Parents go back to school to improve maths skills on Multiply programme

Mums and dads have been boosting their maths skills at their children’s schools with Capital City College Training (CCCT).

Parents have been undertaking free short numeracy courses at Brimsdown Primary School in Enfield, Thornhill Primary School in Islington and Uphall Primary School in Ilford.

The courses are designed to help them confidently deal with everyday maths tasks from budgeting to helping their children with their homework, while also helping them gain the skills to open the door to education and employment opportunities.

Stacy-Ann Manderson, 46, who took a course at Brimsdown Primary School, said: “I haven’t studied maths in years and sometimes when my daughter, who is in Year Five, asks me for help with her homework I don’t know the answer.

“I’ve really enjoyed the course and I feel more confident with numbers now. I would definitely sign up for more opportunities in the future and I’d love to try subjects like English and childcare.” 

Another Brimsdown parent Flutur Shegaj, 31, said: “The best thing about it is that I can drop my son at the school nursery in the morning and then come to the class. We are learning at the same time.” 

Matthew Clifford, Headteacher at Brimsdown Primary School, said the course had been welcomed by parents and the school was looking to offer more adult education classes in the future.

He said: “We know that childcare responsibilities and cost are barriers to adult learning. We wanted to address this by offering parents the chance to access free courses during the school day when their children are in lessons.

“Brimsdown has a strong reputation for being an inclusive school and is at the heart of its local community. We want it to be a school for the whole family and it’s incredibly inspiring for the children to see their parents engaging in education too.” 

The courses are run by apprenticeship and training provider CCCT, which is part of Capital City College Group (CCCG). They have also taken place at Elizabeth House in Islington, Mildmay Community Centre in Hackney and The Living Centre in Camden.

They courses are taught by teachers from across CCCG, which also includes City and Islington College, Westminster Kingsway College and the College of Haringey, Enfield and North East London.

They are funded by the Government’s Multiply programme, which has been endorsed by the Mayor of London, to help thousands of adults across the UK improve their maths skills.

Courses are available to adults who live in London and do not have GCSE Mathematics at grades 9-4, previously A*-C, or Functional Skills in Maths at Level 2.

CCCG’s colleges offer GCSE and Functional Skills courses in English and maths. Find out more and apply here.

If your school is interested in being part of the Multiply programme, please email multiply@capitalccg.ac.uk

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