Our open programme in Highland is normally advertised to the general public and organised either by a member of our staff or through our local associations. These courses are subsidised by our local authority partners Highlife Highland through a Service Level Agreement. Our open programmes and courses sometimes have a small fee to attend which is paid for by the individual learners.

Mindkind

We aim to enable a positive group experience by providing a communal art space where artists can share ideas, work on projects and improve their creative practices. The goal is that the group will be peer led; allowing a less structured approach to sessions and allowing a potential sense of ownership within the group itself. At the core of the course is simply a safe space to make art with like minded individuals.

Participants will develop new literacy and digital skills. By the end of the course, they will have produced quality pieces of writing, of varying lengths, ready for publication on their organisations’ websites, blogs, Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Workplace learners completing vocational qualifications sometimes struggle with the ICT and written aspects of their vocational courses. WEA tutors can come into the workplace and provide literacies and ICT support at a time and in a place that works for learners.

Financial Literacies sessions help learners deal with the financial transactions they come across in their day-to-day lives, including understanding payslips, credit card costs, paying bills, and an overview of in- and out-of-work benefits. Designed around the needs, interests and numeracy levels of learners, these classes take some of the stress out of money-management.

Want to tell the story of your group or organisation, but don’t know how to begin? Want to get service-users talking about their lives or interests? Fancy doing a bit of research into your local community, or investigate an episode in history that interests your branch members? WEA tutors can help turn your group’s idea into reality, embedding literacy and ICT skills where required.

Through getting involved in a range of creative writing projects, learners will develop a closer relationship to, and pleasure in, their own writing. Placing learners at the centre of their learning, no two WEA Creative Writing courses are alike. Past projects have seen learners publish books of their work, perform at venues throughout Glasgow or go on to take part in a variety of further learning.

Each Creative Writing Course run by the WEA is unique, responding to the needs and desires of each particular group.

The WEA has developed practical numeracy based training for charity shop volunteers to help increase charity shop surpluses and develop skills for everyday life and the retail sector

The course aims to build family resilience for the future, by providing parents/carers of primary school children with some insight and tools for raising confident children.

While COVID 19 has brought its share of challenges, Education Coordinator for the Women in the Highlands Project: Harriet Tay, outlines a number of benefits that have materialised from the delivery of virtual learning