This month, we're launching a new series of free events for all our member centres: the English UK Regional Roadshows. 

We want to give every member centre the chance to get together with local colleagues and English UK staff to discuss your priorities, our plans to tackle the big issues facing us all, and get to know each other better. 

To make this as easy as possible for every member, we're planning a series of events to cover every region of the UK by spring 2016. Longer-term, we're considering a regular schedule of four roadshows each year.

Members in each area will be invited to their local roadshow, with any extra places offered to centres from outside the region. The first event will be held in Cardiff on Thursday 25 June in member centre WE Bridge International Ltd. 

The events are likely to have a very similar format: in Cardiff, the English UK Member Roadshow Wales starts in the late afternoon, with an introduction from senior English UK staff about our strategy and priorities. That will be followed by small group discussions on topics prioritised by English UK's Membership Survey, including:

• The UK Government's attitude to immigration and students
• Our lobbying and public affairs work
• Promoting the UK as the world's premier ELT study destination
• Quality assurance and Accreditation UK
• English UK's membership structure and value for money. 

There will then be an opportunity for groups to feed back their thoughts into a general discussion before we close the event with a short networking drinks reception. The whole event will last about three hours.

Where possible, roadshows will be organised with English UK's regional or national group, and so the format may vary. English UK staff members attending will also vary from event to event.

We will invite members in each region to their roadshow as it is organised, and will also update on how events are going using the Newsflash, the website, Twitter and Facebook, so look out for news. 

Please do make the time to come to your local roadshow, and encourage colleagues to attend as well. We are really looking forward to getting all our members together over the coming months, for the start of a deeper conversation about how we can all work together to develop English UK and support our industry.

Member centres in Wales should have received an email inviting them to the Cardiff event: book your place at the English UK Member Roadshow Wales.