A FAMILY fun day marked the end of a 20-week pilot project to help new immigrant families settle into life in Swindon.

There were colourful displays of dancing and music at the event, which took place at Drove Social Hall in Southampton Street on Saturday.

Each of the participants on the course was also presented with a certificate of attendance by new mayor Coun Rex Barnett.

About 40 families took part in the course, which began in November and was mainly devised to help them understand the education system in the UK.

Maria Neves, senior care and support adviser at Drove Children’s Centre, said: “It also covered basic English literacy and numeracy and activities for parents and children to learn together and support each other at home.

“There were guest speakers who talked about the importance of good attendance at school, people from the library to explain what they had to offer and parental support advisors who could support families needing a bit more help.

“They were all entered for a spoken English exam at the end of the month too.

“Some of the parents are illiterate in their first language so they have no formal qualifications.

“We hope that after this course they will be able to follow it up in a larger group, in college for example.”

The course was funded by the Migration Impact Fund through Swindon Borough Council.