About

Reading Community Learning Centre is a charity that helps ethnic minority women and their families who live in Reading.

Reading Community Learning Centre (RCLC) exists to help marginalised women from Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds to achieve their individual potential. The majority of the women we support are migrants or refugees who speak little or no English, and often have limited experience outside of the home. No matter what barriers a woman faces we work alongside her as she overcomes obstacles to integration and realising her aspirations. For many women, this includes improving their English, building confidence, making friends, volunteering locally, gaining qualifications or securing a job.

Based in Central Reading, RCLC has been operating as an independent charity since 2007, and as part of national charity, Workers’ Education Association, since the mid-1990s. We have over 20 years of experience in delivering services to support traditionally ‘hard-to-reach’ refugee and migrant women. Our mission is to empower and support refugee and migrant women by creating a space for learning, and advocating for equal treatment, equal rights, and a life free from violence and discrimination.

Many of the refugee and migrant women we support speak little or no English, and often have limited experience outside of the home; as a result, many are amongst the most isolated, deprived and vulnerable members of our community. We offer a programme of outreach activities, free training classes, workshops, 1:1 information, advice and guidance, a Crèche and social opportunities. Our services are designed to build confidence, increase skills and reduce social isolation. In 2022-23, we supported 420 women on our core programmes from 36 different countries of origin.

In 2018, we carried out a RCLC Report July 2018 on the needs of ethnic minority women in Reading, in partnership with the University of Reading on the needs of BAME women in Reading. This report reinforced other local and national research into the barriers faced by BAME migrant and refugee women. These barriers include limited English language skills.

The recent economic climate and significant reform of our national welfare system have meant that many households are increasingly struggling to make ends meet. Reading has a diverse population across all income groups and a very wide cultural mix. It has extremes of both wealth and poverty in very small areas that are masked by statistics at borough and even ward levels.

The majority of our Learners come to us with such limited English language skills that they are unable to access entry-level English language courses provided by local statutory and voluntary services. In 2022/2023, 98% of our Learners had no UK qualifications. Our research highlights that English skills impacts upon migrant women’s ability to integrate with the community around them, further compounding their sense of isolation their ability to gain employment and reducing their sense of happiness or well-being. Our research highlighted, however, that BAME women who were able to form social connections, particularly having improved their English skills, were happier, more confident, better integrated and less likely to report problems.

We attract around 350 learners each year from 30 countries.

Company Number: 06442616 (England and Wales)

Charity Number: 1123017