Photograph showing mostly women students in a classroom, laughing. The student standing speaking is identified as Simon Alexaneryne. The teacher has his back to the camera.
Labelled on reverse 'Central Office of Information Photograph. Crown Copyright reserved (See Feature Set Into No.210 The Working Man's University: The First Polytechnic. The demand for evening education in Britain far exceeds facilities. After a full day's work a large proportion of the adult population hurry to evening institutes and polytechnics to learn, at a very low cost, the 'know-how' that modern industry and commerce insists of its workers. More than 11,000 people in the evenings, and 2,500 during the day attend courses for further education at the regent Street Polytechnic, where the twelve departments and three craft courses are designed almost exclusively for the vocational student who has reached the age of seventeen (there is no maximum age) and has passed Matriculation or an equivalent University entrance examination.'
Separately labelled 'D.47579 (6) A young French girl, Simon Alexaneryne, tries to make herself understood at the Linguist Club meeting at the Polytechnic. English, French, German, Italian, Swedish, Russian, Polish, Norwegian and Dutch are all taught at the School of Modern Languages for £1 a session (September to May) for each subject. Simone is 20 years old. She came to England to learn the language and teaches French to children at the Notre Dame de France School in Leicester Square.'
