Courses for beginners

It’s never too late to learn something new. If you want to kickstart a new hobby or pick up a new skill then City Lit is a great place to start.

Our beginners courses will introduce you to your new passion and help you progress your skills to the next level. If you're not sure where to start then have a look at our selection below for some ideas and inspiration.

If you are ready for the challenge then let our expert tutors guide you on your journey towards to a rewarding new hobby.

Items 1-15 of 51

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  1. Spanish beginners: module 1
    Rating:
    93% of 100
    Course start date:  Mon 20 Apr 2026 (and 15 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Monica Toro

    Learn to speak Spanish on this lively, communicative course for complete beginners. The course is taught in Spanish with an emphasis on developing your speaking andlistening skills.

    If you feel you may benefit from learning at a slower pace, please check our Spanish beginners at a gentle pace: module 1 course.

    Did you know that we offer support sessions for beginner studentsover the term? More information is available in the how will I be taughtsection below.

    Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £229.00 Concession £149.00
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    Rating:
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  2. Full fee £179.00 Senior fee £179.00 Concession £125.00
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  3. German beginners: module 1
    Rating:
    80% of 100
    Course start date:  Mon 20 Apr 2026 (and 4 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Friederike Schroeder

    Choose either an in-person course in the heart of London or live online sessions.This course aims to enable students to begin to communicate with some fluency in a range of everyday situations.The emphasis is on the practical use of German and the development of your speaking and listening skills. Based on chapters 1-4 of Willkommen (Hodder Arnold).

    Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £155.00
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  4. Brazilian Portuguese beginners: module 1
    Course start date:  Mon 20 Apr 2026 (and 5 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Isabel Dos Santos
    With a population of 214 million, Brazil is the sixth largest country in the world by population size. This course aims to introduce you to Portuguese mainly as spoken in Brazil, and is taught by a native Brazilian, though you'll cover other varieties of Portuguese as well. You'll learn how to introduce yourself, talk about yourself and your family, and begin building your speaking, listening, reading and writing skills so that you can build a solid base for future study.
    Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £229.00 Concession £149.00
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  5. Jazz dance: beginners
    Last Few Places
    Rating:
    91% of 100
    Course start date:  Mon 20 Apr 2026 (and 1 other date)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Nuno Sabroso
    This class is suitable if you are new to dance or if you want to develop your existing skills and confidence.
    You will discover the basics of modern jazz dance, learn about posture, co-ordination and essential technique. Learn warm-up exercises, turns, steps and basic kicks along with amazing dance routines. It will help to build your fitness and tone your body too.
    Full fee £169.00 Senior fee £135.00 Concession £118.00
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    Rating:
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  6. Classical ballet: beginners
    Last Few Places
    Rating:
    97% of 100
    Course start date:  Tue 21 Apr 2026 (and 4 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Alexander Simpkins

    Designed for the beginner or for those wanting to go back to basics. Develop knowledge and skill in this enjoyable Ballet class which provides a fun and satisfying way to improve alignment, muscle tone, flexibility and coordination. The classes will also help to improve any other dance styles you might be practicing.

    Full fee £239.00 Senior fee £239.00 Concession £167.00
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  7. Full fee £249.00 Senior fee £199.00 Concession £174.00
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  8. French beginners: module 1
    Rating:
    85% of 100
    Course start date:  Wed 22 Apr 2026 (and 16 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Daniel Fernandez

    Join this engaging beginner’s French course designed to boost your confidence from day one. Classes are conducted in French, with a strong focus on developing practical speaking and listening skills.

    Did you know that we offer support sessions for beginner students over the term? More information is available in the how will I be taughtsection below.

    Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £229.00 Concession £149.00
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    Rating:
    85% of 100
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  9. BSL level 1
    Last Few Places
    Rating:
    96% of 100
    Course start date:  Thu 23 Apr 2026 (and 9 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Peter Brown
    Have you always wanted to learn British Sign Language and communicate with Deaf people? Develop the skills you need to gain the level 1 BSL qualification, accredited by Signature. The fees for BSL level 1 courses include a year's subscription to Signworld.







    You may wish to study BSL without the pressure of an exam, or just for fun. We can arrange for you to be taught without a formal final assessment and you will receive a certificate of attendance.
    Full fee £679.00 Senior fee £569.00 Concession £514.00
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  10. Full fee £219.00 Senior fee £219.00 Concession £219.00
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    Rating:
    82% of 100
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  11. Singing 1 (contemporary)
    Rating:
    100% of 100
    Course start date:  Thu 23 Apr 2026

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Colette Meury
    Continue to explore your singing voice in this confidence-building course. These live group sessions on Zoom will teach healthy use of your singing voice and musicianship through a selection of songs in pop, rock, folk and jazz styles. Attention is given to vocal technique and breathing technique.
    Full fee £199.00 Senior fee £199.00 Concession £139.00
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  12. Italian beginners: module 1
    Rating:
    91% of 100
    Course start date:  Fri 24 Apr 2026 (and 17 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Laura Mannino

    With its rich culture and history and its incredible landscapes and architecture, there are countless reasons to learn Italian. Whether you wish to learn Italian in order to make your visits to Italy more enjoyable, or because you'd like to speak with family and friends in their native language, this course will provide the groundwork for you to begin your journey towards fluency. Our emphasis is on speaking and listening skills so that you can start communicating quickly in Italian. Once you've completed this course you can continue with 'Italian beginners: module 2'.

    Did you know that we offer freesupport sessions for beginner studentsover the term? More information is available in the How will I be taughtsection below.

    Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £229.00 Concession £149.00
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    Rating:
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  13. Full fee £129.00 Senior fee £129.00 Concession £90.00
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    Rating:
    98% of 100
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  14. Spanish rápidamente: module 1
    Course start date:  Mon 27 Apr 2026 (and 2 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Online

    Tutors:  Claudia Cerbino

    This intensive Spanish course is suitable if you already speak a romance language like Italian, French, Portuguese or Romanian, or if you want to learn at a much faster pace. Suitable for beginners. Based on Aula Internacional Plus 1 (see the Are there any extra costs? section for ISBN). Please do not buy the book until after the first session, as if you transfer to a regular beginners course you will use a different book.

    Did you know that we offer support sessions for beginner students over the term? More information is available in the how will I be taught section below.

     

    Full fee £259.00 Senior fee £207.00 Concession £168.00
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  15. Japanese beginners: short introduction
    Rating:
    60% of 100
    Course start date:  Tue 5 May 2026 (and 4 other dates)

    Location on this date:  Keeley Street

    Tutors:  Noriko Inagaki
    Get a short introduction to the Japanese language and discover aspects of Japanese language culture in these online communicative classes. Suitable for complete beginners.
    Full fee £119.00 Senior fee £119.00 Concession £77.00
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    Rating:
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