News

The English Language Centre hosted the first ever Academic Managers Conference organised by The English Network (TEN). The 1-day event brought together academic managers from the TEN schools in Brighton to share their expertise and best practice with professionals at similar quality English language schools.

The speakers included Jenny Johnson (pictured), Academic Manager at Eastbourne School of English, our sister school, and Janice Martin, Assistant Academic Director at The English Language Centre.

Initial feedback from the academic managers was very positive, saying that it was a great opportunity to meet fellow professionals in similar contexts.

 

Every school says that they are the best but we feel we have some external justification for the claim that The English Language Centre (Brighton) is the top rated English language school in Brighton, and one of the best schools in the UK.

1. EL Gazette ‘Centre of Excellence’ 

For the 4^th consecutive year ELC Brighton has been listed as a Centre of Excellence by the EL Gazette. With 6 points of excellence from the British Council and “Exceeds expectations” in all categories from ISI, ELC Brighton is listed amongst the top 5% of language schools in the UK and as the top-ranked Brighton language school. No other language school in Brighton is ranked higher. You can find the EL Gazette list here and here.

 

2. Education Stars

ELC Brighton is ranked the top language school in Brighton and in the top 5 language schools in England based on student feedback in Education Stars “review of schools”.

 

Matthew Devere has been appointed as Head of Business English. He has a wealth of experience as a Business English trainer having specialised in the field for more than 10 years. He has a degree in economics and prior to becoming a teacher he worked for the Inland Revenue and Mobil Gas for 10 years. "His appointment reflects our enduring commitment to the very highest educational standards and is a reflection of the importance we place on a very important department at ELC", said Chief Executive, Phil Hopkins. "We have been offering high quality language training for business professionals with great success for more than 50 years and look forward to Matthew helping develop our provision further." 

Matthew said "I am delighted to take up the post. What makes ELC really special is the quality of our trainers. Most schools offer business English, but very few offer specialised business trainers. Ours are highly experienced and fully qualified, working only in business English. They have a proven track record of success working with international business people of all types and at all levels".

ELC was busy over the 2-week Christmas break making further improvements to the facilities we offer our students, to offer state of the art facilities and a beautifully preserved historic building:

1. Computer/internet access

We have completely redecorated and refurbished the Computer Room, bringing the number of computers for student use in the room up to 15. In addition, we have added an interactive whiteboard, new monitors with inbuilt webcams and new furniture. There is also a printer for free student access.

Furthermore, the free WiFi access throughout the school has been enhanced to improve speed.

 

 

2. Staircase and Mezzanine

A 3-year restoration project has seen the historic staircase and mezzanine opened up and transformed, creating an elegant space for students and to hold events/conferences.

 

 

The English Language Centre was very proud to host the joint event for IATEFL's 'Leadership & Management' and 'Teacher Development' special interest groups on Friday 23 and Saturday 24 November. The theme of the joint event was "Developing Teachers in Developing Schools" and trialled Open Source Teachnology.

There were more than 50 participants from a number of countries including the UK, Germany, Spain, Greece, the Russian Federation, Ireland, Italy, Slovakia and Romania.    

 

 Speakers/facilitators included Adrian Underhill, Fiona Dunlop, Andy Hockley, Andrew Walkley and Duncan Foord.

Background

Eastbourne School of English was founded in 1936 and, with ELC in Brighton, is owned and operated by The English Language Centre, a not-for-profit educational charity. The schools have an excellent reputation for providing a wide-range of quality English language courses for adults.

Job details

The Academic Manager has joint responsibility as Centre Manager and the successful candidate would be responsible for managing and supporting a team of EFL Teachers and ensuring the smooth running of both the academic and administrative aspects of all English Language Courses.

Accountable for course direction, course development, syllabus reviews and development, evaluation, timetabling, student attendance, development and control of teaching resources, and the management and professional development of teaching staff.

They would also liaise closely with the Academic Director and CEO (based in Brighton) and the Marketing & Administration Manager (based in Eastbourne) on a daily basis.

Candidates must be educated to degree level or equivalent, TEFLQ and have previous experience in ELT management. Previous use of Class by Infospeed would be an advantage. Must possess excellent interpersonal, IT and administrative skills.

The position of Academic Manager is offered on a full-time permanent basis, subject to successful completion of the probationary period. We offer competitive salary dependent on qualifications and previous experience, and other benefits.

To apply send your CV and a covering letter to Phil Hopkins, Chief Executive - phil@elc-brighton.co.uk

There has been some really good news in the latest exam results we have received:

• 100% pass rate in the recent LCCI English for Business exams, including 2 passes with Distinction
• Amongst a number of good IELTS results, some stand out:

- brother and sister Juan Manuel and Maria Alejandra Munoz Carvajal from Columbia both achieved overall scores of 8.0, with Juan Manuel scoring 9.0 in listening and reading.

- a student from South Korea achieved an overall scotre of 7.0 with 7.5 in listening.   

The Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) inspected The English Language Centre Ltd - ELC Brighton and its sister school Eastbourne School of English - at the beginning of May 2012. The inspection report found that the centres 'exceed expectations' in all categories. Read the full ISI Inspection report.

Amongst many very positive comments the report says:

The quality of the curriculum, teaching and learners’ achievement - "Grade 1 - Exceeds Expectations"

• "The school’s provision is of high quality in accordance with its ambitious aims."
• "The range, design and organisation of course provision are excellent."
• "The quality of teaching is excellent and contributes very effectively to students’ learning. Its main strength lies in the consistently high level of skills and experience of its teaching staff, further sharpened and developed by extensive internal and external professional development."
• "The school offers a wide range of courses of a high quality."

Students’ welfare, including health and safety - "Grade 1 - Exceeds Expectations"

• "The care of students is a major strength of the school." 
• "Pastoral care for all students is exceptionally good."
• "...both centres provide excellent accommodation."
• "There is an exceptionally good social programme of activities."
• "The premises at both the Brighton and Eastbourne centres are of a high quality and are well suited to their educational purposes."
• "An excellent rapport exists between students and staff. Students are very confident during lessons because of the encouragement they receive."

The effectiveness of governance, leadership, and management - "Grade 1 - Exceeds Expectations"

• "The school is strongly governed and extremely well led and managed at all levels."
• "The school has a clear mission and ethos which comes from a passion for the teaching of language and is shared by management and staff alike."
• "Teaching and administrative staff are of a consistently high quality and management displays an exceptional commitment to staff development for both centres."
• "Outcomes for students are excellent." 
• "The excellent websites ... provide accurate, clear and comprehensive information about the two centres and their courses and policies, which is helpful for prospective students."

We would like to offer a big thank you to all our staff, students and homestays. Well done! 

Th English Language Centre first opened its doors to students on 1st April 1962. (no it is not an April Fool's joke!). ELC Brighton has been based at 33 Palmeira Mansions ever since. 50 years later ELC Brighton is still committed to the ideals and values with which it started - quality, professionalism and care of all students and staff.

As part of a series of events planned for 2012, on Friday 30 March, ELC held a drinks reception for staff past and present. The event was attended by Glen Davie, one of the founders of ELC, who gave a moving speech and Peter Orpen, current ELC chairman and son of another founder, Marianne Orpen.   

From left to right  Peter Tamkin (current Group Academic Director), Charles Harrison (CEO from 1987 -2007), Peter Orpen (current chairman), Glen Davie (CEO from 1962 - 1987) and Phil Hopkins (current CEO).

The English Language Centre is proud to be named a "Centre of Excellence" by EL Gazette for the 3rd year running in its review of publishable statements for British Council accredited centres. ELC Brighton is also proud that it is one of only 7 schools listed whose score has increased and that no other school in Brighton has achieved more points of excellence. You can find the full article by clicking here

ELC Brighton was inspected by the British Council in May 2011. We increased the number of points of excellence yet again!! The publishable statement says: 

The British Council inspected and accredited the English Language Centre in May 2011. The Accreditation Scheme assesses the standards of management, resources and premises, teaching and welfare and accredits organisations which meet the overall standard in each area inspected. his private language school offers courses in general and professional English for adults and under-18s.

Points of excellence were noted in aspects of general management, premises, academic resources, academic management, teachers’ qualifications and teaching.

The inspection report stated that the organisation met the standards of the Scheme.

The English Language Centre, an educational charity with schools in Brighton and Eastbourne, is sponsoring two teachers from St Lawrence Community School, Misisi, Zambia to attend 6 weeks of teacher training courses in Brighton this summer. In collaboration with The Zambia Society, Brighton Rotary and Lusaka Rotary clubs, the aim of the scheme is to support the development of English teaching in the school.

On 6 July 2011, Phil Hopkins, CEO, and Peter Orpen, Chairman, of The English Language Centre attended a fund-raising event organised by the Zambia Society with special guests including the two teachers and Professor Royston Mukwena, the Zambian High Commissioner in London.

From left to right, Peter Orpen (ELC chairman) James Cairns (Chairman, Zambia Society), Sister Veronica Nyoni, Richard Beardsall (Lusaka Rotary), Professor Royston Mukwena (High Commissioner, Zambia), Phil Hopkins (CEO of ELC), Mrs Clare Lungu, Frank Mc Govern (the President of the Trust), and Terrina Steel.

Brighton is a lively city - nearly every weekend there is a different event but with the coming of spring there are lots of festivals leading up to the biggest Arts Festival in England (and second in the UK after the Edinburgh Festival). Why not book a course at ELC and enjoy some of the following?

March: 21st Sussex Beer & Cider festival; Brighton Science Festival

April: Festival of Shopping, Food & Drink Festival, Brighton Marathon; Chocolate Festival 

May: Brighton Festival of Arts and Music; Artists Open House Festival

The English Language Centre, Brighton is licensed by the UK Border Agency as a Highly Trusted Sponsor under Tier 4 of the Point-Based System for students wishing to attend English language courses on a General student Visa.

New courses for 2011 include General English + TOEIC and intensive summer Cambridge courses. Our summer Cambridge courses are intensive 4-week preparation courses for FCE and CAE that finish with the relevant exam. Paper-based FCE and CAE are only available in the UK and Ireland during the summer. Take advantage of this great opportunity.

Everyone at ELC wishes all our students (past, present and future) and all our friends a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

We are pleased to announce the merger of The English Language Centre, Brighton and Eastbourne School of English. Members of the boards of the two charities met on 30 November 2010 to approve the merger formally and to celebrate a historic moment in the long history of the two schools.

ELC Brighton and ESOE will continue to operate under their existing names, retaining separate British Council accreditation and membership of professional EFL associations. Phil Hopkins is the CEO of the merged charity with Peter Tamkin as Academic Director. Graham White is standing down as Principal of Eastbourne School of English and will leave at the end of 2010. Glyn Hodgson becomes ESOE Academic Manager and Rebecca Willis is ESOE Administration and Marketing Manager. With a strong management team in place, both schools can look forward to a successful future based on a clear commitment to high-quality teaching and excellent personal service for students and agents.

Our 2011 dates and fees are now available to download as pdfs from our website. New courses include General English + TOEIC preparation.