Calling All Writers and Want-to-be Writers!

English PEN and Arvon join together to give you a chance to win a place on an Arvon creative writing week! 

For this year’s Arvon brochure competition, English PEN has teamed up with the UK’s leading creative writing charity to run a competition called Made-Up Words.

We’re giving you the chance to win a full place on an Arvon course at one of the three English Arvon centres, plus travel to the Arvon house (the equivalent of a second class train ticket within the UK). Arvon run an exciting and broad range of courses for writers at all stages.

How To Enter

International Students: 10 Points About Migration and Study

Home away from home is honoured to publish this poignant booklet produced through the collaborative efforts of talented duo Aabdeen Arbab (author) and Grace Needleman (illustrator).

New Beginnings' Activities Are Back!

Thanks to Laura, New Beginnings Mentoring's lovely new intern, for outlining some of the exciting activities on tap for the first part of 2013. 

The new year has begun and so have our activities! Every new year is full of resolutions and good intentions; let’s try to make them true by joining the activities The Forum organizes. There are many courses you can choose from - it just depends on your needs, passions and how much you want to be involved in our big family. Activities are organized for you to gather together, share your knowledge, gain new skills, discuss what you are interested in and make new friends...what are you waiting for?!? 

Let’s have an overview of our activities from January to March:

English classes: to express yourself in a foreign language can be difficult but it is the first step towards integration and involvement in your new city. We teach three kinds of classes - for those who need to learn English from scratch (Beginners), for those who have a better command of English and need to improve (Intermediate) and a Conversation class to become more fluent in speaking. 

Odi's Story - Learning to Stay Positive

This is the fifth instalment of Odi's courageous story of his political imprisonment in Iran, his difficult voyage to London, and his struggle towards asylum and a new life for himself and his family in the UK.  This very personal account is representative of the horrors and challenges faced by so many asylum seekers around the world. 

From 2009 till now, all I heard from immigration organisations was that they thought I was a liar and didn’t believe me at all, just because I didn’t tell them I had any signs of tortures on my body.  And this made me very sad because we have lots of kinds of tortures – mental and physical – and I know my tortures will stay with me in my mind to the end of my life.  Sometimes your mind can’t recover or forget, even with the help of doctors and tablets.  But maybe the doctors at Helen Bamber can help me feel less about them, and help with nightmares and flashbacks.