Social programme and facilities
When you study English at International House Bristol you want to get the maximum value out of your time in England. Our programme of social activities, cultural events and day trips gives you the chance to practise your English outside the classroom. This will make your stay with us even more enjoyable and gives you a better understanding of British culture. For this reason, we believe that the social programme is a vital component of the learning opportunities that we offer. That's why we take fun very seriously.
- Different kinds of events - adult programme: over 120 possible events to choose from
- Our junior social programme - afternoon activities, evening events and whole-day excursions
- How we plan the event schedule - making the programme flexible and publicising it
- School facilities - Study room, Students' room and Computer room
Different kinds of events – adult programme
During the year, we choose social events and trips from a menu of over 120 possibilities. Each week during the summer season and each month during the winter, we provide a balanced mix of physical activities / sports, music, entertainment, informative visits, excursions to local attractions or other UK cities and various different parties.
The following are examples of some of our most popular events:
- barbecue and karaoke evenings
- boat trips around Bristol harbour
- pancake parties
- ten-pin bowling
- ice-cream making
- guided tours of local historical sites
- international food parties
- sports afternoons
- pub visits
- day trips to London
Our junior social programme
During our summer season, we run a separate programme of events for teenagers and pre-teenagers. On weekdays, students can enjoy afternoon activities and participate in evening events both at the Wesley College residential centre and in other locations. For the Clifton College junior social programme see this page on the Language Network site.
The following are examples of some of our most popular junior events:
- biscuit-making
- fortnightly discos
- ten-pin bowling
- visiting a local coal mine
- talent show
- circus skills lessons
- treasure hunts around a park or town streets
- sports with a professional coach
- visiting Weston Super Mare beach
- African drumming
How we plan the event schedule
At the start of the winter and summer seasons, we plan out our social programme to include a good balance of different kinds of events. However, with new students joining the school all the time, we expect to make changes to fit in with their interests and lifestyles. We do regular surveys of all students in the school and where possible, change our planned events to offer the best possible programme to suit our current group of students.
To make sure that students always know what is happening on the social programme, we keep them up to date with weekly newsletters during the summer season and monthly newsletters in the low season. There is also a notice board where all social events for the next two weeks can be viewed. Finally, there is also a social event calendar page on this website where you can view all the events that we currently have planned
School facilities
In our main school building at Oakfield Road, we have a great Study Room, a downstairs Students' Room with coffee and drinks machines a Computer Room with six modern computers and an additional 3 student computers in the Students' Room so you can email your friends and family while you are on your break.
Study Room
When you don't have lessons, you can make the most of your learning by using our Study Room. It is packed with ideas and activities to help you work on the areas you want to improve.
Some examples of the hundreds of hours of material available to you are: exam practice worksheets; authentic listening cassettes with worksheets, graded readers, grammar practice activities, and much more.
There is usually a teacher available in the Study Room to help you, so you can really make a difference to your English in your spare time.
In the study room you'll find...
- Hundreds of hours of listening practice recordings at your level
- Practice exam papers for Cambridge / IELTS exams
- Books in easy English for you to read and borrow
- Examples of good student writing
- Lists of typical mistakes for different nationalities
- Listening stations with headphones
- Advice about study techniques
- Magazines for browsing on our magazine rack
- A selection of videos to borrow or watch in the school
- A variety of English songs to listen to
- Worksheets to accompany the songs
- Dictionary activities for you to try
- Lots of vocabulary activities to build your knowledge
- Challenging grammar exercises to test your skills
- All the phrases of day from the past year
- A wide selection of interesting authentic texts with accompanying activities
- And of course a teacher to assist you in your studies
Health and Safety
Your safety is a priority for us and the school maintains high standards in this area. We compiy with all relevant legislation relating to Health and Safety. We conduct regular fire drills and careful risk assessments to ensure that our building are safe.
Physical disability
Oakfield Road site is accessible for wheelchair users. Queens Avenue site is not suitable for clients in wheelchairs.
Visual and audial impairment, dyslexia etc
We can usually help clients with some difficulties with their sight or their hearing but our courses are probably not suitable for the totally blind or the very deaf. Please contact us if you think you may need special arrangements.
If you are dyslexic it is very helpful if you can tell us in advance. In particular, if you are planning to take an examination we can make special arrangements for you but we need to know in good time.
Abusive behaviour policy – in class, on school premises, accommodation and on organised social events with International House Bristol
The following are not tolerated at International House Bristol:
- Bullying of any kind (physical or verbal)
- Racism (of other nationalities, cultures or religions)
- Excessive and / or loud swearing Sexual harassment of any kind Aggressive behaviour towards staff, students or visitors (e.g. shouting at other students inappropriately, kicking furniture)
- Theft (stealing other people’s property or International House Bristol’s property)
- Vandalism (e.g. deliberately breaking school furniture, computers, etc)
- Any illegal activity
Important: It is the school’s decision if your behaviour is unacceptable or not. If your behaviour is unacceptable, the school will give you one written warning. If unacceptable behaviour occurs again, the school will order you to leave the school immediately and with no refund of any fees.
Please note that the school may order you to leave the school immediately with no refund of fees, with no written warning, if the behaviour is very serious in the school’s opinion.
We will record all incidents in writing.
Complaints procedure
In case of problems or complaints, please fill in the form below and send to Pete Gibson or Sveta Sargant:
International House Bristol
27 Oakfield Road
Clifton
Bristol
BS8 2AT
+44 117 909 0911