PCS publishes alternative plan for British Council
A vision for the future financial sustainability of British Council has been set out by PCS members and presented to MPs.
On Tuesday 31 March, a group of PCS reps from the British Council held a parliamentary event to discuss with MPs an alternative future for the organisation. Among the MPs who heard from the PCS reps were Jeremy Corbyn, the independent MP for Islington North and former leader of the Labour Party, and John McDonnell MP, chair of the PCS parliamentary group.
British Council management has proposed the renegotiation of a loan which has an outstanding balance of £193 million, which will push payment well into the future by 10-15 years. Alongside this are additional cuts to operational costs at a scale of £50 million a year for the next five years (2025-2030) including £30 million cuts each year in income-generating activity related to English learning and assessment.
PCS is proposing through our alternative vision with the £207m investment increase, to bring annual government investment to £357 million a year and argues that BC has been severely underfunded for many years.
For example, in a National Audit office report from 2008, it was reported that government funding for BC in the period 2006-2007 was £195m, compared to £350m from internal income generation – that’s 36% funding from government, compared to the 15% funding received in the last financial year. Adjusting the value of £195 million and allowing for inflation to find an equivalent for 2025, funding levels should be around £372 million, which is also roughly equivalent to 37% of the current cost of BC – around £1 billion per annum.
Cuts will potentially destabilise our members’ ability to deliver English language learning that generates income for the organisation. This would undermine standards and impact the BC brand, leading future customers choosing other, more reliable providers.
The global education market is projected to experience significant growth over the next decade, to a value of $10 trillion. The British Council can’t take for granted the idea that the UK and UK providers will remain at the forefront of English language provision – the presence of BC, a trusted brand with global recognition - will ensure that the interests of the UK and connections to UK society will remain as strong as they are today, and as they have been in the past.