City Lit

City Lit is an adult education college on Keeley Street in Covent Garden, and it describes itself as London's biggest adult education college. It offers thousands of in-person classes and online courses taught by expert tutors, and its home just off Kingsway makes it one of the largest day-to-day institutions in the neighbourhood.

The college works in partnership with organisations including the Mayor of London, the Department for Education and the British Museum. It runs a Centre for Deaf Education and a Centre for Learning Disability Education, offers specialist provision such as teacher training, access to higher education, speech therapy and counselling and psychotherapy courses, and is designated as a College of Sanctuary. The Keeley Street building also houses the John Lyon's Theatre, where drama and performance students stage public productions, and the City Lit Gallery.

Adult education college in Covent Garden

The curriculum covers art and design, culture, history and humanities, a wide range of languages, performing arts including music, dance, acting and theatre, health and wellbeing, writing, and business, marketing and technology. Classes are aimed at adult learners at every level, from complete beginners to advanced students, and courses are delivered both in person and online so students can choose how they study. The college particularly supports deaf learners, people with learning disabilities and speakers of other languages.

What to expect on a visit

Most students arrive for daytime or evening classes in the studios, workshops and classrooms spread across the building, and there is a cafe on site for breaks between sessions. Holborn and Covent Garden stations are both a few minutes on foot. The theatre and other rooms are also available to outside organisers, which is why City Lit appears among the event venues in Covent Garden; for a purpose-built meeting venue nearby, see Wallacespace Covent Garden on Parker Street.