If you ever fancy learning a new language (whatever your level), then Cactus provides Foreign…read moreLanguage Evening Classes in Liverpool. Liverpool International Language Academy (LILA) is a well-established school. The courses are usually 10 weeks long ranging from beginner to advanced level and you can choose from French, Spanish, Italian, Turkish and Portugese. Courses with their native speaker teachers are available throughout the year starting at just £159. Start dates are either in January, April, July or October consisting of one 2-hour class per week during weekdays at 6.30pm-8.30pm with an average class size of 8 students and a maximum of 12 students. Personally, I always find smaller classes better as the teacher can focus more on each individual with it being easier to manage so this is an advantage. The school is located in the heart of Liverpool, close to the main bus and train stations. There are many shops, cafes and pubs nearby making it very convenient. Thumbs up for LILA!

Liverpool International Language Academy established in 2004 is a three-storey terrace which…read moreprovides students with a convenient and comfortable place to learn in the heart of Liverpool. Situated amongst the universities, bars and cafes, LILA is also close to the main bus and train stations, the museums and shops. LILA offers english courses for non-native speakers which are accreditated by the British Council. They are very flexible in delivery whether you prefer a one to one or classes in as part of a small group. They also offer evening classes. LILA is not just for adults but also kids and teens. For those non-native speakers taking an english course with LILA, the school will help arrange accommodation for you during your stay in Liverpool whether this is at university halls, with local people or hotels. All of the classrooms at LILA are equipped with new computers so any student has access to the internet. The school also has wireless internet which you can make use of. If you are wanting to train to be able to teach English as a foreign language, then LILA is for you. They provide training in teaching English as a foreign language under the Cambridge Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults. This can be studied on a full and part time basis. LILA has also teamed up with Cactus Language Training to offer foreign language courses including French, Spanish, Italian, Turkish and more. Yay for LILA!

Fancy yourself as the next Chuck D, Bonnie Greer or Gil Scott-Heron?…read more Set up by WOW in early 2008, Liverpool Young Writers is an on-going project that aims to nurture and inspire creativity and talent in young people. Led by MC and DJ Nikki Blaze, the group includes 11 - 19 year olds interested in creative writing, poetry, rapping, rhyming and the spoken word. There's workshops in storytelling, writing and helping people find their own voice, learning and performance sessions and one to one mentoring. There's also regular showcases where the group get to strut their stuff and flex their vocal muscles in front of an audience. Meetings used to be held at Bluecoat Art Centre every Tues evening but are now held at Kuumba Imani Millenium Centre, Princes Road, L8 1TH. If you're interested in joining, get in touch through WOW and you might get the chance to share the mic with one of your icons. Previous LYW events have seen the group collaborate with Skinnyman, UK MC Sway and grime artist Bashy. Gil Scott-Heron: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OET8SVAGELA

Nice to see a place like this which is almost a sort of alternative form of education rather than…read moresticking to the traditional routes. This is a place which aims to help the creative talents which inhabit Merseyside really flourish and it appears to be doing an excellent job thus far. Inside this place is smart and the staff seem friendly and most importantly of all they are very passionate about what they are doing which is really refreshing to see. The Green room offers opportunities and why not Liverpool is famed for many things and one of them is its creativity and here it will blossom healthily. Overall great to see somewhere which is providing options and encouraging people to follow their dreams.

I attended this college for two years, I found my the tutors were friendly but all had no…read morebackground at all in the media industry. Instead of focusing on our course i was made to feel like the college pays more attention to the drama students than any of there other courses. I dont recommenced going to this college as before you graduate they pull you aside and try to convince you to take there higher education course after you graduate your BTEC. I didn't feel welcomed and wasn't offered any help. Topics are not explained properly and overall the course is not taught very well. Consider another college instead of this one.

Big Art is located within the Walker Art Gallery on William Brown Street and is designed for…read morechildren up to 8 years of age. Its full of hands on activities, drawing, painting, model making, stories, songs and dress up. Best of all its completely free. My children (aged 4 and 8) regularly choose Big Art as a choice of a day out during half terms and weekends and as a parent it is just lovely to be able to spend a couple of quiet hours simple playing with the kids away from the normal domestic distractions. They also provide a number of fun worksheets designed for the kids for use in the main gallery too.

Forget Question Time, the BBC should commission WOW* to do a TV series of Rebel Rants!…read more Launched earlier this year, Rebel Rants is a series of public events where some of the most controversial, opinionated and outspoken writers, broadcasters and campaigners in the UK discuss contemporary issues. Held at different locations across Liverpool, the events that have taken place so far have all drawn large crowds and stimulated lively debates about each subject. If you didn't manage to see radical lawyer Michael Mansfield, journalist and former anti-corruption MP Martin Bell or feminist writer and broadcaster Germaine Greer, make sure you book tickets for the last two Rebel Rants. On 22 April, Darcus Howe will be arguing that in many ways Britain has changed for the worse for Black Communities (Black Foot on the Backfoot) and on 15 May, Bonnie Greer will be asking 'Obama: Is he doing it?' *WOW is an annual writing festival in Liverpool. They launched Rebel Rants to mark their 10th anniversary.

From the outside, Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts looks like an impressive Georgian building…read morethat is home to important academics. In actual fact, it's an all singing, all dancing facility where students are encouraged to live out their Glee and Fame fantasies! Built in 1825, the building was originally used as a school for boys with past students including Paul McCartney and George Harrison. Hearing the building was empty and neglected in the late eighties, McCartney joined forces with entepeneur and Brit School founder Mark Featherstone-Witty to regenerate and re-open the building as a higher education facility for creatives. After a seven year struggle and mulit-million pound investment, the doors open in 1996 offering students diplomas, degrees and post-graduate programmes in everything from Performing Arts, Music, Dance and Sound Technology to Entertainment Management and Theatre and Performance Design. I've never studied at LIPA personally but if I was in my teens, I might aspire to. Alongside regular classes, there are masterclasses and Q&A sessions with industry veterans and musicians. Previous guests have included Trevor Horn, Malcolm McClaren, Antony H. Wilson, Alan McGee, Cathy Dennis and Will Young.

I lived with 8 LIPA students last year and dealt directly with the institute in helping to set up…read moreand promote performances across the city! I must say, this place breeds talent on a huge scale and I'd never lived amongst such a great group of people before. What's more is they all spoke highly of LIPA and all that it has to offer. LIPA has a huge success rate and many affiliations across the performance industry. It offers classes in singer/song writing, music management, performance, community performance, dance, acting and a wealth of interlinked modules. It's an expensive place to study and can be a hard place to get into due to the amount of applications that the institute receives each year.. But it's a great place, a really sound place (Excuse the pun). LIPA students have a great social community and I was proud to be a part of it as I met some fantastic and talented people from all corners of the globe!