Our Mission

Babel’s Blessing is a grassroots language school and community in London. We bring together migrants, refugees, people seeking asylum and London residents through language learning, cultural exchange and shared experiences.

We provide free English classes alongside affordable classes in London’s community and diaspora languages. Languages are more than tools for communication: they carry stories, cultures, identities and different ways of seeing the world. No language is lesser than another, and learning each other’s languages creates opportunities to meet, exchange knowledge and understand each other’s stories.

Students and teachers from different courses meet during class breaks over a cup of tea and a slice of cake, or through shared creative projects, workshops and community events. People who come to learn a language can become friends, volunteers, collaborators, teachers and active participants in London’s cultural and community life.

Our teaching is participatory and collaborative. Everyone brings knowledge and experience, and everyone has something to teach and something to learn. Babel’s is a polyphonic place where different voices can coexist melodically.

Our community language courses help sustain our free English programme, with course fees contributing towards ESOL provision. As a Community Interest Company, the resources we generate are used to support our educational and community work.

Learning is a collective process.

Our two teaching programmes:

ESOL

We run five weekly English classes for migrants, refugees and people seeking asylum. Students come to us through community organisations and partners including House of Annetta, Providence Row, Praxis Community Projects, Migrant Help, Care4Calais and Hestia’s Modern Slavery Response, as well as through friends, other students and word of mouth. We work with adults of all ages, from a wide variety of backgrounds and first languages.

We run ESOL classes both face-to-face and online. Some students prefer learning online, while others prefer face-to-face classes and the social life that comes with them. Whenever possible, we encourage students to combine both experiences.

Our face-to-face ESOL and Community Language courses share the same spaces and breaks, giving students learning English, Yiddish, Arabic, Persian, Sylheti, Bengali, Hindi-Urdu and Spanish opportunities to meet each other over tea, coffee and cake.

Our lessons are practical and connected to people’s lives, building the vocabulary and confidence to communicate with neighbours, access healthcare, support their children’s education and navigate life in the UK.

We believe in participatory education. We invite students to tell us what they want and need to learn, and we believe that students can teach us as much as we can teach them. Classes make space for people to share opinions and experiences, bring their own languages and cultures into the classroom, discuss current affairs and politics, and explore similarities and differences between languages and cultures.

Learning also happens through creative and community activities. Our students take part in filmmaking and comedy workshops, city walks, art and cultural events, museum and gallery visits, and football matches.

Our ESOL courses are offered at three different levels and are free. You can register through our online form online form.

Community Language Classes

Babel’s Blessing is a community of students, teachers and volunteers of many faiths and none. The school was founded by English anarchists and Jewish activists and educators, and today brings together people from many different backgrounds, languages and traditions. We used to offer cultural courses such as Bnei Mitzvah and Queer Talmud, but these courses are now run by our friends at The Queer Yeshiva The Queer Yeshiva.

We believe in polyvocality: different voices, experiences and forms of knowledge sharing the same space. Babel’s is a polyphonic tower where languages can coexist melodically — and where knowledge can travel beyond the ivory tower and into classrooms, community spaces and everyday life.

We are based in Tower Hamlets. Yep! We have a thing for towers.