On Monday 29th November, ‘Carpentry for All’ Branch members’ based at our Port Talbot Learning Hub, attended the Royal Welsh Winter Fair at Llanelwedd, near Builth Wells, on a joint trip with our ESOL learners from across Powys. This event is one of the finest prime stock shows in Europe, and comprises two full days of competitions, agricultural and horticultural displays, arts & craft displays and food exhibitions….with lots of opportunities for Christmas shopping thrown into the mix as well! The trip was a great opportunity for Branch members to meet our Powys ESOL learners, who all hail from across the globe – Poland, Italy, Laos, Japan, Iraq and Syria, to name but a few countries – and to share conversations and stories about living and working in mid-Wales, against the backdrop of the beautiful Radnorshire countryside. Successful integration into Welsh and UK society is key for ESOL learners, in allowing them to play an active part in the communities in which they live and work, and the Branch members were all keen to discuss how different the more urbanised and coastal county of Port Talbot is, compared with the rurality of Powys, as well as learn more about life in other countries.

The trip is the first in a number of new initiatives that will see learners from across the SW&Mid Region working more closely with the ‘Carpentry for All’ Branch, thereby strengthening the Organisation’s relationship with its Voluntary Movement. Derek Edwards, Chair of the ‘Carpentry for All’ Branch and Volunteer Tutor, is keen to welcome Addysg Oedolion Cymru | Adult Learning Wales learners to the Port Talbot Learning Hub, in order to facilitate a range of carpentry & woodwork workshops. The first initiative is a Workshop, which will run in the New Year, and which will end just before St David’s Day. The Workshop is entitled ‘National Emblems of Wales – The Daffodil’. Derek will be teaching members from the Branch, and ESOL learners from Swansea, how to carve and create daffodils from wood, and how to stain them effectively. The choice of subject for the Workshop has been carefully chosen to support the Organisation’s commitment to Welsh Language and the Welsh Dimension, that runs through the heart of the curriculum; something that the Branch is very passionate about also.

Derek, who attended the trip to the Royal Welsh Winter Fair, says: “What a wonderful day was had by all. It was great for the Branch to meet with learners from across the world, and as a Branch, we are really pleased to be involved in the new initiatives that will bring the Branch and the Organisation even closer than we already are. All of the Branch members had a wonderful day – it was fantastic to see so many different displays and exhibitions, as well as meet new people. It was a day of new friendships firmly forged, and one of shared experiences that will be remembered for a long time – a great way to end the term.”

 

Our ‘Carpentry for All’ Branch operates from the Port Talbot Learning Hub on Monday daytimes, Wednesday evenings and Thursday daytimes. The Branch has a strong and well-established following, of over 35 members currently, all of whom come together in an informal working environment, to undertake a range of carpentry, woodwork and woodcarving projects. If you would like to discover more about the work of the Branch, please do not hesitate to contact Mr Derek Edwards or Mr Jason Passmore, at the Port Talbot Learning Hub, on (01639) 894927.

To find out more about our Branches, click here.

To see more photos from the trip, please click here to visit our Facebook page.

To find out more about our ESOL classes, click here.