We are thrilled to announce that we will feature at the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Modern Languages in April. Declan Baharini (Festival Co-ordinator and Chief Executive Officer of International Newcastle) and Sarah Edgar (Newcastle City Council School Effectiveness and Festival Steering Group member) will present to the APPG on 29th April. North East MPs have been invited to attend and the event will be livestreamed.
Declan and Sarah will profile the strong partnership approach and schools’ involvement, which has made Newcastle City of Languages and interlinked work on international links and intercultural awareness such a success. They will also share the outcomes and impact of Express Yourself: North East Festival of Languages, which was developed by Newcastle City of Languages partners and benefits schools across the whole region. Our fourth annual Festival this year has been bigger than ever, with 40 partners delivering free activities to over 400 schools and 35,000+ children and young people.
We’ve been developing Newcastle City of Languages for 5 years and running the Festival for 4 years, so it is a real privilege to share our learning and impact with the APPG on Modern Languages alongside other UK cities.
Language skills and intercultural awareness are essential for the future of the UK and for the future lives and careers of children and young people in a globalised society.
Declan Baharini
Schools really appreciate the opportunity to introduce curriculum enriching activities.
Our Newcastle City of Languages partnership provides training, support and opportunities for teachers all year round. The Festival provides schools with fun, engaging and inspiring experiences for schools and pupils from January to March each year and builds their passion for learning more.
Sarah Edgar
The event on 29th April at the House of Lords is an opportunity for MPs and Peers to meet people from across the UK who run city and city-region based activities, which celebrate multilingualism and cultural diversity and boost languages education and international experiences in schools and communities. Newcastle and the North East will feature alongside Coventry City of Languages, Portsmouth City of Languages and Multilingual Manchester.
About the APPG on Modern Languages
APPGs are informal groups of Parliamentarians with a common interest in particular issues. The purpose of the APPG on Modern Languages is to:
- explore the benefits of learning and using languages throughout the UK
- provide a parliamentary forum for information exchange and consultation on languages and linguists
- encourage and support policies and action improving the take-up of languages in schools, further and higher education, in the workplace and in the community
The Chair of the APPG on Modern Languages is Dame Nia Griffith MP (Labour), the Co-Chair is Baroness Coussins (Crossbench) and the Vice Chairs are Tonia Antoniazzi MP (Labour) and Lord Sherbourne of Didsbury (Conservative). The Chartered Institute of Linguists acts as the group’s Secretariat, with the financial support of the British Academy and the British Council. Find out more at the APPG’s entry on the Register Of All-Party Parliamentary Groups. To contact the Secretariat of the APPG, email: APPGML@ciol.org.uk