English Language Services for Adults (ELSA) (Stream 3)

English Language Services for Adults (ELSA) provides English as a second language instruction to adult immigrant newcomers, assisting with their settlement and adaptation to Canadian society. This service is free to most newcomers.

ELSA provides English language instruction for Canadian Language Benchmarks (CLB) Levels 1 to 6. It also uses a curriculum focused on the labour market (LMF-ELSA) for CLB Levels 4 to 6.

In order to reduce barriers to access, some of the contracted service providers also offer free on-site child minding for dependent pre-school-aged children of ELSA learners. They also, very occasionally, offer financial assistance for learners to travel to and from their classes when the cost of travel is clearly a barrier to attendance. Read a Stream 3 success story.

ELSA services are provided in most regions in B.C., and include:

• language training focused on the needs of new immigrants;
• orientation information as part of the lesson plans;
• referrals to specialized services;
• adjustment support, including class discussions on settlement, and introductions to community services and activities; and
• service bridging to support service delivery and promote partnerships.

Client participation and progress is recorded using the STaRS database system. The Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development provides STaRS training and support to contracted ELSA service providers.

Funding for ELSA services are obtained through a Request for Proposals (RFP) process. The most recent RFP awarded contracts in various areas for regular ELSA programs between July 1st, 2008 - June 30th, 2009. The Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development retains the option of extending these contracts for up to two additional one-year periods based on budgets, service demands and contractor performance. There may be other funding opportunities that arise throughout that time period.

RFP documents are available on BC Bid and can be located by using these guidelines:

• Click on the "Browse for Bid Opportunities or Bid Results" link.
• Browse current ("open") or expired ("closed") opportunities using the BC Bid Advanced Search function, using keywords such as "Stream 3", "Adaptation", and "Settlement". (If there is no currently open BCSAP ELSA RFP on BC Bid, you will need to browse closed opportunities. When browsing closed opportunities, remember to adjust the date range. Please note that the Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development assumed responsibility for BCSAP administration in mid-2008; prior to that date, BCSAP and related RFPs were administered by the Ministry of Attorney General.
• Browse current open opportunities by organization under the Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development, which has had responsibility for posting ELSA RFPs since mid-2008.
• Browse services (click on the "Services" link within "Browse Opportunities") to see current open opportunities (there are usually between 200 to 400 current open service-related opportunities).

For more information please consult:

• Stream 3 Information Sheet (PDF - 160KB)
• Stream 3 Logic Model (PDF - 52KB)
• STaRS User Guide (PDF - 2MB)


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