SOCIETY NEWS
QES on the BBC again
From the Daily Mail Tuesday, 5th October 2010
Grammar for graduates: Building society hires teacher to improve recruits' written English
By Laura Clark
"Bosses at a building society are so concerned
about workers' written English that they are
giving them grammar lessons, it has emerged.
The Leeds Building Society realised it had a
problem when senior executives looked at internal
reports produced by recent graduates and
couldn't understand them."
Rhea Williams, QES Chairman, appeared on Radio 5-Live yesterday, to comment on yet another story that British business is forced to fund what amounts to 'remedial' classes in English, for its employees. Mrs Williams also read a letter from E-ON ENERGY Ltd, which was received by a member of the QES;
"Dear ****** I would appreciate it if you could contact me via telephone or email, so that we can confirm you'r meter details this is because we have been advised of a possible cross meter with your neighbour. The best way to determine what is your correct meters is to complete on mains test should the meter not be in your property, this done by turning of the main fuse switch ther meter that supplies your property will no longer be recording usage........."
Rhea spoke to me after the brief broadcast and
said:
"'Perhaps Emma Thompson has really started
something with her remarks about poor spoken
English upsetting her. Yesterday Emma, today the
Leeds Building Society, tomorrow the world. Maybe
there is still hope for our beautiful
language."
AGM REPORT in brief
The AGM of the Queen's English Society was held on Saturday, 25th September. The meeting was a success, although we would have been pleased to see more members present. The speaker at the event, Oliver Kamm, The Times, was well received. In her first (and last) report as Acting Chairman, Rhea Williams appealed for all members to get involved with the work of the QES and do their best to persuade family members, friends and work colleagues to become members of the Society. Mrs Rhea Williams was elected Chairman of the Society, with Adrian Morant as her Vice-Chairman. Tony Scott retained his position as Membership Secretary and it was decided that Ennis Killip should become Administrative Secretary and that the post of Hon. Secretary is no longer required.
QES President, Bernard Lamb, gave an upbeat report of the Society's activities during the year and was quietly optimistic for the future. Dr Lamb brought several copies of his latest book, "THE QUEEN'S ENGLISH AND HOW TO USE IT", to sell to members and the volumes were sold with a percentage of the proceeds donated by the author, to the Society.
It is the intention of committee members to begin a serious campaign regarding proposed changes to the education system and the curriculum. It is to be hoped that many members of the QES will become involved in the project.
MEMBERSHIP MATTERS
As I have received the confidence of the membership, in allowing me to serve as Membership Secretary for a further three years, I am grateful to the QES Webmaster (me), for the opportunity to write in this public page. I truly believe that our objectives in trying to persuade everyone to enjoy writing and speaking in good, clear and elegant English are both worthwhile and indeed make good sense, in these difficult times.
If you are a member, thank you, but please do your best to find us more like-minded people to join the QES. I hope that all visitors to this website, will also consider joining our ranks and you will be most welcome. It is very simple, the greater our number, the more influence we shall have in persuading those responsible for running our country and education in particular that it is essential to raise standards in the use of our language.
To our membership, I have some outline ideas for the future, which will be circulated in a less public forum and you will be invited to have your say and cast a vote. To our visitors, please do not be put off by thoughts of dry, academic mumblings and endless study. You will enjoy understanding and using good English. You can make a start right now, by exploring this website and its resources, especially within the QES ENGLISH ACADEMY.
The website is set to grow in size and stature and because of this planned expansion, I am delighted to report that the QES now has two webmasters, which will make life easier for everyone, especially bearing in mind, our status as volunteers.
I want to spend the next three years in several ways and increasing interest and thus our membership is vital. To jump right in now and join us, please go to our application page. I want to support our members so that those who are interested will start branches of the QES in their localities, thus becoming more active in their support of our main aims and objectives. It is very important that, as Membership Secretary, I hear your views about the job I am doing and that you come forward with your ideas on how the QES should develop in the future. You can contact The Membership Secretary at any time.
THE QES WEBSITE
The Queen's English Society is commited to
spreading its message far beyond our traditional
supporters and we must be innovative in the methods
we use to do so. The internet is a proven method of
reaching millions of people and the Society must
not be too squeamish about resorting to some modern
methods to be heard. For this reason, I have
developed a pilot to a planned series
of short
cartoons, as part of a group of helpful "guides"
to a better understanding and use of English. The
first item for discussion is the double negative.
We also unveil a new section which has the title of "On the Lighter Side", where we can discuss matters of English usage, in a slightly less formal way. Take a look at On the lighter-side.