Leading the association during rocky times in the UK, Sarah Cooper is nevertheless an optimist. Here she tells The PIE about why English UK lobbying efforts are more of a conversation than a battle and how better post-study work conditions may be closer than ever.
The PIE: What has been going on with English UK’s lobbying efforts?
Sarah Cooper: When the White Paper was introduced last December, there was some disappointment because it became quite clear that the proposal was that EU citizens would need visas. The biggest challenge for our members was ID cards being phased out.
But I think we have a good relationship with the policy team at the Home Office and we have a number of receptive ears in Parliament. There is a consultation going on and there have been times when I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the engagement team, who I think really understand the needs of the sector. So I don’t think it’s a battle – it’s a conversation.
The PIE: How do you see the conversation evolving?
“Our concern and my priority is the junior market, which of course is over half of our business”
SC: There are two main issues: student recruitment and staff recruitment. I’m going to start with staff recruitment because our industry depends very heavily, in the summer months, on recruiting EU teachers. With freedom of movement they could do that very easily.
The two proposed worker routes, the skilled worker and the temporary worker, don’t fit that need because teachers may not reach the salary threshold and the temporary worker route prevents them coming back for twelve months – and if they have a relationship with a school then they want to be able to come back. I’ve already had conversations with the policy team about that and I feel confident we can work out something that will help us solve the problem.
The PIE: What would be the ideal scenario, short of Freedom of Movement?
SC: Somewhere between the two, I suppose: a temporary worker route but with no restrictions such as the 12-month gap, for example. With regard to student recruitment, I don’t think the imposition of visas is in itself a major problem because they would just have to apply for an ETA. The bigger issue I think is ID cards, particularly for juniors – my big wish would be that juniors could continue to use ID cards.
I know that that’s not going to be popular. I’ve asked the Immigration minister and that didn’t go down well at all. I think the Home Office policy is that ID cards are not seen as secure as a biometric passport. I did say that surely a 14-year-old coming in is not a threat to national security, and they are often coming in as part of a school group with their teachers.
“My big wish would be that juniors could continue to use ID cards”
I do know ID cards will be phased out in due course and it wouldn’t be a rush, unlike the new immigration system which would be in theory implemented in January 2021. I think people will see an initial shock in certain markets but ultimately it will be accepted. Our concern and my priority is the junior market, which of course is over half of our business.
The PIE: How about work rights?
SC: A lot of EU students, particularly in the big urban areas – London being the prime example – are used to coming here and working and studying part-time. I would like to see a way in which they could retain some work rights. In theory, under the proposed temporary worker route, they could because they can come in for up to 12 months, they can work, they don’t have to be sponsored by anybody and they can study as well. In theory that should be fine. But we’d like to see a bit more flesh on the bones.
Ideally, work rights should extend to non-EU students as well. English language students used to have the right to work when I started working in the industry. They lost it in the private sector first and then in the FE sector.
“If you go to a country to immerse yourself in its language, then you want every opportunity to speak that language”
It shouldn’t have made a difference whether a student attends university or an English language course: it is perfectly reasonable for them to want to work. I think this was the “hostile environment” towards international students – but I think this is ending. The launch of the International Education Strategy showed a commitment by the government to grow what they recognise is a huge export industry.
The ELT business alone is bigger than the fishing industry in this country… nothing against the fishing industry, but it gets more headlines than us.
The PIE: How do you see the post-Brexit world for the industry and English UK?
SC: I think we’re in challenging times but I am confident that we have a very resilient industry. We have a very high-quality product and that’s the reason why we have the biggest market share in global ELT.
We saw recovery last year, we’ve seen that recovery consolidated this year. It’s encouraging, but that shouldn’t make us complacent because it is extremely challenging for some of our members – we’ve seen a few closures and acquisitions in the market, and I’m sure we’ll see more of that as the market consolidates.
We have to protect and preserve our market share, and we mustn’t sit on our laurels: we have to be very assertive in the way we promote ourselves.
The PIE: There has been a lot of talk around PSW for university students, with the Home Secretary supporting the call to reinstate the two-year provision. What is your take on this?
SC: I am extremely excited to hear about this. It’s been at the top of the wish list for anybody in international education for a really long time. And it’s a real reversal of attitude and of fortune to the industry. Although the support being acknowledged by the Home Secretary for the two-year post-study work doesn’t directly affect ELT students, I know the university sector recognises the pipeline that ELT provides into HE.
“We all know that it was one person, and one person alone, who introduced…punitive policy changes”
The PIE: Do you think the amendment will pass?
SC: I think it’s likely. All those standing for the Conservative leadership are more liberal on some immigration issues and in most cases don’t see students as immigrants. They recognise the huge economic value of the industry, the soft power, the cultural contribution the students make. We all know that it was one person, and one person alone, who introduced ever more punitive policy changes which created such a challenge for us all. And that person has stood down.
I think if you ask any political pundit, whatever they feel on Brexit, their views on international students are infinitely more positive. So I feel very optimistic.
The PIE: It’s 2025 and we are having this chat again. What will you be telling me then?
SC: That we have a healthy ELT industry. That we are still the premier destination. That our students are able to work, which is a natural thing to do: if you go to a country to immerse yourself in its language, then you want to have every opportunity to speak that language.
I think we’ll have an accreditation scheme which is accepted for educational oversight. I would also like to be in a position where we are supplying the best quality data to our industry ahead of all of our competitors.
I think we will probably be a smaller association. There will be more consolidation but there will always be room for the independent provider because they are the backbone of the industry and that’s where a lot of the creativity is coming from. In times of pressure, because this is indeed a tough time for the industry, the winners are the people who are really innovative.
