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Our school facilities at Stanley Place in Chester

This photo shows the red brick buildings which make up ELC in Chester. The main part of the image shows a three-storey high brick terrace of town houses, with blue doors. The street is cobbled and there is a tree in the foreground whose green leaves overhang the top of the picture.

ELC Chester is based in 3 buildings in a small, historic square within the old walled city of Chester. Based in Stanley Place, 2 of the buildings make up the main school. The third building is just across the square and is where we run our 25+ courses. Stanley Place is only a 2-minute walk to the city centre.

Welcome to your school

The buildings are nearly 250 years old and have a long, interesting history. They used to be homes for Chester’s rich and famous. Now they make an ideal language school with good facilities for learning and relaxation.

The main school has:

  • 14 brightly lit classrooms with large windows and comfortable furniture
  • Free wifi throughout the main buildings
  • Common room with water fountain available
  • Coffee room with hot drinks available throughout the day from a vending machine
  • Patio Garden, a sunny place to sit and relax in breaks, and for BBQs and parties in summer

Our third building is for students on our 25+ English courses and 50+ English courses. The training rooms, social areas and computer room provide a unique, relaxing, business-like atmosphere.

In this building you’ll find:

  • 7 training rooms for a total of 35 students.
  • Free wifi
  • A large lounge area
  • Quality teas and coffees available free of charge throughout the day

Facilities features

  • Bright rooms with big windows and high ceilings
  • 250-year-old buildings with modern facilities inside
  • A quiet street just a short walk from the centre of town
  • Patio garden to relax in the sun
  • Warm, welcoming atmosphere

A refreshing school environment

Have a look around ELC in Chester. Can you imagine yourself studying with us? We hope to see you soon.

Students look at the range of excursions and activities available at the English language centre in Chester. The photograph is in black and white although it was taken quite recently.
Anika Diaz Linares from Spain chats to Andrea Mauerova from Czech Republic during their English lesson in Chester at ELC. They are slightly backlit by the Georgian window directly behind them.
A professional photograph of one of the main streets in Chester which shows the mock Tudor buildings with the walkway underneath. The street appears to disappears off into the distance due to the perspective.
A photo taken from a few floors up at the back of the ELC English language school in Chester. Outside in the courtyard, a large group of students and staff are looking up at the camera.
This photo shows the red brick buildings which make up ELC in Chester. The main part of the image shows a three-storey high brick terrace of town houses, with blue doors. The street is cobbled and there is a tree in the foreground whose green leaves overhang the top of the picture.
A photograph of students at the canteen in ELC English language centre in Chester. There are white framed photographs on the wall and the decor is a white and grey colour which feels very relaxing. The students look animated and are chatting happily together.
Students on the 50 plus English language programme in Chester laugh with their teacher. The photo is in black and white but that is just for visual purposes as it is quite a recent photograph
A close up photo of the blue door with the number 9 which is the front door of the English language centre in Chester.
A photo of the garden and patio area to the rear of the school in ELC English language school in Chester. There is a metal archway you can walk through to get to a paved area with white patio seating and students are sitting chatting together. In the background is a wooden gazebo and lots of trees.
A photograph of the hallway in ELC Chester it features very pretty patterned tiled floor with a repeating diamond design. Down the hall you can see a blue sofa just next to the staircase which rises up out of sight
A black and white image of students working together in the self access centre at ELC Chester. The photo didn't need to be black and white because it is a modern photo and you can see computers in the background.
A photo of Mathieu Galliano from France studying at ELC Chester in January 2023. He's wearing a pale blue hoodie and a black beanie hat, and he's smiling at the camera.
A group of students sit huddled together in ELC English language school in Chester. They're smiling for the camera. In the background you can see other people interacting and they look equally happy to be there.
The resource centre in Chester this is where teachers can access the materials they need to prepare lessons and there's a long rectangular table with chairs for them to sit and discuss the English lessons they are going to give
One of the lock gates on the Shropshire Union Canal which flows through Chester.

A fascinating city in which to learn English

Chester is a unique English city with traditional black and white houses and beautiful parks and gardens. A safe and welcoming city, Chester is also one of Britain’s most famous heritage cities with a 2000-year history.

As a city it offers the perfect combination of traditional and modern culture. Within the historic Roman city walls it has excellent shopping, a vibrant nightlife, many independent shops/cafes and an award-winning theatre, library, cinema and restaurant complex.

Discover Chester

A location map which shows where Chester is, relative to Liverpool and Manchester
This photo shows the red brick buildings which make up ELC in Chester. The main part of the image shows a three-storey high brick terrace of town houses, with blue doors. The street is cobbled and there is a tree in the foreground whose green leaves overhang the top of the picture.
This photo shows some of the shop front above street level in Chester, set against a brilliant blue sky. The buildings have a tudor look to them, built from black timber beams filled with white plaster. The leaded windows are made up of hundreds of small rectangles of glass.

An historic language school

ELC is a prestigious collection of English language schools, each with a rich history. ELC is the number 1 group of English language schools in the UK, according to EL Gazette’s review of British Council inspection published statements.

Find out more about the history of the English Language Centre, and how it all started.

The history of ELC

A group of students outside ELC Chester in the late 1970s
A group of students outside ELC Chester in the late 1970s

Our teachers

ELC Chester is very proud of its excellent, professional and friendly teaching team. We have a permanent teaching staff of experienced teachers, many of whom have worked with us for many years. In addition, we have another 30 teachers who work for us at different times of the year and on different types of courses. Some of these teachers work on specialist courses, for example, our 25+ Courses, 50+ Courses and our Summer Courses for Teenagers.

Nearly all of our teaching staff have taught English abroad, and between them speak a number of foreign languages including French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Thai, Greek and Vietnamese, resulting in a broad understanding of our students’ languages and cultures.

Our staff frequently attend external training days and conferences run by organisations such as The English Network, English UK, English UK North, IATEFL, as well as regular in-house workshops. This ensures that they are continuously developing and updating their skills and teaching methods.

Meet the Chester team

An English student receives individual support in the library at ELC Chester