Chair: Darren Paffey MP; Co-Chair: Baroness Coussins. APPGs are informal groups of parliamentarians. Full disclaimer and contacts: link below.
Westminster, UK
Joined November 2014
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Our Vice Chair @ToniaAntoniazzi delighted to meet the Ambassador of Spain Emma Aparici Vázquez de Parga @EmbSpainUK, here with Dr Fernando Bartolomé of the Embassy's Education Office, to mark @EstrellaDammUK winning the Eduardo Barrachina Golden Award for its work in the UK.
The APPG on Modern Languages was pleased to support this important event in the Lords yesterday, organised by the APPG for Classics and the @Classical_Assoc highlighting the contribution of the arts, humanities and classics to education, culture, public policy and civic life.
A real ‘pinch me’ moment, launching 3 of my 2026 books at a parliamentary reception in the House of Lords yesterday. I summarised 350,000 words in 6 minutes!
@wmarybeard @PDJSwallow @durham_uni @ahrcpress @BritishAcademy_ @Classical_Assoc @routledgebooks @LivUniPress
APPG Modern Languages retweeted
The University of Nottingham’s plans to close its languages courses would leave the East Midlands a “cold spot” for provision, politicians fear
timeshighereducation.com/new…
"As a working-class foster kid, the opportunity to study languages made a big difference to me and many others like me." @darrenpaffey, Chair of the APPG, writes in the @Guardian theguardian.com/education/20…
Several ex-Education Ministers supporting access to languages education in this @guardian article.
Studying languages, from secondary to university, is increasingly skewed towards socio-economically advantaged groups. Languages are for everyone.
theguardian.com/education/20…
Several ex-Education Ministers supporting access to languages education in this @guardian article.
Studying languages, from secondary to university, is increasingly skewed towards socio-economically advantaged groups. Languages are for everyone.
theguardian.com/education/20…
The @BritishCouncil will be giving a special briefing on these latest statistics to MPs and Lords at a meeting of the APPG on Monday.
Language Trends England 2026 surveyed teachers at 1,000+ primary, secondary and independent schools to capture the real picture of language education across England. What are the findings? Find out: tinyurl.com/39bmswch
#LanguageTrendsEngland #MFLTwitterati #MFL #edutwitter
ALT Two schoolgirls in red uniforms smiling and writing at a desk in a bright classroom setting.
ALT Over half of surveyed state secondary schools report difficulty recruiting qualified modern foreign language teachers.
ALT Competing curriculum demands and staffing pressures reduce language teaching time in schools.
ALT Three key priorities to improve language education in England: continuity between primary and secondary learning, clear GCSE to A level pathways, and enhanced collaboration among stakeholders.
Baroness Jean Coussins presented the @CIOL_Linguists Awards yesterday to the top-scoring candidates in CIOL's qualifications, along with the David Crystal Award and Threlford Cup awards recognising outstanding contributions to languages.
ciol.org.uk/ciol-awards-2026
Congratulations to Joana Cavaleiro, Duygu Türer and Aneta Flaza for their achievements; and to Mike Orlov outgoing Director of #NRPSI and @charlesforsdick Lead Fellow for Languages at the @BritishAcademy_ (pictured above) for their leadership in language policy.
Many congratulations also to @CTS_Surrey led by @DrSabineBraun for their outstanding research in translation including use of AI, who have presented to the APPG in parliament before.
New evidence from @FFTEduDatalab that MFL uptake tracks social (dis)advantage:
"Free School Meal pupils seem particularly unlikely to go on to enter MFL A-Levels compared to other subjects" (non-FSM pupils 2.6 times more likely than FSM).
ffteducationdatalab.org.uk/2…
"It is a myth that we Brits are inherently poor at languages. Where we have the right policies in place, we can be among the best in the world" - Baroness Coussins and Philip Harding-Esch writing for @duolingoUK call for language policy coherence blog.englishtest.duolingo.co…
🎉In case you missed it: The APPG hosted the 2026 @duolingoUK Westminster Language Challenge prize giving ceremony!
Congratulations to @alexlmayer , @drcarolinej and @mikejwood the Top 3 parliamentarians (out of over 250 who took part!)
Read more here: thepienews.com/mps-and-unive…
Today MPs and Lords meet teacher trainers, headteachers, and trainee teachers recruited from abroad to discuss the problems they have securing jobs in UK schools due to immigration rules & costs.
All MPs very welcome: 5.15pm, HoC Cttee Rm 5.
@PhysicsNews @BritishAcademy_
Worrying new data from Schoolsweek shows 29% of teachers say their school has reduced languages provision since the Ebacc performance measure was abandoned in November
schoolsweek.co.uk/ebacc-with…
Worrying new data from Schoolsweek shows 29% of teachers say their school has reduced languages provision since the Ebacc performance measure was abandoned in November
schoolsweek.co.uk/ebacc-with…
APPG Modern Languages retweeted
Amazing opportunity! The @PolishEmbassyUK is offering FREE in-person Polish courses to UK nationals and students in UK unis, all you need to do is tell them why. Read more here: gov.pl/web/unitedkingdom/naw…
👀Watch the House of Lords debate on visa waivers for MFL teacher and trainee recruitment live here (you can also rewind to watch from the start): parliamentlive.tv/Event/Inde…
❗️Major House of Lords debate tomorrow afternoon Thu 8 January on the visa requirements complicating the recruitment of trainees and teachers from abroad in modern languages and other subjects dependent on overseas recruitment such as Physics. Details:
parliament.uk/business/news/…
❗️Major House of Lords debate tomorrow afternoon Thu 8 January on the visa requirements complicating the recruitment of trainees and teachers from abroad in modern languages and other subjects dependent on overseas recruitment such as Physics. Details:
parliament.uk/business/news/…
Very welcome news that the UK will be rejoining Erasmus+ from 2027 for international placements and partnerships. Funding for schools, FE, VET, HE, adult education, youth and sport. Spread the word!
gov.uk/guidance/the-erasmus-…
🦉The @duolingo Westminster Language Challenge is *back* for 2026! Is your MP participating? They can share a £20k prize fund for a chosen charity - and raise the profile of language skills in the process. Launches 6th January. Read the press release: blog.englishtest.duolingo.co…
🐤 🏴 It was great to host @duolingo in Parliament for their Language Challenge drop-in. As a former modern foreign languages teacher, I’ve seen first‑hand how learning another language can open doors and improve your focus. Set yourself the challenge this Christmas 🇮🇹 🇫🇷
Important from @BBCNews on university 'cold spots' in some subjects including languages as courses are cut, as evidenced on HESA's new data tool.
Vital @UniofNottingham and @uniofleicester consider this as they plan cuts.
bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cnv2…
Read Dr Becky Muradas-Taylor's @DrBeckyMT landmark research on language 'cold spots' here:
tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.…
