Our sector expertise

The British Council works with civil society to enable people to come together to contribute to positive change based on shared values and interests. We support non-governmental organisations, networks of organisations and community leaders to collaborate locally and internationally on the development of more inclusive, open and stable societies.

We strengthen voice and accountability bysupporting citizens to participate in and influence decisions and policies that affect their lives. We help build the capacity of civil society organisations to monitor and promote improved public services. We support non-governmental organisations, social movements and citizens to work together in partnerships and coalitions with government and the private sector to influence policy and social change. We promoting empowerment, social inclusion and equality by working with partners from civil society and government to empower disadvantaged groups, support equal access to services and encourage inclusivity and equality in policy development.

The British Council is committed to working in partnerships to develop high-quality skills systems that help both individuals and economies to prosper and promote stable societies. We believe that sustainable change can occur when skills development activities, such as vocational and higher technical education and professional and enterprise skills training, are aligned with the future needs of industry.

We work with governments, employers and others to reform policy and improve the relevance and quality of public and private skills systems. We focus on ways of engaging employers, understanding the labour market. We strengthen skills bodies so that they are equipped to deal with current challenges and adapt and respond to new ones. Our partners include employer representative organisations, qualification authorities, employment services and education and training institutions.

We support leaders, managers, teachers and trainers to develop high-quality, competency-based curricula and to deliver these in innovative and stimulating ways. This includes technical, English language, employability and enterprise skills. We work with employment and enterprise support services to design innovative ways of helping individuals to reach their potential, from getting a job that uses their skills to developing a successful small business.

We work with governments, teachers, school leaders and civil society partners to improve the quality of school education for children and young people. By promoting quality education, sharing international best practice and facilitating dialogue between policy makers, practitioners and education leaders, we influence whole-system reform to help improve learning outcomes.

We enhance School leadership and management through coaching, mentoring and reflective learning and develop school leaders and managers to deliver improved learning outcomes and implement school development plans. We produce training materials and curricula to support high-quality leadership training.Our Teacher development programmes entail working with professional development institutions and governments to develop new training curricula and materials and to support the effective delivery of training for teachers. We focus on participatory learning and on sharing the latest pedagogical practices from across the world.

We support national and local governments and development partners to deliver education reform programmes, focusing on the development of governance and accountability systems, the development of national frameworks and standards, quality assurance and inspection services and public financial management. We support governments and organisations with curriculum development and assessment systems by designing and implementing national assessment systems, establishing national assessment centres and implementing Education Management Information Systems.

Strong English language skills are a priority for governments worldwide. Using our extensive experience of English teaching, we support the improvement of English language teaching in schools and higher levels of education.

We help governments to support reforms by improving the teaching and learning of English in the education systems and institution.  From policy, curriculum and teaching, to testing, assessment and quality assurance, we provide sustainable solutions at all levels, from pre-school to higher education. Our experience, scale and expertise, along with our strong project management capability, means we can reliably implement policy change programmes on a grand scale. Using our project monitoring tools we can also rigorously track progress, measure impact and evaluate success.

Our teacher training and development courses allow us to put together tailored solutions that address teaching needs specific to individual situations. Our goal is to provide the necessary tools, contacts and networks to help teachers teach and learners learn. Learners can attend face-to-face lessons in one of our teaching centres or choose to learn online. Our on-going learner support provides access to the world’s most comprehensive range of materials and tools, which can be mapped to any syllabus or curriculum. We can also demonstrate learner progress by providing internationally recognised proficiency tests.

The British Council believes that strengthening the rule of law, ensuring access to justice and addressing and resolving conflict are fundamental to human security and the development of stable economic states where all citizens’ voices can be heard and economic opportunities realised.

We help societies strengthen the rule of law and its institutions, including the police, the judiciary, courts and prisons. We work to make justice accessible to everyone in society, particularly the poor and marginalised, through legislative and policy reform, legal aid, mediation, paralegal services, cross-sector co-ordination and collaboration with traditional and customary justice systems and civil society organisations.

We help societies address and resolve conflict by strengthening existing mechanisms, encouraging dialogue as a means of community cohesion and supporting the voice of women, girls and vulnerable groups in building peace.

The British Council supports public sector reform that encourages open government and close relations with citizens, building trust and accountability in a shared mission to create more inclusive, open and prosperous societies. 

We encourage transparency and high standards in public services, and promote access to justice, security and citizen engagement. We help governments be more effective by supporting the development of policy in key areas, such as education, health and public administration. We strengthen accountability through participative methodologies, such as citizen scorecards, participatory budgets and citizen charters, which help to build trust, strengthen citizen voice and increase accountability.

We help strengthen and improve areas of policy, strategic planning, leadership training and human resources management, including systems for pay, recruitment and career development.