Conversation Cafe is at the  Light Box Library in Barnsley  on Monday mornings between 10am and 11.30am. Our conversation café sessions are informal drop-ins to help people develop their language skills & improve their spoken English. The sessions include discussions around topical subjects, as well as about life in Barnsley

Everyone welcome.

Albanian – Libs of Sanc Translated Flyer (pdf)

Arabic – Libs of Sanc Translated Flyer (pdf)

English – Libs of Sanc Translated Flyer (pdf)

Farsi – Libs of Sanc Translated Flyer (pdf)

Kurdish – Libs of Sanc Translated Flyer (pdf)

Polish – Libs of Sanc Translated Flyer (pdf)

Romanian – Libs of Sanc Translated Flyer (pdf)

Ukrainian – Libs of Sanc Translated Flyer (pdf)

Spanish – Libs of Sanc Translated Flyer (pdf)

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A Conversation Cafe has been open in the Central Library in Barnsley for a number of years and it has provided a safe space where people from different home countries and with varied cultural backgrounds can meet to chat and feel more confident in their use of spoken English. The Cafe meets each Monday at 10 am for a couple of hours in The Lighbox and is supported by a number of volunteers drawn mainly from the Penistone Refugee and Asylum Seekers Support Group.

Each week we choose a different topic to focus our conversation and this year we have talked about books, music, great painters, the environment and, always a favourite, food.

What we have always found is that, to quote Jo Cox, the former MP for Batley and Spen, “there is more that unites us than divides us”.

But, what do our friends have to say about the Conversation Cafe?

Narin says that “it helps me to learn about English culture, for instance your food. It helps me to get to know people and say hello to them on the street. It improves my sense of belonging. You can talk in English”

Iryna says “the Conversation Cafe gives me the chance to explore culture, local interesting things and to know more about the place where I live. It not only gives me a chance to develop my spoken English but to develop my individuality”.

“The Conversation Cafe is people from different cultures talking about shared experiences” said Bryony, who is one of the volunteers.

A couple of the regular members shared that, “I’m talking, speaking and learning English every week” and “It’s a very good experience to learn different cultures and an opportunity to meet new people”

Perhaps Gill (one of our volunteers) best expressed the purpose and value of the Conversation Cafe when she said, “it is lovely to see newcomers begin to bloom and grow in confidence”.

Who would have thought that chatting in Barnsley could achieve so much.