Page 16 - ELG1804 Apr Issue 456

IATEFL special .

Sussing out Sussex colleges in the area, including those in

Brighton and Chichester.
Sussex has also always been one of the top
The beautiful coastal county of Sussex offers some of the destinations for language travel with language
schools clustered around the county’s
best English language learning opportunities in the UK, main seaside towns: Brighton, Eastbourne,
writes Melanie Butler Worthing and Hastings.
Founded in 1936, the Eastbourne School
of English, now called the English Language
his year’s Iatefl conference is based boarding school runs its own holiday language Centre Eastbourne, is said to be the oldest
in Brighton, the largest town in the courses: Buckswood in the tiny village of English language school in the region.
county of Sussex and one of the Guestling near Hastings. It is owned and run by the same charitable
Tlargest centres for English language The first ‘plate glass’ university in Britain, trust as the English Language Centre
teaching in the country. the University of Sussex, was founded in 1961 Brighton, founded in1962, the top performing
So what does Sussex have to offer in terms just outside Brighton. language school in the area. Language travel
of English teaching? In the Times Higher top 200 ranking has been an important revenue earner for
Sussex is at the top of the UK tables for institutions, the university also scores highly Sussex for over 50 years and with this history
sunshine and for safety. The south coast for teaching excellence. It also does very well comes an educational infrastructure which is
county, so close to London, is at the bottom for research in language and linguistics and second to none.
of the table for violent crime in England and boasts an exceptional language centre. There is an army of trained, qualified
even the vibrant city of Brighton has crime The new University of Chichester, based in English teachers
levels more common in a small country town, the county’s only cathedral city, also scores who have chosen to
according to the International Peace Index. well at accreditation. settle in the area, ‘Safety is one
Safety is one reason, perhaps, that The top of the UK’s accredited language a tradition of host reason, perhaps,
generations of British parents have sent centres, based on British Council inspections, families and great that generations of
their children to boarding schools in the is down the road at the University of communications British parents have
country. The first British preparatory school Brighton. The county also boasts the top not only with sent their children to
catering exclusively to children under 13 was accredited Further Education College, Sussex London but to boarding schools in
established here in 1837. Downs, with centres in Eastbourne, Hastings Sussex’s ‘own’ the country’
Sussex boasts a large number of and the delightful country town of Lewes. international airport
independent schools, many nestling in the It is one of a number of accredited state at Gatwick.
Sussex downs, the famous chalky hills that
run south from the international airport
at Gatwick and finish in the famous Seven
Sister cliffs between Seaford and the peaceful,
dignified seaside resort Eastbourne.
In the summer, Windlesham is home to a
summer English centre run by neighbouring
boarding school Bede’s, which runs a small
chain of summer boarding courses.
Many of Sussex’s boarding schools are used
in July and August by Britain’s summer school
operators. Some are family-run operations
like Manor Courses and CLAC, which have
worked with the same boarding schools for
two generations.
All the Sussex boarding schools enrol a
healthy number of international students,
but apart from Bede’s, only one other Sussex
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