The British Council creates international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries and builds trust worldwide.

The British Council is on the ground in six continents and over 100 countries bringing international opportunity to life, every day. Each year their teams work with millions of people, connecting them with the United Kingdom, sharing cultures and the UK’s most attractive assets: English, the Arts, Education and its ways of living and organising society. The British Council has over 75 years’ experience of doing this.

In line with its Royal Charter, the British Council aims to bring high quality English materials to every learner or teacher who wants them around the world. It works with governments to transform whole education systems to increase opportunity and employability through English. It also delivers English teaching and trains teachers by radio, web and broadcast in developing and post conflict countries.

In the Arts the British Council works with the best of British and international artistic and creative talent to develop events and collaborations which link thousands of artists, organisations and audiences worldwide. In addition to staging shows and exhibitions, it partners with others on joint Arts projects and helps develop creative leadership, professional networks and cultural educational programmes worldwide.

All over the world, people want greater educational opportunities to enhance their lives and employment prospects. The British Council’s focus in education is on bringing an international dimension to education in schools, technical colleges and universities, on raising educational standards by sharing the UK’s expertise, and on encouraging the best international students to study in the UK.

The British Council’s high profile work in English, the Arts and Education & Society helps hundreds of millions of people worldwide to learn about and experience creativity and excellence from the UK. Millions of talented people of all ages – but particularly younger people – engage face-to-face and online learning English, developing new skills, experiencing life and study in the UK and earning UK qualifications.

Finally, thousands of policymakers, academics, researchers, artists, sportspeople, scientists, curators, creative entrepreneurs, head- and classroom teachers work through the British Council with their counterparts in the UK to develop policy, professional standards and participation in English, the Arts, Education and civil society. In the process, they create new opportunities and possibilities for the UK and their own countries.

By teaching English, changing the way we see each other through the Arts, offering international education opportunities and sharing the UK’s ways of living and organising our society the British Council creates opportunity, trust, prosperity and security for the people of the UK and the many other countries it works in around the world.