The Slovene kozolec (hayrack) on Henley’s Gillots Field beckons once again.
On Sunday 28th June from midday onwards we will hold our annual picnic. Mark your diaries, and come with families, children, balls and plenty to eat and drink. Harmonicas and accordeons too if you manage. This will be a great way to prepare for summer holidays.
Address: Gillots Field, Henley-on-Thames, RG9 1PT. Plenty of nearby parking.
See you there!
On Wednesday the 1st of April the first direct flight by EasyJet from Edinburgh touched down on time at Ljubljana Airport and a warm Slovene welcome was awaiting the passengers and crew.
Two Slovene pipers, Marko and Jurij, played a number of Scottish tunes including ‘Scotland the Brave’, ‘Highland Cathedral’ and ‘Flower of Scotland’. Their marching was in strict tempo and they were note perfect – čistitke!
The welcome party included Janez Krašnja from Fraport, Nigel Baker from the British Embassy and Barbara Uranjek Kozina from the British-Slovene Chamber of Commerce, plus British-Slovene Society Trustee James Walker (in his trews) and his wife Brigita.
The flight operates twice a week, and makes visiting two wonderful countries much easier. James and Brigita (see picture) live partly in Slovenia and partly in Edinburgh. No doubt they’ll be on the flight quite a few times.
 We are delighted to share details of an Easter concert featuring the Women’s Choir Večernica from Ajdovščina. Through their rich and expressive repertoire of Slovenian songs, the choir promises a musical journey across Slovenia’s diverse regions, awakening fond memories and highlighting the richness of Slovenia’s cultural landscape.
The concert will be followed by a reception. Friday, 10 April 2026, 7:00–8:00 pm Wheatsheaf Community Hall off South Lambeth Road, London SW8 2UP Please reserve your free ticket HERE |
Members of the British-Slovene Society are invited to join a relaxed get-together in London organised by VTIS.
Mercato Metropolitano, 42 Newington Causeway, London SE1 6DR
Thursday, 16. April from 6:30 pm.
The Mercato Metropolitano is a vibrant go-to place where you can taste street food and refreshing beverages in good company.
See: application.
A research team concerning “Brexit Couples” invites you to an online event:
Event Details
Date: Wednesday, 11 March 2026
Time: 18:00 – 19:00 (UK time)
Registration Link: https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/673dc1d7-1f49-436f-821d-b01867294e45@b2e47f30-cd7d-4a4e-a5da-b18cf1a4151b
Registration will only take a minute and can be done in advance. You will then be sent an email with the link to join the launch (please also check your spam/junk folder).
Everybody welcome – Please share this invitation widely!
About the Brexit Couples Project
The Brexit Couples project (www.brexitcouples.ac.uk) is funded by the ESRC and led by Prof Katharine Charsley (University of Bristol) and Prof Helena Wray (University of Exeter). Drawing on more than 100 interviews with UK-EU couples and stakeholders, the project report sets out the challenges for and impacts on UK-EU couples subject to the UK’s partner visa rules – one of the world’s most restrictive family migration systems in the world – and provides important new evidence for policy makers and stakeholders.
Read our final project report, drawing on our interview and statistical data, here.
A short policy briefing is available here.
Love, Borders, Brexit – The Brexit Couples Project Podcast Series
The ‘Love, Borders, Brexit’ podcast series charts the experiences of UK-EU couples navigating the UK partner immigration system after Brexit. In each of the first five episodes, a couple tells us what happened when they tried to live together in the UK. The final, sixth episode reflects on what participants and the research team have learnt from the project.
The series is hosted and produced by Lincoln Van der Westhuizen (a UK-based podcast producer who has lived experience of the UK partner immigration system).
You can listen to the podcast series on our website and other podcast platforms.
llustrations
We have created a series of illustrations, co-produced with UK-EU couples, to evoke their experiences with the UK immigration system. The illustrator Michael Grieve also has lived experience of the UK partner immigration system.
You can find the illustrations on our website.
If you have any questions about the event or our outputs, please contact the team here or send us an email.
Živa Alif, a graduate of the University of Oxford, has won this year’s L’Oréal–UNESCO award For Women in Science. The awards also went to Dana Marinič and Nina Murks.
At the presentation ceremony on 4th March, Slovenian President Nataša Pirc Musar said: »When women advance, science advances. And when science advances, humanity advances.”
Živa, who is a member of the British-Slovene Society, is an agricultural economist and interdisciplinary conservation social scientist at the University of Ljubljana. She was given the award for her research into attitudes of farmers and individuals towards the natural environment and how they can be influenced by public policy.
Živa commented: »I am incredibly honoured. This recognition means a great deal to me, as it highlights the value of my research so far and motivates me to keep pushing forward… I am deeply grateful for the support it will provide for my future scientific development.”
The British-Slovene Society staged their annual Prešeren evening celebration once again with Vlado Kreslin, one of Slovenia’s most famous folk singers and songwriters, and a huge favourite with our members.
After a reception with Slovenian wines – a dozen kindly donated by the Embassy of Slovenia in London – participants sat down to a splendid dinner at the Memoir Club (formerly Ambassadors Hotel).
Then followed the traditional recital of a poem. Since our Society strives to brings our two nations together, for once we did not recite France Prešeren. Instead we chose his English contemporary, William Wordsworth. Trustee James Walker read »Daffodils«, aptly celebrating the outbreak of spring.
The moment Vlado Kreslin strummed up his guitar, half the room stood up, swayed, sang along and danced until late. Vlado you have been with us for more years than we can remember. We will never tire of you!
The British-Slovene Society gratefully acknowledges the financial contribution made by the Government’s Office for Slovenians Abroad.
Photos by Anthony Dawton.
We received the following invitation from VTIS (Slovenians educated abroad):
VABILO NA VTIS KARIERNE DNEVE 2026:
Društvo v tujini izobraženih Slovencev (VTIS) med 16. in 19. marcem 2026 organizira VTIS Karierne dneve, spletni dogodek, namenjen vsem, ki jih zanimajo karierne priložnosti, prehodi in razvojne možnosti na slovenskem trgu dela.
Dogodek je primeren tako za Slovence v tujini, ki razmišljajo o vrnitvi, kot tudi za vse, ki želijo pridobiti vpogled v aktualne priložnosti in neposredno stopiti v stik s predstavniki podjetij in institucij.
Udeleženci bodo imeli priložnost spoznati uspešne slovenske delodajalce (Lek, član skupine Sandoz, Better, Novartis Slovenija, Zavarovalnica Triglav) ter se povezati z Zavodom RS za zaposlovanje, ki bo predstavil aktivnosti in podporne programe za Slovence po svetu. Poseben informativni dogodek bo namenjen tudi administrativnim izzivom ob vračanju v Slovenijo, kjer bodo predstavljene teme, kot so izračunavanje pokojninske dobe (ZPIZ), vrednotenje tujih diplom in nazivov (ENIC-NARIC center) ter vprašanja, povezana s štipendijami Ad futura in obveznostmi štipendistov (Javni štipendijski, razvojni, invalidski in preživninski sklad RS).
Več informacij in prijava: VTIS Karierni dnevi 2026 — VTIS
At the MOPS-9 Slovenian Language School, they are launching a new online lecture series titled Slovenian History 101, The course offers a structured overview of Slovenian history, from the Middle Ages and up to Slovenian independence. It will consist of five chapters, each delving into a period of Slovenian history in an informative, fun and engaging way:
The lectures will be delivered by Professor Aleksander Peklar, a respected history professor and the creator of the Izi zgodovina (Easy History) educational platform.
The lectures will be held online and conducted in English, so knowledge of Slovenian is not required. They will take place once a week, on Tuesdays at 19:00 CET, starting on March 10, 2026. The course consists of five individual lectures, and participants may register per lecture.
Pricing:
Those interested can apply here: https://www.mops-9.si/slovenian-history-101
For further information contact Gregor Kladnik, email: mops9.pm1@gmail.com
