An authentic place to learn English

Eastbourne is a traditional Victorian seaside town and regularly the UK’s sunniest place. London and Brighton are close, and beautiful villages and rolling hills are on the doorstep:

Enjoy a friendly, typical town where you can relax and integrate easily. There are excellent transport links with London and its international airports. We think you’ll find Eastbourne to be culturally accessible and welcoming.

A map of the south east corner of England showing the location of Eastbourne relative to London airports and the ferry port of Newhaven.
A professional photo of the red and white striped lighthouse just off the East Sussex coast by Eastbourne. Whilst the lighthouse is impressive, so too are the white chalk cliffs which take up a third of the photo as they disappear off into the distance to the left of the photo. The rest of the photo is of blue sky and blue sea.
A close up picture of a palm tree with multiple branches and spiky looking green fronds. It could be almost anywhere in the world, but we think it's in Eastbourne where ELC has it's English school. If you don't see this palm tree, you'll certainly see some like it.
A photo of Eastbourne taken from the hill towards Beachy Head. You can see some of the typical red-brick houses, the pier and the bay disappearing into the distance. It's striking how green the town is.

ELC Eastbourne is a friendly school with a family feel

Our English school in Eastbourne has 22 classrooms in 2 buildings right in the centre of town. The school has its own beautiful garden. The beach and the main shopping centre are five minutes away.

Discover ELC's history

English courses by the sea

Teaching excellence in a calm setting

ELC Eastbourne is in the top 5% of language schools in the UK according to EL Gazette (the English Language Gazette).

Our English lessons are taught by qualified professional teachers in a friendly, caring and safe learning environment, and you are sure to make friends among our diverse mix of students of many nationalities.

Meet some of our teachers

Our student regional mix

  • Western Europe: 58%
  • Eastern Europe: 7.3%
  • Central & South America: 2.4%
  • Africa & Middle East: 18.4%
  • Asia (exc. Middle East): 14.2%

School info

  • Founded: 1936
  • Classrooms: 22
  • Students: 70 off-peak; 220 peak
  • Maximum class size: 12
  • Average class size: 9
  • Minimum age: 16

An airy and relaxed seaside villa

There’s plenty of space in Eastbourne, which has plenty of places to relax between lessons:

  • Two buildings
  • free internet and wifi access throughout
  • interactive whiteboards, iPads, TVs
  • large student lounge with table-tennis table
  • student kitchen
  • games room with pool table and PCs
  • study centre and computer Room
  • spacious garden

Discover our building and facilities

Your home while you study English in Eastbourne

You can choose to live in someone’s home (homestay), in hotels and guesthouses, or in self-catering shared student houses. All options are within 40 minutes of our school.

Accommodation options in Eastbourne

A photo of a young student, typical of one that might attend General English classes in Eastbourne relaxes on his bed in his homestay accommodation. There's a laptop and books open on the bed but he's currently looking at his phone.
This is a striking image of a twin bedroom at the Wilmington hotel in Eastbourne. Striking because the wall behind the beds is bright orange in colour which contrasts nicely with the dark wood of the beds and the crisp white sheets and towels.
The beautiful old wooden revolving doors of the Hydro Hotel in Eastbourne.
A stock image of a ginger and white kitten in a garden, staring straight at the camera

Explore the south with our busy social programme

With a piano, guitars, pool table and tabletennis in school as well as a large garden for barbeques in the summer, there’s already plenty to do inside the school when the lessons stop.

We have a daily social programme of activities which mix free and paid-for activities so there is something for everyone. The programme evolves all the time depending on what you like to do and what past students tell us are the best activities.

At the weekend, you can explore the countryside, take a short train ride into Brighton or up to London, or sign up to join a group on a full day excursion to famous cities and venues like the Harry Potter Studio tour or a stroll round Cambridge or Stonehenge.

See a sample social programme

Travelling to and from us

When it comes to course arrival and departure, your most comfortable and stress-free option will be to transfer from and to your preferred transport hub with our approved local taxi providers.

View all options

Eastbourne

  • London Gatwick: £115 each way 55 to 80 minutes
  • Eurostar Ashford International: £140 each way 80 to 100 minutes
  • Newhaven Ferry Port: £70 each way 15 to 40 minutes
  • Other options available for London Heathrow, London City Airport, London Stansted, Luton Airport and Eurostar St Pancras.