any story that fits the theme, or choose from a list of suggestions. If you want to recommend stories for our list, please get in touch  - these can be books, poems, short stories, films, TV programmes – any format is fine!  

We're also recruiting volunteers to support the sessions – read on for more information. 

Book lovers wanted for new WEA volunteer role 
Next year will see the launch of the WEA Story Club where we will create a welcoming, inclusive, and engaging environment for WEA members and learners to explore books together, share ideas, and foster a love of reading.  

Story club volunteers will play a key role in celebrating WEA’s Year of Reading by bringing people together to share a love of books and reading. The volunteer team have just started to share the role across different platforms to attract expressions of interest.  

The role may be perfect for WEA learners looking to take a step into volunteer so please do share this within your networks too.  

What will the volunteers be doing? 

Working with a WEA tutor, volunteers will help facilitate a welcoming and inclusive story club for WEA members and learners, encouraging lively discussion, community building, and a passion for lifelong learning.  

This volunteer role is ideal for someone who enjoys reading, values diverse perspectives, and wants to help others connect through literature.  

Volunteers will help WEA learners and members grow in confidence, develop communication skills, and discover the joy of reading together. Their support will create a welcoming space where participants feel included, valued, and inspired to share their ideas, making a real difference to their learning journey and wellbeing. 

For some shareable role and application information please contact [email protected].  
 

In memory of John Swinfield-Wells. 
We received the very sad news that John Swinfield-Wells passed away last month. John was a long standing supporter of the WEA and held many governance volunteer positions with us over the years, including representing Leicester at area meetings and attending the national finance committee.   

The WEA granted him lifetime honorary membership when he stood down at the age of 90. If any members would like to share their memories of John or to offer condolences, please send a message to the membership mailbox at [email protected] and we will pass these on to John's family.  

We've partnered with Farewill to offer you a trusted will-writing service. You can create a legally binding will in minutes, for free. Planning for the future is about protecting your loved ones and it’s your chance to shape the world you’ll leave behind. So, while you’re writing it, why not also consider leaving a gift to a cause close to your heart. Just like the London based supporter who remembered the WEA in his will and who’s generosity is helping  learners in Ilford access cultural learning via WEA Learn that they would otherwise miss out on. Making his legacy more than what he left behind, and instead what he set in motion: the building of confidence and community through the uplifting power of lifelong, life wide learning.

By including a gift to charity in your will you’re planting seeds of hope that will grow long   after you’ve gone. It costs nothing now but means everything later. Even a small gift can make a lasting impact helping to fund vital work for generations to come.

Consider a gift to the WEA in your will and help us create a future where lifelong learning is accessible to all. Where everyone can realise their potential. People like Jane:

Use our free wills service and consider a legacy gift to make a lasting impact on learners.

In October we offered a range of interesting member events throughout the month and hosted some speakers who are new to the member lectures.  

It's great to see familiar and new faces coming along to our online member events. We always try to ensure we create a welcoming space while providing you with a chance to learn something  different and meet new people. With a session most weeks, we’d love to see more new faces come along. 

Looking ahead, our Creativity for Wellbeing sessions are held monthly, usually in a lunchtime slot. Here’s what we have coming up in this strand: 
 

Creativity for Wellbeing: Flash Fiction 
13th November, 12:30-1:30   
WEA Tutor Patrick O’Reilly teaches a range of courses for WEA and some of his students have recently published a book of their poetry. I’m delighted that Patrick will be leading this month’s Creativity for Wellbeing session. He’ll be talking to us about a relatively new literary format: Flash Fiction. If you haven’t heard of Flash Fiction before, this is the process of creating micro-stories; while a short story might be many pages and many thousands of words long, Flash fiction tells a story in far fewer words – perhaps just a few hundred. No experience necessary – come along and have a go! 
Book your spot here.
 

Creativity for Wellbeing: DIY Festive Wrapping Paper 
12th December 1:30-2:30 
Join Abbie Cairns for another taster session, this time she’ll be sharing ideas and tips for creating home-made wrapping paper for the festive season. No experience needed, come along and have a go!  
Book your spot here.

Creativity for Wellbeing: Journaling for the New Year 
9th January 2026 1:30pm-2:30pm 
Join us for another creative journaling session with Nicky Torode where we can plan for the year ahead. 
Book your spot here.

How to join our member events 

Sign up for a free place via Zoom and you’ll be sent an invitation with a joining link. You don’t need to install any software – you can join from your browser, but there is also the option to use the dedicated Zoom app if you prefer.  

Once you join, you can choose whether to have your camera on or off. All members are muted, but you can ask questions or make comments in the chat.  Join and leave any time during the session, so why not choose a topic that you like the sound of and drop in to see what you think. 

We know that the regular Thursday slot doesn’t suit everyone, so we are varying the times and days of the week from time to time. If you would like to send us feedback on the programme or the scheduling we’d love to hear from you – suggestions always welcome! 

Don’t forget, you can watch back previous events in the members area. 
 

National Poetry Day   
Thursday, 2nd October 5pm-6pm 
In honour of National Poetry Day we welcomed Glasgow-based poet and author Henry Bell to discuss poetry in times of change and conflict. Henry read a range of poems, including work by Pablo Neruda, Bertolt Brecht, Robert Burns, Maya Abu Al Hayyat, and more.  

What our members said: 
‘Brilliant talk - passionate and learned. We should remember what the W in WEA stands for. Thank you.’ 
‘Invite Henry back - excellent. The poetry and the politics were both the point of the talk!’ 

World Mental Health Day  
10th October 2025 1:30pm-2:30pm 
Friday 10th October was World Mental Health Day and to mark the occasion we opened up our monthly Creativity for Wellbeing session to everyone.  WEA tutor Nicky Tarlton-Weatherall took us through a wonderful, mindful session where we all had the chance to create our own piece of abstract Doodle Art.

What our members said: 
‘Nicky was absolutely inspired and I will be doodling for mindfulness tonight before I go to sleep. Highly recommended’ 
‘I've loved this. I'm always 'trying' too hard. This was very freeing and I'd love to do more!’ 

Black History Month: Standing Firm in Power and Pride  
16th November 2025 5pm-6pm 
As part of our New Voices strand of talks, we welcomed Jamila Thompson, a PhD student at Birkbeck, University of London, to deliver her first member lecture for WEA.  

As October is Black History Month, Jamila talked to us about Standing Firm in Power and Pride – 2025’s Black History Month theme. She discussed how activism has changed in the digital age and how Social Media can be used as a force for good.

What our members said:  
‘Thank you so much - really interesting! So good to hear the positives about social media!’ 
‘Thank you, brilliant and uplifting’ 
 

Get online week: Introduction to Social Media  
Tuesday 21st October, 4pm-5:30pm    
For Get Online Week, we commissioned an extended 90 minute session for our members as an introduction to social media. It also outlined how we can stay safe online. WEA tutor Ekta Vishrolia talked about different social media platforms, including LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook and more. Following WEA on Social Media platforms and sharing our content is a great way to support our charitable work and also helps you keep up to date with our news.  

What our members said: 
‘Thank you for such a comprehensive, well-explained presentation.’ 
‘Thanks very much Ekta for an excellent presentation with lots of useful information and thanks to everybody for interesting questions and comments.’ 

Shining through the Dark: Poetry and Practices for Winter 
28th October 2025 5pm-6pm 
Following the clock change and the dark nights drawing in, WEA tutor Veronica Hyde will be sharing her top tips for self-care and wellbeing, as it’s very common for our mood to be affected by the lack of natural light. Veronica will intersperse her tips with uplifting poetry readings.

Mayor Claire Ward visits Nottingham Learning Hub

Earlier this month we had the privilege of welcoming Claire Ward, Mayor of East Midlands Combined County Authority, to our newly launched Nottingham Community Learning Hub where she met with learners and staff.

The mayor got to experience first hand what ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages) learning looks like at the WEA and how tailored learning is essential for building stronger communities. She shared that the highlight of her visit was meeting the learners, seeing their passion for learning and hearing what learning means for them. Watch the video here.

We are looking forward to working with the Mayor as we continue to support learners in Nottingham and across the East Midlands.

Post-16 Education & Skills White Paper

With Get the Nation Learning Week just about to start, it is disappointing that the Government's keenly awaited Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper is yet another missed opportunity to tackle the urgent challenges facing our sector.

Despite its 38,910 words, adults are mentioned just 0.13% of the time; it feels more like a “Pre-24” strategy than Post-16. We were disappointed to see that Tailored Learning is barely mentioned, despite the undeniable benefits that it brings to confidence and wellbeing. Instead, the emphasis is firmly on employment outcomes.

While jobs are vital to growth, they cannot be achieved without healthy communities and inclusive learning. Community adult learning is a regulated, essential part of the education sector, yet the White Paper fails to acknowledge its value. Funding cuts have already forced providers to reduce courses. A review of adult literacy, numeracy and digital skills provision is promised but this lacks detail including the timescale.

A true national Lifelong Learning Strategy is needed—one that puts all learners at the heart of policy. The WEA continues to advocate for inclusive education that supports both employment and wellbeing, and calls for a flexible funding system that reflects the diverse needs of lifelong learners.

Only then can we build a learning system that truly leaves no one behind. 

You can read the full White Paper here and our response here.

Simon Parkinson
WEA General Secretary & CEO