Lyni Sargent – GCSE English For Adults

Name: Lyni Sargent

Course Name: GCSE English For Adults

Course Type: Part-Time

Image caption: NWSLC adult English student Lyni Sargent
Creative therapist Lyni Sargent returned to studying English as an adult after she realised that her lack of success at school had been due to undiagnosed dyslexia. Lyni, from Hinckley, always felt that she had a ‘black cloud’ following her around and wanted to prove to herself that she could achieve her GCSE. She received a grade 9 in English from NWSLC last year and has now achieved a First at the end of Year 1 of a masters’ degree in Art Therapy at the University of Sheffield as part of the NHS’s Northern Programme.

Lyni said, “I failed my GCSEs when I took them at school but have since revisited maths and improved my grade to a B. I went on after that to achieve a foundation degree in photography which I subsequently converted to a bachelor’s degree. It was only after I had started at university that my dyslexia was diagnosed, and I found out that I also have dyspraxia.

“I really enjoyed studying English at the college and I can’t speak highly enough of my tutor Michelle who was excellent and very supportive. She told me that I needed to believe in my own ability and helped me to develop my confidence so that I started getting very high marks and even 100 per cent in one test! I was delighted with my GCSE English grade and am proud of my continued success in higher education.”

Lyni works as a creative enabler through her business Starleng Art Therapy helping people with dementia and mental health issues to engage with life through artistic hobbies. During lockdown, Lyni wrote a book for her daughter called The Pirates’ Underpants, which was printed using crowdfunding, and has become a trilogy available in Waterstones.

Lyni said, “In many ways, the lockdown provided me with the chance to improve my English skills and gain confidence in my abilities. My experience of college and university has been very positive, and I would certainly recommend it to other adults who want to gain qualifications that they have missed out on. It is not like going to school and you are treated like an adult, so I really enjoyed it.”

Lyni will return to her studies at Sheffield in October and will complete her masters on a part-time basis over the next two years. As part of her studies, Lyn is due to start a work placement at the Sunrise Wellbeing Therapy Centre in Anstey.