Adult Refugee Programme
Westmeath VEC Adult Refugee Programme has been running since March 2009.
We have a group of Kurdish Programme Refugees living in Mullingar who are participating in our programme. Our main aim is to help the students to achieve competence in the English language, to gain skills and to integrate into the community.
Our tutors Laura Lowry and Nick Newton offer English classes and also computer classes using Touch Typing Read and Spell. There have been a number of cultural and social outings and we try to make many of our activities family friendly. A trip to the zoo was a great success, apart from the pouring rain.
We recently completed a Food & Health course run by the HSE and enjoyed some delicious food.
Our future plans include a community garden in collaboration with North Westmeath Literacy Scheme.
"We have always found the VEC very helpful and they try so hard to help us in every way they can. We enjoy the course because there is a lot of variety, for example cooking and music workshops but we think we may be better cooks and have a better diet than the Irish!
English is so important to us to be able to take part in everything in this country and many of us dream of being able to find work and be independent. The VEC course can help us in this dream"
Jamass
Contact:Vanessa Finlow, ARP Coordinator
Mobile: 086 023 3031
Email: arp@whvec.ie
