| Coordinates | 28°36′36″N77°13′48″N |
|---|---|
| Non-profit name | British Council |
| Non-profit logo | |
| Non-profit type | Cultural institution |
| Founded date | 1934 |
| Founder | United Kingdom Government |
| Location | |
| Key people | Vernon Ellis (Chair) Martin Davidson (Chief Executive) |
| Area served | Worldwide |
| Product | British cultural and language education |
| Revenue | £551 million (2006/7) |
| Homepage | www.britishcouncil.org |
The British Council is an arm's length body based in the United Kingdom which specialises in international educational and cultural opportunities. It is incorporated by royal charter and is registered as a charity both in England and Wales, and in Scotland.
Founded in 1934, it was granted a royal charter by King George VI in 1940. Its 'sponsoring department' within the United Kingdom Government is the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, although it has day-to-day operational independence. Martin Davidson is its chief executive, appointed in April 2007.
Of its total income of £551m in 2006/07, the British Council received £195m of grants from the British government. The rest was earned through charging for teaching English to individuals and organisations, examinations and consultancy. Its main areas of activity are 'Learning/Teaching, the Arts, Science and Society'. It has closed many of the overseas British Council libraries which used to be the valued public face of The British Council.
In June 2009 it was announced that 400-500 jobs at British Council would be shed as part of wider restructuring of the organisation which is reported to involve outsourcing back-office jobs overseas and a further centralisation of their regional operation across the United Kingdom.
In September 2009 British Council Director of Arts Rebecca Walton told 'Monocle' magazine: "We've really been striving to put the arts back alongside the main purpose of the British Council which is cultural relations. The arts are the most powerful tool you have to build a dialogue discussion across boundaries. It was only very recently that I heard a member of the Foreign Office say for the first time that arts are now as important as sanctions in the toolkit. We want people to become more inclined towards the UK and more sensitive to the positive benefits of the UK in the world. We want to focus on the BRIC countries. Russia is a difficult area politically. Also, in the Gulf we're just growing our presence. We're extending playwriting development work down there, which is about writing about areas of interest for younger people, seeing what can capture their interests. We've had this going on at the Royal Court with readings from the Near East and North Africa and we want this to go down the Gulf as well. As a country we do the longer-term stuff; there are occasions when I think the UK needs to do more of the big bucks projects, when it can change the atmosphere of a city quite viscerally, like France's Louvre in Abu Dhabi." (Monocle Issue 26 volume 3 September 2009).
In its December 2010 survey of 'Soft Power' 'Monocle' magazine mentioned France's network of 'Alliances Francaises' as 'second to none'. It omitted to make any specific reference whatsoever to the activities of British Council while ranking UK's 'soft power' first equal with France. The same issue of 'Monocle' pointed out in a separate feature the leading role played by a Swedish private company EF (English First) in promoting English language teaching. It also included the key role of the BBC World Service in its list of 'soft power' metrics for the UK:
http://www.monocle.com/sections/affairs/Magazine-Articles/The-new-soft-sell---Global/
British Council-run initiatives such as the Peacekeeping English Project in Libya are funded by the FCO, Department for International Development and the Ministry of Defence - and continue to raise eyebrows amongst some British Council private sector critics.
After the reconstruction efforts, funding from the Foreign Office declined, and the British Council was forced to pull out of a number of countries for political reasons, including most of Eastern Europe, China, and Persia. Overall the world-wide network deteriorated. The for the British Council came under attack in a series of four government review commissions which produced the Drogheda, Hill, Vosper and Duncan Reports, respectively. The British Council survived, but with a lower profile.
In June 2010 British Council Chief Executive Martin Davidson faced press criticism for expenses claimed in apparent breach of British Council's own internal rules for overnight stays in London. http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23835659-british-council-boss-defends-pound-4600-hotel-expenses.do
In its examination centres , the British Council administers 1.5 million UK examinations to over one million candidates each year. It is also working with the UK's award bodies to extend the range of professional qualifications available overseas. The Council also oversees British schools operating internationally through bodies such as COBIS, NABSS, and the European Council of International Schools.
English test]]
The Council jointly runs the global IELTS English language standardised test with University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations and IDP Education Australia.
In schools in England, the British Council is working with the Department for Education to help three million children gain an International School Award to increase their "understanding and appreciation of other cultures". There are now 2,700 UK schools working towards an award. In the Middle East, the British Council runs a school links programme bringing children in the UK together with those in the region in order to break down negative perceptions of Britain and foster "inter-cultural dialogue". To date, 153 schools in the Middle East are involved in 53 collaborative projects.
The programme accepts highly motivated undergraduates studying a technical degree i.e. engineering, science, architecture or pharmacy, and are in their second year or above and have a strong desire to work abroad in a paid, course-related internship. Placements typically occur for 8–12 weeks during the summer months, however opportunities exist for positions lasting up to a year, suitable for anyone interested in working abroad during their placement or gap year.
The programme also offers employers the opportunity to hire high calibre foreign undergraduates. For many companies in industries which are currently experiencing a shortage of graduate’s e.g. electronic engineering, this can provide an important source of labour.
The British Council has entered Second Life Teen Grid to create an educational island for learners of English as of 2007.
After a successful Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs youth campaign in 2006, the British Council began the "Climate Change Champions" scheme to select young champions from 13 countries (three from each), representing the G8+5.[2] The project's aim is to allow youth ambassadors to spread awareness about climate change's effects and mitigation solutions in their own communities.
The Champions first visited London in May 2008, where they developed three aspirational challenges for G8 Environment Ministers. Youths worldwide then voted for their favoured challenge. The Champions then presented the winning option for the "Kobe Challenge" in Kobe, Japan, and committed to complete a project in their own countries and report on progress.
The YCE award programme is divided into two strands: one for international creative entrepreneurs from emerging economies, and another one for UK creative entrepreneurs.
It builds bilateral and multilateral relations between UK and international entrepreneurs working in the creative sectors, creating new sectoral and cross-sectoral networks between future leaders of the creative economy.
The British Council sees cultural relations as a fundamental skill for the creative entrepreneurs who operate and rely on these networks, and it is from this perspective that they built the programme.
Every year, the British Council takes young entrepreneurs from emerging economies on study visits of the creative industries in the UK, and young entrepreneurs from the UK to tour industry in emerging economies. This results in a wide network of young creative entrepreneurs around the world, sparking connections and networks that facilitate collaboration, mentorship and learning.
There are awards in nine sectors: visual arts, design, fashion, performing arts, publishing, screen, music, interactive and communications.
In reaction to the sector’s tendency to limit their search of new opportunities to the developed world, IYCE focuses on developing economies. Given the globalised nature of commerce, this means that those opportunities can be successfully reached and exploited.
The first award, in publishing, was launched in 2004. This was followed by awards in design (2005), music (2006), screen (film and television)(2007) and fashion (2008). With the introduction in 2008/09 of new awards in communications, interactive, performing arts and visual arts, there are now nine awards across the creative industries.
The annual awards are open to young creative entrepreneurs from emerging economies. Countries participate through the British Council’s international network, and eight to 10 countries are selected to take part each year. British Council offices in each country select one national finalist to represent them in the international competition. The finalists are selected from a national competition and by a jury of leading figures in their national industry. All international finalists for each award meet in the UK for a week-long tour, where they learn more about their sector in the UK. The British Council organises group and individual meetings to give the entrepreneurs an overview of their creative sector in the UK. During the tour, all take part in a judging procedure to select the overall international winner of the award. All finalists make a presentation to an experienced UK industry jury about their work and their understanding of (and their vision for) their creative sector in their country. One winner is selected, and in addition to the award title, receives a financial prize to be spent on a collaborative project with the British Council that builds the relationship between the winning country and the UK.
So far, more than 150 finalists have been selected from 47 countries, including Argentina, Indonesia, South Africa, Egypt, Lithuania, Oman, Russia, Tanzania. Winners have come from Brazil, Colombia, Estonia, India, Indonesia, Lebanon, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, Poland, Venezuela and Yemen.
In the process, dynamic international networks have emerged. The first major YCE alumni event took place in 2007, when all the finalists from the publishing award met in London during the London Book Fair. The event saw the creation of an alumni network, managed by its members and now operating in 26 countries. The network has a stand at the London Book Fair, and organises meetings and seminars in Frankfurt Book Fair and in other publishing events worldwide. In 2008, the first alumni seminar for the finalists from the design award took place in London, alongside 100% Design and the London Design Festival.
Like the international programme, the UK awards celebrate excellence among UK creative entrepreneurs and inspire greater understanding of emerging economies’ potential. The programme kicked off in 2007 with the UK Young Publishing Entrepreneur Awards. In 2008, the British Council expanded the programme in partnership with NESTA and The Cultural Leadership Programme, developing awards for music, design, fashion, and screen. With the arrival in 2009 of new awards in performing arts, interactive, communications, and visual arts, nine UK awards across are run the creative industries.
After an interview, six finalists are selected to participate in an industry tour in an emerging economy to develop their understanding of the local market. Finalists build networks develop their profiles. On their return to the UK, they take part in events to share their experience still further, and are then interviewed by a panel of judges about their experience abroad. The winner receives a financial award to be spent in a project that links up with the visited country’s particular creative sector.
A UK YCE Club was formed in April 2009, meeting in London to mark the publication of After the Crunch (supported by Creative & Cultural Skills and Counterpoint (think tank)), a study of the significance of the creative sectors in the Financial crisis of 2007–2010. The session ended with a talk from Patrick McKenna, founder and CEO of Ingenious Media.
New clubs were formed in other countries. Meetings have already been held in Poland and Turkey.
The Club was established in recognition of the demands and pressures faced by the creative sector. The creative industries – in developed, emerging and developing countries – are largely made up of micro-businesses and SMEs, and that growth within the sector is difficult to achieve.
• Someone working in the creative sector who can demonstrate business success in the classic terms of business growth (profit, market share, employees) and/or in terms of his or her reputation (quality and aesthetic) among peers.
• Someone working in the creative sector who has developed a successful (in terms of impact and reach) social or not-for-profit enterprise in this sector.
• Someone working in the creative sector who has shown leadership in the industry by championing its development.
• Someone working in the creative sector who has developed initiatives (exhibitions, trade fairs, festivals etc) that develop and grow the market for this sector.
For the purpose of the awards programme, creative entrepreneurs should possess the following qualities:
Self confidence: Possess the focus and ambition to support original ideas.
In addition, a participant must: • Be aged between 25 and 35 at the date applications are due. • Already work in the creative sector (as outlined in each of the sectoral definitions below) with at least three years experience in their sector. • Be entrepreneurial and have shown ability in the promotion of that creative sector in their country, in either a commercial context, public context, or both. • Through character, drive and abilities, demonstrate potential to be a future leader of the sector in their country. • Have English language skills to IELTS 6 - ‘competent user’ or above.
In late 2007 the British Council announced that it would cease carrying out all ESOL and other English Language examinations in Russia with effect from 1 January 2008. It cited "circumstances beyond our control" as being the cause and it appeared that some examinations that had already been booked have been cancelled. In addition, the British Council stated that all offices in Russia, with the exception of Moscow, St Petersburg and Ekaterinburg would close before the end of 2007. Subsequent confirmation of closures is reported here.
A further development occurred on 12 December 2007, when it was reported that the British Council had been ordered by the Russian Foreign Ministry to close its two remaining offices outside of Moscow before the beginning of January 2008. The Ministry maintained that the British Council was "operating illegally" within Russia and that "the Council had violated tax regulations, among other laws". The Russian position was summarised in an article published on the Moscow News website.
After the Council's offices in St Petersburg and Ekaterinburg reopened in mid-January after the New Year break, the Russian authorities accused Britain of intentional provocation, because this action was illegal. However, British Ambassador Sir Tony Brenton said he had informed Vladimir Titov, the deputy foreign minister, that the offices would remain open as "the British Council is working entirely legally, that it will continue therefore to work, that any Russian action against it would be a breach of international law". On 15 January 2008, the head of the St Petersburg office Stephen Kinnock, son of Neil Kinnock the then Chair of The British Council, was detained for alleged traffic offences and drunken driving; but declined to take an alcohol-level breath test, claiming diplomatic status, which was confirmed as valid when the British Consul-General arrived at the scene about one hour later. He was then released. Stephen Kinnock left Russia the following day and was posted elsewhere.
Following the reopening, FSB officials interviewed British Council staff at both St Petersburg and Ekaterinburg, apparently informing them that they were working for an illegal organisation. This resulted in the closure of both offices, owing to lack of staff, and they remained shut on 17 January 2008. While the British saw little possibility of reopening the offices given the problems with their staff, Yury Fedotov, Russia's ambassador to London, told journalists that a solution to the dispute could be reached if Britain showed more respect for Moscow's position: "A resolution is possible, but we need to gain more respect and avoid further public discussions which under the current circumstances are unhelpful," he explained.
In June 2008 it was announced that the British Council was being further investigated by the Russian tax authorities for non-payment of tax. This hinged on a disputed tax bill with respect to a tax assessment which was issued in May 2008, but which relates to 2007.
In an emailed statement the British Council said, “The British Council is registered with the tax authorities, it regularly pays taxes ... and carries out all the demands of the Russian tax authorities.”
However, it is alleged that the Council has failed to pay all tax due under the tax bill mentioned, describing the amount demanded as “punitive and disproportionately large”. Should the full amount remain unpaid, then possible actions by the Russian tax authorities include the seizure of property, including books, furniture, poetry (sic) and computers, from the British Council’s now sole-remaining Russian office in Moscow. Such action has been described by an official as being the "standard procedure in cases where tax authorities believe that there is still an outstanding sum".
In December 2008 a Russian court reinstituted the tax case against the British Council for £2.3m, overturning a decision by a lower court which UK diplomats had hoped had resolved this matter. The Council also parted company with Stephen Kinnock, who took up a new post with The World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland from January 2009.
The Council started its work in Hong Kong in 1948. The work of the British Council includes teaching English; providing the latest information about the United Kingdom; promoting British education and training; working closely with Hong Kong Government on reform and governance and showcasing British science, arts, literature and design.
At the end of December 2009 the British Council Library in Mumbai closed its doors to its members for the last time. Indian commentators were unimpressed by promises of online alternatives.
British Council libraries and offices have also been closed in a number of other countries judged by the British Council to be of little strategic or commercial importance as it refocused its activities on China and The Gulf where it can get a 'bigger bang for the buck'. Council offices were closed in Lesotho, Swaziland, Ecuador and provincial Länder in Germany in 2000–2001 — as well as Belarus — prompting Parliamentary criticism. Subsequent promises by British Council Chair Neil Kinnock to a conference in Edinburgh that the Belarus closure would hopefully prove to be just a "temporary" withdrawal proved illusory. The British Council office in Peru also closed in September 2006 as part of a rethink of its strategy in Latin America.
Charles Arnold-Baker, author of the Companion to British History said of the British Council's shift in priorities: 'This whole policy is misconstrued from top to bottom. We are going somewhere where we can't succeed and neglecting our friends in Europe who wish us well. The only people who are going to read our books in Beirut or Baghdad are converts already.
The article also points out that the Alliance française and the Goethe-Institut, unlike the British Council, are both expanding and replenishing libraries Europe-wide. France opened its new library in Tel Aviv in 2007 — just a few months after British Council closed there and shut down the British Council library in West Jerusalem. In Gaza, the Institut Francais supports the Gaza municipal library in partnership with the local authority and a municipal twinning link between Gaza City and the French port of Dunkerque. In Oslo British Council informs Norwegian callers that 'our office is not open to the public and we do not have an enquiry service'. Goethe Institute also has a more visible presence in Glasgow than The British Council. There is now, in contrast, only one British Council office left in Germany - and that is in East Berlin.
While Members of Parliament and others have criticised the lack of strong parliamentary accountability for the British Council, the organisation does have close lobbying links to individual parliamentarians. These included the Conservative Party Shadow Culture spokesman Jeremy Hunt MP whose Hotcourses company has close links to The British Council through Sheffield Data Services.
Formally it is to its sponsoring department, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, that the UK Parliamentary Table Office refers any parliamentary questions about the British Council.
The effectiveness of British Council efforts to promote higher education in China have also recently been examined in England by The House of Commons Select Committee on Education and Skills in a report issued on 5 August 2007. It expressed concern that in terms of joint educational programmes involving Chinese universities, UK lagged behind Australia, USA, Hong Kong China, Canada and France. In its evidence to this committee, The British Council had argued that "UK degrees are highly valued by international students for their global recognition. International students adopt an essentially utilitarian view of higher education which is likely to increasingly involve consideration of value for money, including opting for programmes at least partly delivered offshore". As their preferred marketing 'model', The British Council gave the example of India where their UK India Education and Research Initiative is being 'championed' by British multinational oil companies such as BP and Shell, the pharmaceutical giant GSK and arms company BAE Systems.
Criticism of British Council marketing efforts in this area have also come from Scotland where The Sunday Herald obtained documents under the Freedom of Information Act showing that the British Council's Marketing Co-ordinator in the USA had been referring to The University of Stirling as 'The University of Sterling' (sic) and also documenting 'tensions' between Scottish Executive civil servants and British Council in India and China over overseas promotion of universities in Scotland where education is a devolved responsibility. The Sunday Herald reported that these turf wars were undermining the Scottish Executive's key Fresh Talent policy.
After 1998 education and culture in Scotland were devolved to the Scottish Parliament. Charities registered in England (like British Council) which now wish to operate in Scotland are required to register as cross-border charities in Scotland from February 2007.
Some of the activities of the British Council were examined ub 2007/08 by the National Audit Office (NAO). The NAO's report, The British Council: Achieving Impact, concluded ‘that the British Council’s performance is strong and valued by its customers and stakeholders’. It also concluded, however, that its English classes are elitist and have unfair advantages over commercial providers, as well as questioning thousands of unanswered phone-calls and e-mails to British Council offices.
The NAO report had a footnote on page 5 which excluded The British Council contract work from scrutiny and evaluation: 'The main exclusion from the scope of the study was the Council's work under contract for a range of UK and International agencies, mainly in support of International Development Programmes." It went on to suggest that examination of this is unnecessary because: "Such work is won under competition and at least covers its costs overall. Primary responsibility for the value for money of the work lies with the agencies procuring it".
As part of its examination of The Foreign Office Annual Report, the Foreign Affairs Committee spends an hour each year examining witnesses from the British Council but even this level of scrutiny is undermined by a Commons ruling exempting MPs from the requirement to declare overseas trips paid for by The British Council.
Two members of the Public Accounts Committee (Nigel Griffiths MP and Ian Davidson MP) are office-bearers in The British Council Associate Parliamentary Group. Nigel Griffiths MP is Vice-Chair of this British Council lobby group.
In 2008 the British Council was called before the Public Accounts Committee following earlier publication of an National Audit Office report. The subsequent PAC report confirmed that Nigel Griffiths MP - Vice Chair of The British Council Associate Parliamentary Group - was part of the small number of PAC members who approve this report on British Council despite not having been recorded as being present during the evidence session - in June 2008 - where The British Council's CEO was cross-examined. Mr Griffiths had earlier travelled to Russia and spoke favourably of British Council activities there in January 1998 around the time that their man in St Petersburg (Stephen Kinnock) was expelled.
In April 2009 the British Council was told to clean up its act by the Information Commissioner after losing staff data that included details of their trade union affiliations and lying about the encryption status of the computer disc lost.
Following the accusations made against The British Council in Russia (see above) Trevor Royle, the experienced Diplomatic Editor of The Sunday Herald quoted a 'British diplomatic source' admitting: "There is a widespread assumption that The British Council is a wing of our Secret Intelligence Services, however minor. Officially it is no such thing but there are connections. Why should it be otherwise because all information is invaluable? After all, the British Council also deals with trade missions and inevitably that involves low-grade intelligence-gathering."
Eyebrows were raised down under when British Council awarded a scholarship to the daughter of Australia's Foreign Minister.
During her tenure as Chair of British Council 1998-2004, Labour Peer Baroness Helena Kennedy QC received Honorary Degrees from Leicester's De Montfort University, Glasgow Caledonian University, University of Middlesex, Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen University, University of Derby, University of York, Tomsk Polytechnic University, and The Judicial Academy of Russia. She has to date received a total of 28 honorary degrees.
In the authorised history of 'MI6: The History of The Secret Intelligence Service 1909-1949' by Keith Jeffery the role of 'The British Council, as potential cover' is mentioned in the index along with references to The Bland Commission of 1944 - and correspondence with Rex Leeper, British Council's founder: http://www.britishcouncil.org/history-who-leeper.htm
Category:Organizations established in 1934 Category:British culture Category:International cultural organizations Category:English-language education Category:Funding bodies in the United Kingdom Category:Foreign and Commonwealth Office Category:Non-departmental public bodies of the United Kingdom government
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