Just the Ticket
The aim of the Workers' Educational Association (WEA) is to involve learners, volunteers, members and other partners in adult education, promote learning for life and remove barriers to learning.
The WEA North West's 'Just the ticket' project aimed to broaden learners' horizons by taking them out of the classroom into museums, art galleries, libraries, theatres and country estates around Liverpool and Manchester.
The project offered bespoke learning adventures that were designed around the theme of travel and routes with various lines radiating out from either a Manchester or Liverpool hub. The WEA acknowledged that getting out and about was a big step for some learners, especially those who are marginalised or who lack the confidence to travel on public transport.
The Just the Ticket project addressed these concerns by marketing the courses to communities, centres and organisations frequented by non-traditional learners. The project also provided public transport tickets and travel training, or organised mini buses where necessary.
Activities involved the recording of personal memories, producing creative prose and poems, creative writing, handmade paper making, hand woven fabric making, and photography. Courses were also designed specifically for learners with learning difficulties and disabilities.
The project exceeded expectations and accessed a far larger number of people than had been planned for. Just the ticket involved 212 learners across 21 courses throughout the project. It enabled different models of delivery and approaches to be explored which proved effective in attracting non-traditional learners into adult learning. Over 71% of participants were unemployed, 31% were from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities, 34% were over 50 years of age, and 22% classified themselves as disabled. 30% of participants were visiting the cultural venues in the area for the first time.
Partnerships between institutions such as broadcasters and galleries, and groups with credibility within communities, can open up learning for whole new audiences.
However, motivating some of the groups is a very difficult task, so it is important to cost in more time at the start of the project for initial relationship-building with the participants.
North West Region WEA
4th Floor,
Crawford House,
Oxford Road,
Manchester
M13 9GH
Found In...
Resources
Just The Ticket
A dedicated Just The Ticket website provided a platform to celebrate learning and showcase work such as poems, photographs, theatre and cinema reviews and photographs of craft work.
Just The Ticket video clips
Just The Ticket video clips were also added to the WEA Creative YouTube Channel.
Platform 12 Piccadilly Station Manchester
An example of a video from the Just The Ticket project
Just The Ticket photographs
Just The Ticket photographs were added to the WEA Creative Flickr account.
