Sir Ciarán Devane, Chief Executive at the British Council, said: “The UK’s place in the world has never been more important so it’s fantastic to see that we continue to be a major player. The British Council believes that soft power is not about exerting power but about building trust and understanding between nations. Whether teaching languages in refugee camps or using digital media to promote Shakespeare globally, we will continue to use the best of the UK’s assets to build knowledge and understanding for the people of the UK and the countries we work in.”
For more information, please contact Kristen McNicoll in the British Council press office on 0207 389 4967 or by emailing kristen.mcnicoll@britishcouncil.org
The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We create international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries and build trust between them worldwide.
We work in more than 100 countries and our 8,000 staff – including 2,000 teachers – work with thousands of professionals and policy makers and millions of young people every year by teaching English, sharing the arts and delivering education and society programmes.
We are a UK charity governed by Royal Charter. A core publicly-funded grant provides 16 per cent of our turnover which last year was £973 million. The rest of our revenues are earned from services which customers around the world pay for, such as English classes and taking UK examinations, and also through education and development contracts and from partnerships with public and private organisations. All our work is in pursuit of our charitable purpose and supports prosperity and security for the UK and globally.
For more information, please visit: www.britishcouncil.org. You can also keep in touch with the British Council through http://twitter.com/britishcouncil and http://blog.britishcouncil.org/.