Today I had the pleasure of working with a group of 15 year olds who had missed out on a chance to do work experience. I was given this opportunity via a fantastic social enterprise – Inspirational You, run by a phenomenal woman called Sonia Meggie.

During the day I co-presented a cv and interview skills workshop and was honoured to mentor a team of young would-be entrepreneurs in a Dragon’s Den type exercise.

But for all the positive energy, inspiration and passion I was struck by one thing that saddened me. Children who have English as a second language are so disadvantaged in the classroom. They can and do excel at academics where proper English is used but in verbal exercises where colloquialisms are de rigour these children struggle to translate historic linguistic quirks.

I sat there aching to translate to them but I couldn’t so I did the…