New Saturday partnership provides a welcome base for more than 150 children from the local community to study languages, culture, English and maths.
Weston Favell Academy has opened its doors to the Association of Northamptonshire Supplementary Schools (ANSS), enabling more than 150 children from the local community to attend Arabic, Russian, Romanian, and Amalgamation (maths and English) schools on Saturdays. Lessons take place in the Academy’s English, humanities and modern foreign languages classrooms.
The partnership, co-ordinated by Weston Favell Academy’s Executive Principal, Tim Marston, reflects the Academy’s commitment to celebrating and promoting different languages. More than 460 pupils at the Academy speak English as an additional language. Pupils who are new to English, or are in the early stages of acquiring it, receive tailored one-to-one support to develop their proficiency. With support from the Academy’s modern foreign languages team, pupils can also work towards GCSE qualifications in a selected number of home languages.
ANSS’s Saturday lessons give multilingual pupils opportunities to broaden their language skills, strengthen connections with their language and culture, and develop new friendships.
Tim Marston, Executive Principal at Weston Favell Academy, said: “We are delighted to be working in partnership with the Association of Northamptonshire Supplementary Schools and to be able to provide a home for these important Saturday schools. At Weston Favell Academy, we are proud of the rich cultural and linguistic diversity within our community, and we know how valuable it is for young people to maintain and develop their home languages alongside their studies. This partnership helps strengthen those connections, while also bringing families and communities together in a positive and supportive environment.”
Alaa Abouzanad, Chairman of ANSS, described the collaboration as a “positive example of how mainstream schools and supplementary education can work together to support children, families and the wider community”. He added: “The Association of Northamptonshire Supplementary Schools is proud to work in partnership with Weston Favell Academy, providing a welcoming and supportive environment for supplementary education every Saturday.”
There are no specific eligibility requirements for children wishing to join one of the ANSS language schools. For enrolment or any further enquiries, families should visit the ANSS website (www.anss.org.uk).