The Swedish Improvers group is now well into its third year and we have made slow but steady progress. There are 10 of us in the group, some having links with Sweden through family and friends.

New members are very welcome but the progress we have made may make it hard to assimilate complete beginners - fine, though, if you have some Swedish experience, know some Norwegian or Danish, or are a very keen linguist! There is one space available, and you can attend a free taster session.

We are learning to use Swedish when travelling, eating out, shopping and meeting people. Some sessions will cover an aspect of Swedish life or a well-known Swede. So anything from Vikings to Greta Thunberg and ABBA songs in Swedish.

We cover Swedish only but, being closely related to Norwegian and Danish, it provides a ‘gateway’ to other Scandinavian languages. Three for the price of one!

Our course book (Complete Swedish) is recent and aimed at adult beginners. Supplementing this we use free videos, podcasts, dialogues and news items produced in easy Swedish - some examples of recently used items and resources can be viewed via the link below.

We are also reading a volume of detective stories (Mordet på fjorden) aimed at near-beginners and written in ‘easy Swedish’. This volume is produced in Germany and so the glossaries are, unhelpfully for us, in German (!) but these really are great stories for near-beginners. We will finish these short stories in summer 2026. Links to all 3 of our books are provided below.

There will be some reading and preparation to do between sessions. You will need access to a printer to print out materials, or alternatively an electronic device, e.g. an iPad, to view them.

We have recently been joined by a native Swedish speaker who has settled permanently in the UK and who is keen to share her culture with us. This gives us a wonderful opportunity to listen first-hand to authentic pronunciation and to take our first steps in speaking Swedish..

Sessions are held in Morrisons Community Room on the first and third Fridays of the month, from 1.30 pm to around 3 pm. Future dates are set out below.

There are no group charges, though we may buy the occasional language book in future years.

The Group Convenor used to translate Swedish for a living. You can contact him via the blue envelope email icon.