The lure of the big city is a strong one. One of the constant themes of literature for hundreds of years, the bright lights prove an irresistible lure for many people. Where this once meant leaving a home in the countryside for the nearest large town, our increasingly globalised world has made it much more common for people to leave countries with weaker economies and head to the great cities - Paris, New York, Tokyo and London chief among them - in search of riches. This has been witnessed particularly in Europe, as the European Union expands to include poorer countries which had suffered as communist satellite states for decades.

A huge amount of Eastern Europeans have arrived in London in the years since the expansion of the EU. Official figures are unavailable, but unofficial estimates suggest that over half a million Poles arrived in the two years after Poland's accession in May 2004. This has resulted in a tremendous boost for the UK's economy, not to mention a huge jump in the the number of people needing to learn English in London, much to the delight of London language schools. London is one of the few places on the planet which can absorb such huge immigration in such a short time.

Not that it is always easy. The British government runs schemes for newly-arrived (and not so newly-arrived) immigrants to learn English for work. These are fully subsidised and serve as a major source of income for many language schools who are aware that while some students may struggle to pay for classes on time, the British government is 'not short of a few quid' as Londoners may say. Polish immigrants are now among the most likely to study English in London while holding down a low-paying job at the same time. This is why they have been welcomed to the UK far more warmly than had been expected by Britons and despite the best efforts of some xenophobic sections of the British press.

While a new immigrant who has arrived in the UK to work may need an intensive English course in London, other newcomers need language courses for different reasons. Many people arrive in London to study each year; London University is the biggest in the UK and one of the biggest in the world. This makes courses to learn English for college one of the more popular niche courses offered by many language schools. Another popular option is to learn legal English. This course is designed to help those with foreign law qualifications find work in the UK.

London, rather like New York, is a city defined by immigration. Immigration keeps it vital and makes it one of the most interesting and alluring places in the world.