Learning English Later in Life Became My Path to a Legal Future in the UK By Meriam
My reason for joining VODW's classes was clear and direct, I wanted to know the English language. Over six months to a year in ESOL, I pursued that goal with real dedication, arriving excited about the opportunity and believing, from the outset, that learning was still very much possible for me.
My sessions brought real, tangible progress in English, along with a noticeable reduction in stress, a small but meaningful side benefit of investing time in my own growth. At least one moment in my classes has stayed with me, though I keep the specific memory close, and by the end of my sessions I felt genuinely excited to put what I had learned into practice. I would describe the shift in myself with a single, telling word, compatible, a sense that I now fit more comfortably into the world around me than I once did.
My message to my teachers is warm, describing them as very good and lovely, a small but sincere tribute to the people who guided me.
It is my hope for the future, however, that carries the most weight, a hope to become a legal worker in the UK. That hope is deeply personal, and it speaks directly to the urgency behind VODW's ongoing campaigns, the right to renew the ODW visa, the right to change employer without restriction, the right to settlement, and the right to British citizenship.
For me, learning English was never just about words, it was a step toward a future I hope will finally include the legal security every domestic worker deserves, and VODW continues to fight to make that hope a reality, one campaign and one class at a time.
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