The Modern Language School – Looking Forward (and Back)

Here at MLS, we are looking forward to a new and exciting year. In fact, 2022 – 2023 will be our 12th year! It’s hard to believe! For those of you who don’t know our story here it is.

When we started back in 2011, the three partners Vicky, Lynne and Domi offered Italian, Spanish and French working out of rooms at the Arboretum at Storthes Hall Huddersfield. After one year we moved to Meltham Mills where we rented the second floor of unit G2 and had three rooms. We then added German to our list of languages and were lucky enough to have Nina Roberts join the team. Nina is an amazing linguist and a highly professional teacher whose mother tongue is German yet is fluent in English and French as well as having a high level of Italian! The next language we added to our portfolio was Portuguese taught by Lynne, after an enquiry from someone whose class had been closed at the local college. We spent six happy years at Meltham Mills when in 2018 we decided it was time to move again, we had simply outgrown the space! 

Now came one of our greatest challenges. Where could we find a space, ideally on the ground floor, that would give us enough space to have 3 or 4 classrooms? After a lot of searching, we went to view some offices on the first floor at Queens Square Business Park. Unfortunately, they were not for us. Whilst we were being shown round by the agent, we asked to see Unit 7 and this is what we saw:

For those of you who have been to our school I am sure you will agree that it is unrecognisable! After a lot of careful thought and consideration we decided that this was the right place for us. We had some plans drawn up and converted what you can see above into the school we have today. 

In 2018 – 2019 we were offering five languages at various levels over five days a week both daytime and evening. As well as cinema sessions, wine tasting and cookery evenings, not to mention our annual party! Catered by the wonderful Kay from Salute Grazing Tables. A prefect way to end the year.

In September 2019 we had our largest ever number of students enrol, and it promised to be an even better year for MLS. As we all know 2020 had different plans for everyone.

On Monday 16th March we taught our last lessons in the classroom and closed the school. By 10am the following morning we were teaching our lessons online! It was a steep learning curve for both the teachers and the students however we managed! Our students were not only learning Italian, Spanish, French, German and Portuguese but also IT! Whilst it wasn’t always easy there was lots of laughter!

2020-2021 was a mixture of lessons online (when we were forced to close the school) and lessons in the classroom, with strict covid measures in place. We kitted the school out with Perspex screens and air purifiers as well as social distancing, staggered class times and new windows that opened. In addition to that there was always, and there still is, the option to join a class via zoom. Slowly but surely more and more students returned to the classroom so we could truly become a language school again. Learning and laughing together!

In August 2021 there came another significant change to MLS. Domi’s retirement. After 10 years together as partners it was a big change and her bubbly personality and laughter is still missed by her colleagues and her students. Although I hear she is making the most of her retirement and could walk the socks off the best of us! We have been lucky to have Ali and Axelle join us to teach French this year. Ali also teaches Spanish and is yet another fantastic linguist!

This year has seen us improving our skills teaching mixed classes with some students in the classroom and some online. We even had some students attending the class whilst living in Switzerland and some dedicated students who didn’t want to miss a lesson joining online whilst they were on holiday!

The option to attend fully online or an occasional class has become a unique selling point. That together with the option to attend a catch-up class, if you miss your class, makes sure all our students get excellent value for money!

We will be ending this year, not with a party, but with a Coffee morning, to raise money for Kirkwood Hospice. Please come along to drink coffee and eat cake whilst raising money for this worthy charity on Friday 1st July 10:30-1pm. Raffle prizes to be won!

I would like to finish this story by saying a big thank you to all our wonderful students and our excellent teachers without which we simply wouldn’t exist.

If you would like to join one of our courses, please click ENROL on our website www.modernlanguageschool.co.uk or email us on info@modernlanguageschool.co.uk to find out more information. Discounted fees are available until 12th August.