Hi, I’m Sarah Halsey.

​

I am the teacher and manager for The Reading, Writing

and ESOL Project, which I started in November 2020.

The project supports people experiencing homelessness

to access support for their reading, writing and English

language skills. 

 

​I started The Reading, Writing and ESOL Project having

worked in the homelessness sector for 11 years. I saw how much the people I worked with enjoyed learning and all the benefits that come with it. I also saw how difficult it was for them to access. The project was set up to offer accessible reading, writing and ESOL support to people experiencing homelessness. This was done by offering lessons that were trauma informed, flexible and offered different choices for studying. 

​

Between November 2020 and February 2025 the impact of the project was significant:

• 803 lessons were run with 24 learners across six different hostels. To hear about the experiences of students and staff working with the project in this time, click here.

• An evaluation was completed in September 2021, which is available here.

• One partnership with a housing association led to them successfully applying for funding for an English language and literacy teacher. In January 2024 I joined the organisation in this role. This is now the focus of my teaching.

​

The project is now evolving. How it supports people experiencing homelessness to access learning provision is changing. The project will now do this by:

​

• raising awareness of the learning needs of people experiencing homelessness and the barriers they face in accessing provision.

• offering training for teachers, facilitators and organisations in areas such as trauma informed approaches and accessible learning provision for people experiencing homelessness.

• supporting organisations working with people experiencing homelessness (for example hostels) to make links with learning providers.

​​