C CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 www.britishcouncil.org
CONTENTS FOREWORD 2 1. PLAN AND PRIORITIES FOR 2016 4 2. COLLABORATION, PARTNERSHIPS AND VALUE TO THE UK 8 3. ARTS 14 4. ENGLISH AND EXAMINATIONS 18 5. EDUCATION AND SOCIETY 22 6. GLOBAL NETWORK 28 7. PEOPLE, CAPACITY AND ORGANISATIONAL DEVELOPMENT 38 8. PERFORMANCE TARGETS 41 9. FINANCE 47
2 FOREWORD Few countries are more internationally connected than the UK, or have more reasons to stay that way for trade, economic growth and for long-term prosperity and security. As a top table nation in world affairs, the UK must continue to engage and invest in: building trust between the people and institutions of the UK and overseas to foster prosperity and security around the world encouraging people to visit, study in, and do business with the UK helping outward mobility from the UK to the rest of the world to share culture, learning and international experiences attracting people who really matter to our future to visit and engage with the UK s vibrant arts and cultural scene and diverse, modern, open society. The British Council plays a pivotal role in supporting the UK s links around the world in all of these areas. The English language, our world class education system and creative and cultural sectors help create the UK s unrivalled soft power which is our ability to build relationships and influence through the UK s most attractive assets: culture, arts, education, language and values. Our research shows that people around the world who learn English, earn British qualifications, and experience UK culture have more trust in the UK. That trust attracts talented people to the UK and increases study, tourism and trade, bringing tangible economic and social value to the UK. Last year (2012 13) 23 million people worldwide came face-to-face with the English language, UK education and UK culture by working with the British Council, and our partners, including educational providers and cultural organisations and great brands like the Premier League, HSBC and more. This comprises over ten million people through teaching, examinations, workshops and meetings, plus 13 million at exhibitions, festivals and fairs. In addition, more than 90 million people used our digital channels and over 440 million people watched, listened to, or read our television, radio broadcasts and print publications. However, the key to cultural relations is people meeting people. These encounters with English teachers, educators, artists, sportspeople, scientists, policy makers and young people of the UK underpin the trust in the UK that we build all around the world. In 2014 we are well on the way to meeting the ambitious targets for growth, transformation and efficiency we set in 2011. We have invested in people, in skills and in new partners to meet demand and drive growth. We work closely with the UK government and the governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to help them achieve their international ambitions and economic growth. Our collaborative approach also showcases the UK s arts, culture and educational strengths and supports the UK s commitment to international development. As a result the UK s soft power is strong, well-organised and well received.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 3 David Lake There are, however, major challenges ahead. A more volatile world, increasing demand, competition from international markets and complex delivery models mean we have to keep adapting and changing. Where once we were largely a grant-funded organisation with some income earning alongside, we are now an entrepreneurial public service with the same ethos and public service purpose we have always had, but with greater emphasis on earning, partnering and bidding for contracts in order to make the most of the opportunities to extend our work and lessen the call on the UK taxpayer. Sir Martin Davidson kcmg Chief Executive British Council As we plan towards 2020, we aim to build our expertise and capability to find, stimulate and bring to the UK more of the education and cultural opportunities which exist in world markets especially in emerging and developing economies. We are hiring the people, building the skills and creating the culture which will enable us to bring together the strengths of the whole of the UK to transform access to English language and education in state and public education systems worldwide as well as showcasing, stimulating and sharing the benefits of the UK s vibrant cultural sector through festivals, seasons and designated years of culture to exchange, share and celebrate our cultural achievements. Looking forward to 2020 we want to do more: for the whole of the UK, with more UK partners and for the benefit of the people of the UK and the countries where we work. Our ambition is to strengthen our position as a great asset for the UK, while adapting to a changing world and leveraging major opportunities for the UK to build the trust and international opportunity, which builds prosperity and security for us all. This Corporate Plan sets out the next stage of that journey, focusing on investment in our people to be able to represent the best of the UK globally, improved productivity to maximise the impact and return of our work, and increasing our scale to help the UK rise to the global demand for UK-backed English teaching, arts, culture, qualifications, learning opportunities, knowledge and ideas.
4 1. PLAN AND PRIORITIES FOR 2016 Where are we on the journey? This Corporate Plan sets out our targets and priorities for the next two years to the end of 2015 16. The strategic planning period was due to end by 2014 15 but we have extended and raised our ambition for the additional year to ensure alignment with UK government spending review forward guidance. Back in 2011 we proposed an ambitious and bold strategy. We committed to growth, despite the turbulent economic environment. We committed to strengthen the impact of our work and to engage with more people than ever before. We sought to grow our total turnover by over a quarter against a backdrop of declining grant in aid. This growth was underpinned by major organisational transformation: a major programme of redundancies, and investment in our existing and new staff to develop a culture of entrepreneurial public service. We have developed simpler, leaner models of operation overseas, reduced our UK premises footprint and upgraded our digital presence worldwide. Through this strategy we sought to deliver more benefit for the UK by 2015 than at any time in our history. Today we are well on the way to meeting this ambition. As an organisation we have simplified, focusing our work and programmes in arts, English and examinations, and education and society. The scale of our work has increased. By 2016 we plan to work directly with over 23 million people through face-to-face workshops, events and exhibitions. We also aim to grow our digital audience to well over 100 million per year and increase our turnover to over 1 billion. In the UK and across our global network we have transformed our physical footprint, reducing costs and saving space by upgrading to smart working. At the end of 2010, our platform (premises, infrastructure and support staff) was 19 per cent of our total costs; by 2016 it will be 14 per cent. We have updated and improved our technology as a foundation for our continued growth ambitions in English and digital learning. Most importantly, we have invested in people in professional skills in arts, English, education and society worldwide and in new teams for business development and partnership to attract UK brands and partners to the opportunities we are seeing around the world. Progress is best demonstrated through the programmes we deliver across the world to build trust and opportunity for the UK. We partner with global brands, including Premier League, HSBC and Microsoft. We partner with UK government through the GREAT Campaign, our work to support the International Education Strategy and our support for the promotion of the English language and Education UK. Our work is more relevant, accessible and in demand than ever before, ranging from Study Work Create for young people in the UK, to showcasing arts across the world, to our support for English language learning and teaching overseas. External validation of our work confirms the quality and value of what we do. The 2013 Independent Commission on Aid Impact gave a positive report on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and British Council response to the Arab Spring. Independent government evaluations for our work in the schools and justice sector have been scored as good to outstanding. External evaluation of our four-year UK Brazil Transform arts programme shows we are on track to leave a legacy of institutional partnership and collaboration with the UK.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 5 Our authority as an expert in the English language and cultural relations has been strengthened by a major global exhibition The English Effect in 2013, leading to a more confident, professional and ambitious British Council. Despite this progress, we do not underestimate the challenges ahead. We manage daily security challenges, most notably in Afghanistan, Africa and the Middle East. We are continuously adapting our programmes to changing security circumstances, as well as to more sophisticated consumer needs in emerging economies. And as our grant in aid is increasingly targeted towards international development and UK Official Development Assistance (ODA), we are seeking new ways of funding and partnering for work which promotes the UK and supports UK prosperity. Priorities to 2016 We will continue to strengthen our position as a unique asset for the UK by: Investment to embody and represent the best of the UK globally. We will achieve this by continuing to invest the dividends from our paid-for services in the capability, people, technology and systems which support and develop our reputation as a world-class organisation. Productivity to create maximum impact from our work for the benefit of the UK and the countries in which we work. We will achieve this by continuing to focus on efficiency, on our cost base and on the management and balance of our funding, investment, people, programmes and partnerships. Scale to help the UK rise to the global demand and need for UK-backed English teaching, arts, culture, qualifications, learning opportunities, knowledge and ideas. We will achieve this by developing our ability and capacity to respond to the full extent of opportunity for UK education and culture worldwide, by creating innovative and effective models of delivery ourselves and in partnership with other UK providers and institutions. To achieve these priorities we will: Strengthen our partnerships with UK government, educational and cultural bodies, donors, education providers, brands and foundations for a much greater impact than we could achieve alone. We are committed to close alignment with the UK government and partners across government and we will continue to support the One HMG agenda. We value our relationship with missions overseas and their support for cultural relations. Work closely with UK government departments and agencies to share insights, identify and broker new opportunities for the UK in education and cultural sectors overseas and deliver real benefits and value to the UK. Maintain investment in the content of our programmes across face-to-face and digital channels, notably English and arts content, to meet ever growing demand and maximise the reach of the English language and UK culture.
6 Strengthen our paid-for services and contracts work in key markets to support the development of sustainable business models in developed and emerging economies. This means expanding our operations, products and services in English language teaching, examinations, education and society and cultural skills, to give greater access to UK qualifications, examinations, higher education and expertise. Build on and develop new relationships with major corporates and brands through high-profile seasons, festivals and bilateral programmes that feature British arts and collaboration in priority overseas markets, reciprocated in the UK. Develop our portfolio of programmes to meet our increasing ODA targets, focusing on English for education systems, basic education, girls access to education, higher education including research development and supporting arts and society, and the institutions of civil society and justice. Strengthen our work with UK government and agencies to support the GREAT campaign, the International Education Strategy and Education UK, as well as encouraging inbound students, tourism and investment. Continue to share the UK s expertise in growing social enterprise and supporting social entrepreneurs as a key component of our work, building on our work in East Asia where we have trained thousands of social entrepreneurs. As an organisation we will: Maintain our extensive network of operations around the world, giving priority to countries of strategic importance to the UK and where we can achieve impact at scale. Continue to develop new models of operation. In EU Europe we are aiming for all our work to be self-sustaining with no call on grant in aid by 2017. Over time, we will develop similar approaches in East Asia and the Gulf. Strengthen our skills and attract new talent to support our drive to be a model of entrepreneurial public service. This will lead to greater career and international mobility, effective working in global teams and strong performance management in a connected, interdependent global organisation. Continue to develop our digital platform to support the scale and worldwide reach needed to respond to the insatiable demand for English, UK education and arts with enhanced capabilities to enable us to attract and stay connected with users at different life-stages. We will also focus on improved targeting, personalisation and payment systems. Develop our economic model, to grow paid-for services and our contracts work to deliver our core purpose and strengthen impact while reinvesting surpluses back into people, programmes and investment. For example, in areas like showcasing UK arts and maintaining the UK s connections in developed countries, which would have previously been funded by the UK government through grant in aid.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 7 Government triennial review Findings from the government triennial review on the role and work of the British Council are expected during 2014. We will take account of these findings and work on the priorities identified, updating this plan as required. As part of our strengthening alignment with government objectives for culture and education, we have already consulted on this Corporate Plan with the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) and the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), as well as the FCO. The road to 2020 During the next two years, we will set out our priorities and workplan for 2020, building on what we have achieved in this Corporate Plan period. The first step is to deliver the strategy we set out for 2011 15 which will underpin our strategy and trajectory to 2020. Our models for 2020 will respond to market challenges, funding pressures and new opportunities. For example, we intend to grow our mixed economy model of paid-for work and education contracts to ensure we can share English, UK education and culture in emerging and developed economies, whilst focusing grant funding, ODA and donor-funded contracts in fragile states and developing economies which cannot easily support stable mixed economy approaches. EMERGING ECONOMIES DEVELOPED ECONOMIES DEVELOPING ECONOMIES RAPIDLY CHANGING FRAGILE STATES Mixed economy approaches (mainly paid-for and contracts) Funded approaches (mainly grant, ODA and contracts) We will consult and engage our stakeholders and partners on choices, changes and the implications of these approaches in the coming year as we work towards developing our 2020 plans.
8 2. COLLABORATION, PARTNERSHIPS AND VALUE TO THE UK Looking ahead to 2015 16, we will strengthen our value to the UK through new partnerships and through bringing together the cultural offer. We will create new opportunities to share and develop our vibrant education system, culture and expertise, and benefit the UK as the home of the English language. The UK government and the devolved administrations continue to emphasise the importance of international engagement for future competitiveness. Alongside fast-developing international strategies there is a growing emphasis on learning from international best practice in UK schools and a focus on fostering the right skills in our young people for success in a global society and economy. With these objectives moving up the agenda across the UK, the work of the British Council in UK schools, colleges, universities and the cultural and creative sectors across the length and breadth of the UK has never been more relevant. We collaborate and partner with: UK and overseas governments and government departments delivery partners, sponsors and stakeholders. This allows us to better align strategies, effort and maximise the impact of our work. Value to the UK Building the UK s influence and attraction, we will continue to: Enhance the UK s reputation as a world leader in cultural relations, cultural diplomacy and soft power hosting international policy summits, initiating leading edge research and continuing our support for the second ministerial Edinburgh International Culture Summit in 2014. Support the UK government s GREAT campaign, working with the FCO, UKTI, Visit Britain and the Cabinet office, helping to deliver economic growth by highlighting internationally the strength of education and culture in the UK. Our focus will be on student recruitment to the UK, particularly from emerging economies. We will engage the cultural sector to support its international ambitions and help deliver wider educational, business and tourism objectives. Promote the UK as the best English language learning destination to support UK-based English language providers to enrol hundreds of thousands of English language students each year.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 9 Strengthen international links and deliver benefits to the UK, through education and cultural programmes linked to major events and anniversaries: Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games Dylan Thomas Centenary 2014 Edinburgh Festivals 2014 and 2015 First World War Centenary 2014 18 Magna Carta 800 in 2015 Shakespeare 400 in 2016 Hull as UK City of Culture 2017. Through Study, Work, Create and internationalising the UK s young people, we will: Support the wider UK strategy for outward mobility, growing our Study Work Create web portal to showcase the widest possible range of international opportunities open to UK young people and young professionals from the British Council and other UK and international organisations that share our commitment to international experiences. Continue to champion language learning and intercultural skills at the heart of world-class curricula, enabling pupils to learn from their peers around the world, and bringing languages to life by placing native speakers from Europe, China, and the Americas into UK schools as language assistants. Campaign to change the UK s culture of complacency towards foreign language learning. Foster international connections for the youth and community sectors, both through mobility programmes such as Erasmus+ and through partners such as the English Premier League and their community programmes. Supporting UK education and sharing expertise, we will: Help to keep the UK s higher education sector at the forefront of international education, by maintaining alignment with the UK s International Education Strategy, working with UK partners to build and strengthen international partnership and collaboration. This will support sector and institutional development; and promote student recruitment and mobility. Develop more research links between early stage researchers in the UK and overseas, supporting them to form deep and sustainable collaborations. Strengthen our support to the UK English language sector through closer working with BIS and the sector to provide international market intelligence, broker new partnerships and to support research, innovation and capacity development for the UK English language teaching profession.
10 Share UK approaches to education reform including curriculum development, quality assurance and vocational education, and attract education ministers from around the globe to the annual Education World Forum in London. This will build knowledge of the UK s educational strengths and develop business opportunities for UK organisations. Work with the four UK education departments to help our schools sectors learn from the best in the world, sharing policy insights and increasing international professional development for school leaders and teachers. Address the needs of children in UK schools for whom English is not the first language. It is estimated that there are over one million such learners in UK schools. Work in partnership to develop materials for adult learners of English who have not had access to lessons, thereby reaching into the heart of communities. Develop a coherent, global, cultural skills offer in collaboration with the best of the UK sector, with different models for ODA and developed markets. New partnerships Through our mixed funding model we work across the public, private and non-governmental organisation (NGO) sectors, working in new ways to extend the impact and scale of our work. By building strong relationships, trust and warmth with existing partners, we will increase the number of meaningful strategic partnerships that bring innovation, influence, impact and income benefits to our delivery and to the UK. We are extending our business development approach to global partners, including trusts, foundations and corporates. We will continue to invest in research to identify and understand prospective sectors and partners (for example, telecoms and online learning sectors) and use this to develop a tight strategic range of collaborations. We will continue to grow capability in our global network to ensure we have the skills we need for relationship management. We recognise how important it is for the British Council to work with trusts and foundations that have strong reputations in the areas in which we work. With a growing understanding of trusts and foundations we will develop our profile and establish the organisation as a partner of choice. Having developed our technical understanding of how sponsorship works and an associated strategy for arts sponsorship, we will build on and develop new relationships with major corporates interested in becoming partners in high-profile seasons, festivals and bilateral programmes that feature UK assets in priority overseas markets.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 11 There is a growing recognition across the organisation of the non-financial benefits of working with partners. We will extend our corporate scorecard system to capture the full value of our partnership activity and further embed this understanding in the organisation. By 2016, partnering will be one of our principal business models. This will enable us to grow impact fast without growing ourselves at the same pace, and most importantly will demonstrate effective collaborative working, particularly with UK organisations. Bringing together the cultural offer We will continue to develop and deliver programmes which bring together and harness the UK s three main cultural strengths; the English language, education, and the arts, to deliver benefits greater than the sum of the parts. Many of our new and upcoming initiatives take advantage of this. Core to this is our collaboration with government departments and other partners, for example our contribution, alongside UKTI and BIS on the Creative Industries Council and our work with the DCMS on the cultural programme within the GREAT campaign. Linking our seasons and festivals with our creative economy focused country work provides another opportunity for collaboration with the FCO and UKTI. Shakespeare 400 is a great example of this way of working. It has been designed from the ground up to use the universality of Shakespeare, his work, and the social issues he addresses to deliver outcomes in English, education and society, and the arts. The Culture Diary provides information on upcoming UK arts and cultural events taking place worldwide, building on the initiative established for London 2012. We are working with Arts Council England, the Cabinet Office, FCO, UTKI, DCMS, Visit Britain and the Greater London Authority on maintaining and extending this asset. Sport and culture Sport plays a natural role in cultural relations. It transcends many of the things that divide us and it provides a simple, practical way of bringing people together, building their skills and confidence. With the English Premier League we will continue to develop the Premier Skills programme to provide training for coaches, teachers and young people, support the development of community and education networks and help young people develop life skills and learn English through the medium of football. Our work linked to the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games includes a school linking project with the BBC and the Commonwealth Secretariat to inspire children in 100,000 schools across the ten largest Commonwealth countries to consider values and citizenship; and a celebration of Scottish visual arts of the last 25 years which will be exhibited in galleries across Scotland before touring internationally.
12 International Inspiration: with our partners, UNICEF and UK Sport, we will finalise and pass on the impact of the international sport legacy programme of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. This programme met its target of enriching the lives of over 12 million young people around the world through sport and has led to the UK taking a role in preparations for Rio 2016. Science and culture Science is also one of our founding principles and remains a priority today we support policy discussion and new partnerships for research and innovation between the higher education sector, government and business communities. Our work in science is aligned with BIS and UKTI research initiatives, with the FCO s global Science and Innovation Network and is integrated into the International Science Strategy. UK India Education and Research Initiative: we will continue to support new and sustainable partnerships between UK and Indian higher education institutions, including research and innovation. We will also seek to develop this model into East Asia through the ASEAN (Association of South East Asia Nations) Knowledge Partnerships. The Newton Fund, a UK International Education Strategy priority, will build research and innovation relationships with emerging powers. We will work closely with the UK government to support development and implementation, particularly in countries where our trusted long-term relationships and convening skills are most required. Researcher Links: we have reinvigorated our focus on early career researchers, especially in emerging scientific nations. This new initiative provides support for career development, networking and research visits, and is complemented by our communication skills training for researchers which we are piloting in a number of countries globally. We will continue to work in the area of public engagement in science, supporting international networks of talented science communicators and helping them to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers. This work will build on initiatives such as FameLab International. Created by Cheltenham Festivals, FameLab gives young scientists three minutes to entertain and engage a live audience. It is now run in partnership with the British Council and national partners in over 23 countries. We will nurture future scientists and engineers by introducing more science and technology themes into our schools programmes, building on the UK s reputation for excellence in communicating science.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 13 Social enterprise We use the UK s expertise to support social enterprise development across a wide range of sectors to address social and environmental problems promoting sustainable economic growth and positive social change. To date we have worked in 20 countries and formed 100 partnerships, developing social enterprise internationally, promoting development and prosperity for people worldwide. We will seek to develop into new markets with new partnerships over the next planning period. Our work helps to bring social investment deals to the UK, promotes the country as an innovation hub, and supports the export of UK social enterprise goods and services. We have established a strong track record for this work in East Asia and particularly China where we have helped to introduce the concept. We welcomed the inclusion of Social Enterprise UK as part of the 2013 Prime Ministerial trade delegation to China.
14 3. ARTS New ways of connecting with and understanding each other through the arts Through our work in the arts we aim to: increase the prosperity of participating arts professionals and institutions through enhanced artistic quality, financial sustainability and global reputation develop skills among arts professionals and institutions attract arts lovers worldwide and increase audiences for UK work globally and for international work in the UK enhance the UK s international reputation as a creative, diverse and relevant destination for students, business leaders and tourists. Progress to date In 2011 we adopted a global arts vision within which our arts programmes, skills and business model have developed. We work primarily with arts professionals in the UK and across the world (both arts practitioners and enablers), as well as policy makers, to develop mutually beneficial connections and projects. This allows us to extend UK influence worldwide through exhibitions, performances and publications. We are trusted for our focus on artistic quality, innovation and partnership. We have invested in new talent, building a global management team of arts professionals based in our core regions. We have increased our arts budgets through a mixed economy model which mirrors the sector. This has led to a renewed confidence in our work in the arts from UK Now in 2012 (the largest-ever celebration of UK arts and culture in China), to new programme developments for the creative economy, cultural skills and music education programmes such as World Voice. So far, during the Corporate Plan period, we have achieved: A new model for festivals and seasons supporting presentation, collaboration and exchange, and integrated with our creative economy and cultural skills work. For example, Transform Brazil and UK Now in China, plus plans for a three-year Re-imagine India programme, UK Russia Year of Culture 2014 and Mexico 2015 (Year of the UK in Mexico and Year of Mexico in the UK). Major partnerships with the UK s arts councils and major cultural institutions such as Creative Scotland, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the British Library. Our Arts Council England joint action plan covers ten areas of significant collaboration and has helped to secure extensive additional lottery funding for international work. Alignment and interdependence between our work in the arts, English and education and society, through major events such as the Cultural Olympiad and the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens birth, resulting in a more coherent offer. Co-ordination of our digital and face-to-face offer to arts professionals in the UK, using social media and art form websites (music, visual arts etc.) to gather and share information and contacts and make international connections.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 15 Priorities for the next two years: Up to 2016 we will focus on the following challenges and opportunities: undertake a market sizing exercise to determine more accurate and ambitious targets for our audience reach invest in developing new products and services where we have identified market demand, for example a coherent cultural skills offer promoting the breadth of UK expertise, and creative economy work invest in the two main assets that we own, to increase impact and build partnerships: the British Council Collection and our global network of arts professionals further develop our model of effective UK seasons, integrating ambitions from overseas with those of the UK, to generate lasting benefits from creative economy and cultural skills develop and capitalise on major opportunities to reach audiences directly through digital channels ensure a strategic balance to our work so we continue to support the UK arts sector through high quality programming, benefit the wider UK and UK business, and support government targets for ODA secure the future of showcasing in non-oda priority markets by formalising a balanced and robust financial model that matches the best financial management in the sector. By 2015 16 we will be working annually with: Over 800,000 artists, art lovers, cultural leaders and ministers face-to-face. THREE MILLION artists, art lovers and participants in online communities. OVER NINE MILLION website visitors. MORE THAN TEN MILLION exhibition, festival, event and performance attendees. Well in excess of 116 MILLION viewers, listeners and readers.
16 Summary of our Arts programmes and activities for 2014 16 Title Showcasing British Council Collection Support for creative professionals and artists Skills and knowledge exchange Detail We use showcase events and digital channels in the UK and overseas to promote UK work to audiences and promoters in international markets. For example, events such as the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Huddersfield Music Festival, the Venice Biennale and Architecture Biennale. There are also bespoke seasons such as the UK Russia year of culture (2014), UK/ZA Connect (South Africa, 2014), forthcoming seasons in Mexico and Nigeria and Shakespeare 400. We use our collection of contemporary British art to support major international events such as the São Paulo Biennale. Working with other collections and museums we will share the British Council Collection to create our own world series of exhibitions for international touring. We build relationships between UK arts professionals and global contacts online and in person, for example through the Young Creative Entrepreneur scheme; offering financial support for artists in the early stage of their careers, for example through the Artists International Development Fund; and provide a range of support services through our management of the EU s Creative Europe Desk for Culture in the UK. We share the UK s policy experience, particularly in skills development and in the creative and cultural industries. This may be within cultural seasons such as Transform Brazil; on a paid basis (for example to national and local government in Colombia); or as part of international events for cultural leaders (for example the Remix event in 2014 in London, New York and Sydney).
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 17 How we achieve impact in the arts 1. WHO WE WORK WITH Ministers of culture, arts policy makers and local government. Artists and cultural leaders (festival directors, curators, producers and programmers from the UK and overseas). Art lovers and arts students in the UK and overseas, international audiences for UK work and UK audiences for international work. 2. WHAT THEY EXPERIENCE International arts events, arts policy dialogue, publications, research and consultancy. Professional development workshops, arts awards, arts forums and networks, collaborative creation, exchange of ideas, work in other countries. Inspiring, entertaining and transformative international arts events (exhibitions, showcases, festivals, fairs, performances). 3. WHAT THEY TAKE AWAY Increased knowledge and skills to work internationally. Increased knowledge of UK and international arts administration and policy. Improved knowledge and skills in the creative sector overseas. Knowledge and skills to support tolerance, respect and diversity. Improved perception of the diversity of UK art. 4. WHAT THEY DO Develop artistic practice by working internationally. Collaborate in developing arts policy and practice internationally. Work on joint creative projects. Develop new markets. Engage with peers in the UK and internationally. Develop creative and cultural institutions overseas and in the UK. Influence international conversations. Recommend and talk about their experience to others. 5. LASTING IMPACT Artists prosper. Skills develop. Institutions prosper. UK reputation grows. Audiences grow. NEW WAYS OF CONNECTING WITH AND UNDERSTANDING EACH OTHER THROUGH THE ARTS.
18 4. ENGLISH AND EXAMINATIONS More widespread and better quality teaching, learning and assessment of English worldwide. We provide people worldwide with greater access to the life-changing opportunities that come from learning English and gaining valuable UK qualifications. Our work helps to maintain the UK s profile and expertise in English language teaching worldwide. Progress to date Since 2011 we have seen continued growth in our work in English and examinations. We have expanded our global network of high quality teaching centres with an anticipated growth of over 20 per cent in learners between 2011 and 2013. We have extended our range of self-access English language learning products offered through digital and mobile technology, leading to a growth in our digital audience of over 40 per cent over the same period. We are working more with governments to transform whole education systems to increase opportunity and employability through English. UK examinations which we administer overseas continue to grow, providing exports to UK examination boards in excess of 70 million. Our work in English and examinations makes a major contribution to the UK s International Education Strategy, and we work closely with the new UKTI Education team to identify and develop international opportunities in this area for UK education and training providers. Our work increases international opportunities for UK English language teaching (ELT) businesses and examination awarding bodies. Through Accreditation UK we promote the UK as a leading destination for English language learners (a market worth 2 billion annually) and support the UK English language teaching sector with research and market intelligence.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 19 Priorities for the next two years: contribute to the development and quality of English learning and teaching in schools worldwide, supporting effective English language teaching policy and English teacher development, in collaboration with policy makers, education ministries and donors support the English language learning and training needs of students and teachers in international further and higher education systems expand our range of self-access English language learning products offered through the internet and mobile technology, as well as through print and broadcast media invest in and expand our global network of high quality English teaching centres through our teaching network and self-access learning, increase the number of people learning English with us and continue to develop our award winning digital learning content, using the UK s vibrant culture as an aid to language learning contribute to the promotion of the UK as an English language learning destination increase access to effective English assessment, to support the learning of English worldwide and improve access worldwide to UK school and professional qualifications increase access to English language and other UK qualifications, providing candidates with evidence of their learning and ability in English and improving standards; the acquisition of valuable UK qualifications helps individuals secure opportunities in both further and higher education and in employment continue to invest in our high-performing British Council bilingual, bicultural primary and secondary school in Madrid. By 2015 16 we will be working annually with: 340,000 policy makers and ministers, teachers and coaches. Over SIX MILLION teachers and learners in online communities. Over 450,000 learners in teaching centre classes. THREE MILLION examinations candidates. TENS OF MILLIONS of website visitors. TENS OF MILLIONS of viewers, listeners and readers.
20 Summary of our English and Examinations programmes and activities for 2014 16 UK examinations English for education systems Face-to-face and blended English English for self-access learners Provide access to English language and other UK qualifications. Support the development of English language learning and teaching, and the use of English to teach subjects across the curriculum, in schools and further and higher education institutions. Through support to policy and research, curriculum development and teacher training programmes we will help strengthen the quality of English language teaching and the understanding of language in cultural relations and development. Provide over 400,000 individual and group learners of English with a range of face-to-face and blended courses, through partners and in our 80 plus centres worldwide. Provide courseware, online, mobile, broadcast and print resources for learners to improve their English, as well as website tools and global online training resources for teachers of English.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 21 How we achieve impact in English and examinations 1. WHO WE WORK WITH English language policy makers and influencers, academics, teachers and teacher educators. Individual and organisational learners of English worldwide who invest time and money to improve. Learners of English worldwide. Individuals: learners worldwide looking to achieve an internationally recognised qualification. Organisations: examinations/ qualifications institutions. 2. WHAT THEY EXPERIENCE Policy dialogue, research, consultancy, accreditation, teaching resources, curriculum advice, training courses, development, networks. Face-to-face training courses (classroom and on-site), learning materials, resources, support, advice, access to learner networks, testing and accreditation. Training courses, learning materials, resources, support, advice, access to learner networks, testing and accreditation, (delivered via non face-to-face channels). Internationally recognised examinations, rigorous testing and assessment processes, quality standards and integrity of process. 3. WHAT THEY TAKE AWAY Global good practice; evidence of what works; design and implementation advice; improved teaching skills and capacity. Improved English skills, enhanced perceptions of the quality of UK resources and materials. Increased understanding of their abilities relative to international standards, greater confidence and self-esteem. Understanding of good practice. 4. WHAT THEY DO Implement new policies, processes, systems; new approaches or new models of training, learning or assessment. Pursue their employment, educational and social goals with greater confidence, ability and a higher chance of success. Institutions implement good practice. 5. LASTING IMPACT English for education systems: English policy worldwide is developed and implemented in response to needs/ evidence and reflects international good practice. This results in improved teaching and learning. Face-to-face and blended learning: More people gain confidence and the opportunity to study, work and develop a career in a globalised world through face-to-face and online English tuition with the British Council. Self-access learning: More people gain confidence and the opportunity to study, work and develop a career in a globalised world through cost-effective and flexible access to quality British Council English learning resources. Examinations: More people gain confidence and the opportunity to study, work and develop a career in a globalised world as a result of taking an internationally recognised qualification with the British Council. MORE WIDESPREAD AND BETTER QUALITY TEACHING, LEARNING AND ASSESSMENT OF ENGLISH WORLDWIDE.
22 5. EDUCATION AND SOCIETY Enhanced UK leadership of, and shared learning from, international education. Societies whose young people, citizens and institutions contribute to and benefit from a more inclusive, open and prosperous world. Progress to date Establishing the Education and Society business unit in 2011 has led to a clearer and simplified strategy for our work. We have recruited a new leadership team and are investing in professional staff in priority countries and markets. We are developing a more focused and clearer portfolio across schools, skills, higher education, science and society. Our work is delivered through more partnerships across the public and private sectors including with HSBC, Premier League, Microsoft, Skype, Ecorys and with UK government departments such as the Department for Education, BIS, the FCO and the Department for International Development (DFID) and overseas governments. In this way, our work is aligned with the priorities of UK government departments on poverty reduction, economic growth and access to justice and security. We have maintained the high numbers of people we work with through face-to-face activity and exhibitions while increasing the numbers of people we reach through digital channels. We have more than doubled the people in our online networks since 2011 to over 4.5 million. Our evaluation work consistently shows that we are having a positive impact. The people we work with consistently rate us highly with over 90 per cent reporting impact on their professional lives and over 80 per cent reporting impact on their institutions and a strengthening of their links with the UK. External evaluations of our programmes for clients like DFID and the European Commission consistently rate us as good (meeting expectations) to excellent (exceeding expectations). More generally we have strengthened our work in education and society to deliver ODA. The Independent Commission for Aid Impact described our work in the Middle East and North Africa in response to the Arab Spring, as considered, strategic and a good complement to the FCO s. By 2015 16 we will be working annually with: Over FIVE MILLION teachers, academics, college and higher education leaders in online communities. TWO MILLION education and society exhibition and fair attendees. TENS OF MILLIONS of website visitors. MORE THAN HALF A MILLION education, labour and justice ministers, academics, researchers, school leaders, teachers, community and business leaders.
CORPORATE PLAN 2014 2016 23 Priorities for the next two years: maintain alignment with the five strands of the UK s International Education Strategy: welcome international students through refreshing the Education UK brand, supporting the GREAT campaign, managing scholarships in partnership with UK and overseas businesses and governments support transnational education through our research and horizon scanning publications, providing market intelligence and exhibition services to UK institutions, training and accreditation of overseas agents support the development of education technology through partnerships for higher education for example, FutureLearn and three massive open online courses (MOOCs) and schools and with Microsoft to bring connectivity and teacher development to schools in Africa build relationships with emerging powers through early stage convening, development work for the Newton fund, working in partnership to increase research and innovation collaboration between the UK and emerging powers, supporting the participation of overseas governments in the Education World Forum build the UK brand and seize opportunities through committing staff resources to work with UKTI Education and the Higher Education International Unit on significant outward missions and visits focus on internationalising higher education, supporting the UK s position at the heart of thought leadership and creating new opportunities for collaboration and exchange between governments, higher education institutions, researchers and businesses in the UK and around the world support school leaders and policy makers in the UK and overseas to improve quality and attainment levels through professional development, policy and curriculum reform, award schemes such as the International Schools Award, and technology assisted learning (e.g. using interactive white boards, mobile phones, tablets and websites to deliver exercises or homework) contribute to ensuring secure and stable societies, in which more young people can prosper, by supporting governance reform, access to justice for those people most excluded, and providing opportunities for the development of skills for employment and enterprise help people and local institutions to work together in their communities and internationally on issues that matter to them support the development of a more sustainable economy worldwide and in the UK by building links between social entrepreneurs and policy makers ensure that girls and women are empowered to take part and contribute in all our programmes expand our partnership working across the private, public and third sectors to develop, deliver and fund programmes in the UK and internationally work more through digital channels and by building relationships with existing and new clients to increase our scale and impact in education and society and increase our turnover from client-funded contracts and services.