In its first two years, we have awarded over £15,000 from the Eddie Byers Fund to give refugees and asylum seekers in the UK and school children in Palestine and Tanzania access to life-changing language projects.

In 2017 we helped small charities buy new materials, improve their classrooms, support students through exams so they could resume their studies or take up skilled employment, and gain the language they need to book doctors appointments or talk to their child's teacher. This year we have awarded grants to projects supporting refugees and asylum seekers in the UK, and providing English lessons and teacher training in Tanzania and Palestine.

Now English UK staff and friends are attempting to raise a further £15,000 by completing the Yorkshire Three Peak Challenge on Saturday 20 October to help more people in the coming years.

The fund exists to transform lives through learning English and was set up in memory of Eddie Byers, the late chief executive of English UK.

"Eddie believed in the transformative power of education and we are so proud of what we've been able to do in his name," said Helen Kind, chair of the Eddie Byers Fund awarding committee.

"So far around 250 refugees and asylum-seekers in the UK have been helped to learn English and integrate because of the fund. This year we'll not only be supporting over a hundred more, but also reaching thousands of school children in Tanzania and Palestine."

Help the Eddie Byers Fund continue to transform lives

We want to support more projects and change more lives in Eddie's name. So please support our fundraising activities throughout the year or donate at anytime.

• Sponsor our challenges, donate or fundraise for the Eddie Byers Fund

Who is the Eddie Byers Fund helping this year?

The Eddie Byers Fund is open to UK-registered charities that can apply for funding of up to £2,500 for projects which will transform lives through learning English.

	The Tanzania Development Trust will teach English to children starting high school in rural Tanzania. High school is the only route out of extreme poverty for the children, but classes are taught in English unlike in their primary schools.
	The Hands Up Project will train 125 English teachers in schools in Gaza and the West Bank to run drama clubs to improve the English of up to 2,500 Palestinian school children.
	Asylum Link Merseyside will run a new film and conversation club for refugees and asylum seekers in  Liverpool and develop its outreach walk and talk programme to give them more experience using English in the community.
	ASHA in North Staffordshire will train volunteers to teach English to asylum seekers and refugees, especially women who have just arrived in the area with little or no English and cannot access other courses.
	Oasis English Language School in Ipswich will replace old coursebooks and textbooks they use to teach refugees and recent migrants to help them better integrate and access services, education and employment.

With special thanks so far to CES schools, Wimbledon School of English, ELC Brighton and Eastbourne and English UK London!