I'd like to teach the world to speak - with Brummie accents

Europeans often choose English as their second language - and one Handsworth Wood entrepreneur has given up her career at a children's centre to tap into the world's desire to learn our lingo.

Whenever I return from my holidays, I always feel a little guilty. Not because of the week of indulgence, lazing around or even the damage I have inadvertently caused to the ozone layer. But always because of my inability to speak a foreign language.

Pigeon Spanish and German get me by. I don’t even try Greek as I cannot decipher their alphabet. The reason I don’t leave the comfort zone, is that everyone else seems to speak my language.

Thanks to a woman from Handsworth Wood, Brummies now have the chance to rid themselves of the guilt of being ‘incommunicado’ the easy way.

Invite a plucky foreign student around, show them your way of life, teach them a little English – and get paid, to boot.

Lorna Allen, from Inchcape Avenue, used to be a deputy manager at The Brambles Children’s Centre in Perry Common.

Courtesy Nick Horner, Great Barr Observer

Download I'd like to teach the world to speak - with Brummie accents (PDF)

Mumpreneur 2011 Award

BIRMINGHAM BASED "MUMPRENEUR" REACHES FINALS OF NATIONAL BUSINESS AWARDS

Local mum and entrepreneur, Lorna Allen, has earned herself a place in the final lineup of The Mumpreneur Awards, an annual ceremony aimed at celebrating parents throughout the UK who manage the difficult task of juggling business with family life.

The mother of 2 runs Live and Learn Homestays Ltd., an organisation offering personalised English courses and leisure activities to people visiting the Midlands region from abroad. Lorna's customers (homestay guests) benefit from a full immersion experience where they are placed with host families and have the unique opportunity to improve their English skills and learn about British culture through sharing their host families' lives.