A LANGUAGE enthusiast is hoping to cure monolingualism in Winchester with his new academy. 

Chris Polatch has set up a tuition business called The Language Academy (TLA) and he is urging people to sign up.

The Language Academy is the sister business of English Naturally, which runs courses for foreign students. 

It celebrates its 25th anniversary this year but Chris is keen to widen the opportunities in Winchester for language learning. 

He said: “Locals can learn French, Spanish, Italian, German as well as English as a foreign language. Not all locals are native English speakers!" 

Classes at the academy, in Mint Yard, The Square, cater to a range of schedules and age groups, as well as over weekends, something that is increasingly popular in Winchester.

Chris also encourages people with different motivations to learn foreign languages to get involved, including children of parents with a non-British background.

He said: “We have a popular Italian heritage course for youngsters that takes place every Sunday in term-time.  Children of local people with an Italian background – there are more than you’d imagine - come along to keep up their language skills and retain the connection with Italy, its language and culture.”

The Language Academy also promotes a real-time, direct and social approach to language learning. 

Chris said: “We tend to avoid online tuition – it’s just not as much fun for teachers or learners, and there is a social aspect too – classes often leave class to repair to a local pub or café to carry on learning.”

TLA is also offering a wide range of courses, with plans to introduce Polish and Chinese. 

Chris said: “Seriously, it doesn’t really wash for us to work on the basis that everyone speaks English.”

Chris comes from a professional background, having studied European languages such as French, German and Italian and also travelling widely in South America, picking up confident grasps in Spanish and Portugal.

He said: “I moved to Winchester with my family in 1995, having spent 10 years running a big language school in London, prior to which I worked abroad in the same sector for 10 years, with stints in Milan, Bologna, Lisbon and Perpignan.  I studied languages at Lancaster Uni.”

Visit language-academy.uk to find out more. 

  • This article was written by Imogen Clarke, from the University of Winchester.