Change Your Story with Nia Parry

Achieving higher level qualifications can open doors to better careers, higher earnings or more life choices. Nia speaks to three women who didn’t go to university from school. Each has taken a different route to pursue a university education – Emma, Brittany and Louise have each faced their own challenges, they talk about tackling imposter syndrome, recognising the value of the life experience they bring to their studies and their ambitions for the future. Nia is also joined by Ceri Nicole from First Campus Reaching Wider who talks about the student support available and different initiatives in place to ensure that more adults get their chance to progress to university.

Right now, there are 800,000 children in the UK who can be defined as young carers. Because of illness, disability or addiction, they juggle their schoolwork with looking after a family member or friend who cannot cope without support. On this episode, Nia catches up with Rose and Natalia; two inspirational young carers who found themselves looking after their mums at a really early age, and who have overcome barriers to study at university. Ceri Nicolle from First Campus Reaching Wider also talks to Nia about the opportunities available for young carers looking to extend their education.

Two former inmates tell Nia about the impact studying in prison had on their lives. Jonathan Gilbert was a practising solicitor who got sentenced to 12 years for his part in a large fraud. Johnny put this experience to good use in prison and enrolled on a masters in counter fraud and counter corruption. He's now teaching at Cardiff University.Garry Parkinson promised his late mum he'd turned his back on crime after spending 10 of the last 12 years in prison. He gained multiple qualifications behind bars and is now trying to put that to good use on the outside.Nia is also joined by Clare Lloyd from the Prisoners' Education Trust to talk about the effect education has on the life chances of former prisoners.

Nia speaks to two women who hated school and overcame confidence issues to gain qualifications through their workplace. Claire Arnold got her qualifications at school - not the first time but when she went back as a learning support assistant in her 20s. There she gained a degree and the GCSEs she didn’t get at 16. Meanwhile, Flick Stock had always thought education wasn’t for her. But after signing up to do a course in British Sign Language, Flick has become a huge advocate for adult learning and is now studying Welsh.

Nia speaks to two inspirational women forced to flee their war-torn homelands in search of a better life here in Wales. Larysa Aqbaso was an English teacher in her native Ukraine. After an identity crisis on arrival in the U.K., she adapted her skills to teach English to speakers of other languages (ESOL).It’s a form of learning that helped Chawan Ali, who left Iraq with her family unable to speak a word of English. After a year learning the language, she’s now looking to train up for a career in healthcare.Erica Williams, Wales’ coordinator for ESOL, also joins Nia to talk about the opportunities available for people like Chawan and Larysa across the country.

Nia catches up with two women from the Rhondda who grew up in English speaking homes and learnt Welsh later in life. Sian Sexton was shortlisted for the Welsh learners prize at this year's Eisteddfod. But while Sian started learning when she sent her children to Welsh medium school, it wasn't until the kids got older that really started applying herself. One of Sian's teachers, Helen Prosser, has a combination of Sunday school and her neighbour, Mrs Morgan from Aberteifi, to thank for her love of the language. She's now Director of Teaching for the National Centre for Learning Welsh and talks about the opportunities available for anyone who wants to get started.

To mark the 2020 Inspire! Adult Learning Awards, Nia speaks to two former winners, Johnny Spence and Scott Jenkinson.Johnny Spence’s severe dyslexia meant his school years were miserable and he ultimately fell into a bad crowd. Scott Jenkinson was homeless, a drug addict and spent time in a Spanish prison. Both talk to Nia about how education helped save them.

A taster of Change Your Story with Nia Parry. It all starts in Adult Learners Week 2020, so watch out for our first episodes wherever you get your podcasts.