NATECLA Training (in-house)

Continuing professional development is essential for English language teachers, at all stages of their career. 

At NATECLA, we realise that high quality, current and affordable practical in-house training, specifically tailored for ESOL departments, is in short supply. With our network of highly rated teacher trainers, NATECLA has a well-established in-house training service for further education colleges, adult and community education services and independent training providers, including those in the EFL field, to support teachers and managers across the UK with developing teacher knowledge and practical teaching skills. 

Training topics available

Our innovative and highly experienced trainers - all with varying experience and approaches -  offer a wide range of practically-focused sessions which can be tailored to your department’s requirements. We can also develop entirely new sessions on request.  We will come to you for in-person training for half or full days, and we also offer online sessions from 90 minutes to half a day.  Here are some of the topics our trainers can offer:

  • Using authentic listening resources productively

  • Unlocking IELTS: A key to the exam for new IELTS students

  • Of course: Using a coursebook and engaging with emergent language

  • Good practice in developing ESOL resources

  • Getting creative with grammar teaching

  • Exploiting texts for lexis

  • Online tools to aid vocabulary development

  • Designing digital resources and online tasks

  • Embedding ESOL in mainstream courses

  • Basic literacy for ESOL learners

  • Teaching pronunciation 

  • Differentiation: stretching and supporting learners without over-stretching teachers

  • Giving effective feedback

  • Teaching unplugged – Dogme and ESOL

  • Task-based learning

  • Developing writing skills – moving learners on from E1

  • Happiness and wellbeing in the ESOL classroom

“The workshop exceeded my expectations with content, structure, guidelines and recommended reading. The workshop was very engaging with plenty of delivery, activities, discussions and Q&A time.”

Training delegate (Trauma Informed Practice and ESOL; ESOL for work & embedding ESOL in vocational programmes)

Picture of two smiling ESOL teachers
  • Carol Samlal

    Carol is an ESOL & digital skills tutor at the Adult Community Learning, Essex. She is also the current the Branch Chair of NATECLA East of England and works as a freelance materials writer (she even illustrated some of the images for Teaching Tracks Top Ten). Carol is passionate about what is happening with our climate and is keen to raise awareness of the factors affecting our natural environment and find ways to encourage others to adopt a more sustainable lifestyle.

  • Christine Tudor Jones

    Christine has been a member of NATECLA for over 20 years and has been teaching ESOL in Birmingham for the same length of time. She currently works at South and City College Birmingham as a CELTA trainer and continues her ESOL teaching in the voluntary sector.

  • Isla Flood

    Isla is a creative ESOL and community practitioner with extensive experience teaching teenage and adult ESOL learners, coaching, training and developing staff and working with technology to enhance learning. Currently working as Head of Learning Technologies (and still teaching ESOL) with a mission to improve staff and students digital skills in order to enable them to learn better and develop more.

  • Chloë Hynes

    Chloë (QTLS, ATS, CTEACH) has a particular interest in action research and developing the digital literacies of learners and staff alike.

    She teaches in her local college and is also involved in a variety of freelance projects including: course design and training on the ETF’s Award in Education and Training (ESOL); community space lead for AmplifyFE; e-learning facilitator for NILE; and trainer and consultant for NATECLA.

  • Eve Sheppard

    Eve has been teaching ESOL and Functional Maths for nearly 20 years at a general FE college. Since 2019 she has worked as an Advanced Practitioner, responsible for CPD and coaching for teachers across the college. She has worked on several action research projects, including a Digital and Blended learning project with Greater Manchester colleges and an OTLA project investigating vocational provision for ESOL students. She loves using digital tools to support learning and is a certified Level 2 Google Educator.

  • Mary Osmaston

    Mary Osmaston is an experienced ESOL teacher, manager and teacher trainer (CELTA, Level 5 ESOL and PGCE), and one of the trustees of NATECLA. She now works mainly in teacher development and quality improvement, and as a part time Ofsted inspector. She has led professional development workshops for ESOL teachers and teacher trainers for many years, focusing on practical teaching and learning as well as teachers’ knowledge about language and evidence-based approaches to language teaching.

  • Aleks Palanac

    Aleks is Head of Sanctuary at the University of Leicester. She has been heavily involved in developing University of Sanctuary work at her institution and across the HE sector, particularly by widening participation to HE for refugee-background students through trauma-informed English language provision. Her recent work has included her article entitled ‘Towards a Trauma-Informed ELT Pedagogy for Refugees’ and 'Beyond Resilience: Facilitating Learning and Wellbeing in the Refugee Language Classroom'

  • Olena Kolesnyk

    With an MA in Linguistics and CELTA qualifications, Olena worked in different countries, including Ukraine, China and Czech Republic, teaching ESOL, European Culture, and other subjects in schools and universities for over 20 years. Since moving to the UK, Olena has been teaching ESOL and Community Interpreting for the Workers' Educational Association.
    Olena is passionate about multilingualism and ESOL. She has also been delivering ESOL CPD workshops and developing courses for the WEA, supporting ESOL tutors and being an active member of NATECLA East.

  • Rachel Öner

    Rachel is a freelance Education Consultant and teacher trainer specialising in Essential Skills in Further Education, in particular English and ESOL, CPD delivery and resource development. She is the current National Co-Chair and Trustee of NATECLA, as well as sitting on the East of England Branch Committee. She is a Fellow of SET, a holder of QTLS, ATS and CTeach, as a Member of the Chartered Institute of Teachers. Rachel has been awarded with an Advanced Virtual Trainer qualification and runs various online training and networking events. She has experience in various FE settings including work-based, community and prison learning.

  • John Sutter

    John has worked as an ESOL/literacy specialist in the context of teacher education and national improvement projects for over 20 years. After returning from teaching and teacher training overseas, John joined the ESOL team at LLU+ at London South Bank University where he designed, ran and taught on a wide variety of ESOL, Literacy and generic teacher education courses, ranging from initial qualification to MA level. John has had a long involvement with many national and regional projects in ESOL and Literacy including working as researcher, consultant and writer for the New Adult ESOL Core Curriculum and subject specialism, the Lifelong Learning UK Professional Standards ESOL and Literacy, the ESOL Citizenship Project and Materials Pack, and most recently the development of the new Education and Training Foundation New to ESOL resources. John is a director of Learning Unlimited, which he co-founded in 2011, and which continues the work of LLU+. He now divides his time between ESOL/literacy teacher education, and a second (and original)  career as a musician.

  • Judy Kirsh

    Judy has more than 35 years’ experience in ELT as a teacher, teacher-trainer, external examiner, consultant and materials-writer. Her specialism is ESOL literacy and she has recently co-developed an online self-access CPD course to support teachers working with ESOL literacy learners. She also developed many of the 'New to ESOL' resources on the Excellence Gateway. Judy previously worked at LLU+ London South Bank University on a wide range of projects and courses, and developed teacher-training resources for the British Council ESOL Nexus project. She currently volunteers with Herts Welcomes Refugees and is a former trustee and co-chair of NATECLA.

  • Emily Bryson

    Emily Bryson is an ELT professional with over 20 years’ classroom experience. She has written various print and digital materials, including National Geographic Learning’s Voices series, 50 Ways to Teach Life Skills and the A-Z of ESOL. She is passionate about diversity, equity and inclusion and the use of visuals and graphic facilitation strategies to make learning more engaging, accessible and fun. She is a resident blogger for Ellii learning and frequently delivers teacher education sessions for a variety of ELT organisations. Her teacher development courses in visual thinking have been described as ‘the nicest corner of the internet’.


    @EmilyBrysonELT

    www.EmilyBrysonELT.com