Learn English in Plymouth

Plymouth is a vibrant waterfront city, with a wealth of attractions and activities to enjoy. Set amidst some of England's most glorious countryside, where a rich maritime heritage meets the bustle of modern commerce, and where a popular holiday centre turns, at night, into a glittering city of entertainment. An increasingly important academic centre (especially in maritime sciences), Plymouth is home to over 33.000 students.

City Highlights

Plymouth Hoe
Plymouth Hoe, where Sir Francis Drake famously finished his game of bowls before setting out to defeat the Spanish Armada, overlooks Plymouth Sound with fantastic views across to Cornwall and Devon. This was the site where the Beatles were captured in the iconic image for the 1967 film Magical Mystery Tour. The Hoe features a Victorian waterfront promenade which overlooks the recently restored art deco sea water swimming pool: the Tinside Lido. It also features Plymouth’s best-known landmark and one of the most picturesque lighthouses in the world – the Smeaton’s Tower.


National Marine Aquarium
The Aquarium is a leading visitor attraction as well as an important educational and research centre. Situated on the Barbican waterfront it offers magnificent views across the Plymouth Sound and provides an entertainment packed half day of observation and interaction with all things that live in the sea.

Barbican
The old harbour area in Plymouth is one of the oldest and most beautifully preserved original trading ports. It was the original embarkation point for the Mayflower as it made its voyage to the New World of America. The Barbican is also home to the Plymouth Gin distillery, the oldest working gin distillery in the world. Nowadays, the Barbican is largely an entertainment and culture district full of restaurants, pubs (including Minerva, Plymouth’s oldest pub, where Sir Francis Drake is said to have had his pints) and antique stores.

Plymouth Summer Festival
The annual summer festival incorporates many forms of entertainment from Jazz concerts (Barbican Jazz and Blues Festival) and theatrical events to the largest food festival in the South West and some major sailing and motor boat racing events.

Mount Edgcumbe
Mt Edgcumbe House and Country Park is just a short ferry ride over the Tamar and is the former home of the Earls of Mount Edgcumbe. The estate’s magnificent Grade I listed house sits majestically overlooking the beautiful gardens and massive country park.

Nightlife
If you are seeking a bustling pub in Plymouth, you will not be disappointed, and if you want to get out into the surrounding countryside, you will find an array of good quality, welcoming establishments dotted throughout the hills and valleys of Devon.

Your English Language School in Plymouth

Our English language school in Plymouth is located within the academic and cultural centre of Plymouth and provides a rich and exciting cultural immersion experience for all our English language students.

Methodology

The school’s language teaching methods are designed to enable students to communicate effectively in English language. All language courses are based on topics that incorporate the fundamental language skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing.

A certificate from Meridian English language school is given to each participant at the end of their studies, as well as a report from the schools teachers outlining important aspects of studies undertaken and containing recommendations for the student's further English language studies.

Cultural Activities

Our English language school in Plymouth offers a range of cultural activities including visits to historical places and museums, trips to other towns and cities of interest in the South West, as well as sport and social activities.

• Newquay: including visit to the Fistral Bay (home to surfing championships)
• Theatre: Great shows for your enjoyment
• National Marine Aquarium: not just a look at fish but an entertaining day out including a walk under a shark tank
• Ten pin bowling: get a 'Strike' in your 'spare' time
• Tintagel Castle: mythical home of King Arthur
• Polperro and Looe: visit to traditional Cornish fishing villages
• Torquay: visit to the English Riviera
• Exeter: visit to Devon’s 2nd biggest town, founded by the Romans, hosting a famous gothic cathedral
• Dartmoor: visit to the Dartmoor National Park full of tors, moors, heather and Dartmoor ponies

Host Families

Our host families in Plymouth will make you feel truly at home. You’ll have a chance to participate in the everyday life of an English family and enjoy their hospitality but at the same time you’ll be asked to respect your hosts and their customs. We recommend home stay accommodation for those who wish to benefit from home comforts and atmosphere and for those who are looking for the additional cultural immersion to compliment their language course.

The home stay accommodation is inspected and categorized as safe for junior students. The accommodation host provides a disclosure declaration in relation to having no criminal convictions.

There are three types of home stay accommodation available in Plymouth:

First Class
The home is decorated to a luxurious standard. You will have a room to yourself in a large home with ensuite or a dedicated guest bathroom.You will experience British cuisine at its best and wine will be served with your main meals. Your hosts will be welcoming, informed and engaging.

Business Class
The home is decorated to a high standard. You will have a room to yourself in a large home with access to a guest bathroom. You will experience British cuisine at its best and wine will be served with your main meals. Your hosts will be welcoming, informed and engaging.

Standard
The home is decorated to a good standard. You will share a room with one other person (you can upgrade to a single room). You will share bathroom/s and other facilities with the members of the household and/or their guests. There will be no more than three other guests from other countries staying in the house. Your dining will reflect the diversity of the region. Your hosts will be welcoming and engaging.

University Student Residence
This is where you live in a student hall of residence. It is only available in the summer when the University students have gone home. Student residence accommodation in Plymouth is very basic. You may need to bring your own bedding, towels, cooking items etc.

Bed & Breakfast Guesthouse
This is generally a large guesthouse or a small hotel. Bed and Breakfast accommodation provides only a room and a breakfast. It does not include other meals or laundry which must be paid for separately.

Hotel
You get a bedroom to yourself and you have a choice of traditional English or Continental breakfast in the hotel. It does not include other meals or laundry which must be paid for separately. There are different hotel options available dependent on your budget.

Getting to Plymouth

Coach travel - www.megabus.com

Coach travel - www.nationalexpress.com

Rail travel - www.nationalrail.co.uk

Transfers

Individual students are welcome to use the taxi transfer service. There is a maximum of three persons in a standard saloon car with one medium suitcase per person. Each person has to add 30% price for up to five persons in a people carrier.

Group transfers can be arranged by coach from Bristol or London airports. Please contact us for a quote.

Local travel passes

• The local travel price is based on the language school organising and managing the local travel
• It may be cheaper if you organise the local travel yourself directly
• To organise your own local travel in Plymouth, please visit the following website: www.firstgroup.com or www.plymouthcitybus.co.uk
• Please note that if you organise your own local travel pass directly, the school cannot accept any responsibility for this aspect of your stay