Chesterfield News


County Council announces bumper Autumn of adult education courses


Learning opportunities are available for people across Chesterfield and Derbyshire, both online and face to face this autumn as part of Derbyshire County Council’s adult community education service.

During the pandemic many of the classes offered by the council’s adult community education service had to be moved online. This worked successfully in lots of subject areas so as the service gears up for the new term starting in September it will be offering a wide range of online courses as well as ones at its 16 centres spread across the county.

The online courses give students the flexibility to join in from their home or business and include ‘student paced’ ones that learners can do at any time in the advertised period.

Courses leading to qualifications and skills start from Monday 6 September with opportunities to join later in the year as well. These will be both online and face to face and include employability skills, maths and English GCSEs, digital skills, setting up your own business and environmental training.

There will be a week of free taster sessions of some of the learning for leisure courses from Monday 13 September. These are ideal for residents who may not be sure if a particular course is for them. There’s a choice of over 20 different subjects including:

  • boxing
  • music
  • foreign languages
  • creative writing
  • poetry
  • murder mystery evening – the Crich Creeper
  • social media for business
  • cookery
  • exercise – both gentle and more challenging

Then the wide range of learning for leisure courses, both online and face to face, get underway from Monday 20 September with day schools and one-off evening sessions later in the term. Languages, arts and crafts, healthy living, care for the environment, personal development and creative cookery are amongst the subjects on offer.

Those wanting to gain essential digital skills, improve their qualifications, change career, set up a business or learn to lip read will find courses to suit them as well. And there are family learning courses and provision for adults with learning disabilities and those wanting to improve their mental health.

Derbyshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education Councillor Alex Dale said: “I’m delighted that our adult education service can now offer face to face classes as well as continuing with online learning.

“This blend of learning is widening the opportunities for more residents to get involved and means that we can offer even more subjects whether for leisure or to gain qualifications”.

Bookings are now open. Find the full details in the adult education course brochures.

Book a learning for leisure course

Booking details for the qualification and skills courses varies and specifics are given in that brochure. Course fees vary with some courses free of charge and concessions for those on certain benefits and Derbyshire Gold Card holders.

Josh Marsh

Destination Chesterfield Coordinator (Investment and Marketing)

Email Josh

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