MORE than 50 people attended a special coffee morning at Basingstoke College of Technology (BCoT) which aimed to welcome people who have relocated to the UK from Ukraine.
The event gave new neighbours the chance to find out more about the funded English courses available to them as well as employment in the area by meeting representatives from the Job Centre and Home-Start.
It was also an opportunity for them to establish new connections with each other and for college students to meet the Ukrainian families who have moved to the area.
Maria Thorne, course director for ESOL (English for speakers of other languages) at BCoT, said: “We have been overwhelmed with the response to our welcome coffee morning for those hosting Ukrainian families and their guests in the Basingstoke area.
“This has been a fantastic opportunity for the Ukrainian families to meet each other and the hosts to establish a network.
“We already have Ukrainian students enrolled in our English courses for speakers of other languages (ESOL courses) to help them improve their English and hope the information we’ve provided on our employability courses will encourage them onto other courses too. We feel very privileged to be able to host this event and hope that everyone enjoyed it!”
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