English in Britain: Accreditation
Contents Introduction 1 The aims of the scheme 2 The service offered to students of English in Britain 3 What prospective students need to know 4 Complaints 5 Resources Available 6 Useful addresses Introduction The English in Britain Accreditation Scheme for English language teaching institutions in Britain operates as a quality assurance scheme for providers of courses in English as a foreign language in Britain. 1 The aims of the scheme

The aims of English in Britain accreditation scheme is to: ♦ set standards of quality and efficiency for British ELT institutions ♦ encourage British ELT institutions to aspire to even higher levels of quality and efficiency ♦ promote a wider knowledge of Accredited British ELT abroad, and of the educational and social benefits of studying English in this country ♦ protect international students of English in Britain by providing a choice of organisations committed to professional excellence. The scheme is managed by the British Council together with ARELS (The Association of Recognised English Language Services) and BASELT (The British Association of State English Language Teaching). The English in Britain Accreditation Scheme is open to all educational organisations engaged in the teaching of English as a foreign language. At present over 370 organisations are accredited under the Scheme. These, and only these, organisations are permitted to advertise themselves and their courses as accredited by the British Council.

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The service offered to students of English in Britain

The scheme monitors and aims to improve standards of management, teaching, resources and welfare in organisations teaching English as a foreign language in Britain. We do this through regular inspections (including unannounced spot checks). The following areas are inspected: ♦ Teaching and learning The inspectors see every class which takes place during the inspection, which usually takes place on one or two days