EC English closes all global schools

In a statement released today, EC English CEO Andrew Mangion said English teaching and the company’s trading would cease with immediate effect, as of September 14, with a skeleton staff available tomorrow.

“We recognise that this is extremely difficult and disappointing news for you and your students,” Mangion wrote to partners.

“We understand the trust that you place in EC when recommending us to your students, and we are deeply sorry for the uncertainty and disruption that this decision will cause.”

The company told agents it was “genuinely sorry for the difficult conversations” they will now have to have with students and families with existing travel and accommodation arrangements.

In a public statement today, EC English announced it was commencing formal insolvency following “challenging financial conditions and the failure to secure additional investment”. It said it was with “profound sadness” that the group had reached this point.

The news follows last week’s eleventh-hour correspondence informing agents that EC English schools would be unable to accept students due to enrol in courses this week.

The details of what support will be offered to current students enrolled across EC locations in the UK, Ireland, Canada, USA, UAE, South Africa and Malta where it was originally founded, remain unknown.

But the company is understood to be working with sector bodies “to establish possible relocation options to alternative schools” and has vowed to share further information as soon as it is able.

In the UK, English UK has activated its Student Emergency Support (SES) scheme to help around 370 students currently enrolled at EC English’s four UK schools in London, Cambridge, Brighton and Manchester find replacement courses at other member centres, at no extra cost.

Jodie Gray, chief executive of English UK, said the organisation’s “immediate priority” was supporting affected students and helping them continue their studies “with as little disruption as possible”.

“We’re grateful for the offers of support from English UK member centres across the country and for how our community is pulling together,” said Gray. “By coordinating the response centrally, we ensure students are matched with suitable placements in a fair, orderly and effective way.”

English UK said students currently studying at EC’s UK schools would be contacted directly with information about replacement courses and next steps, with staff also available at all four centres on Tuesday September 15.

“EC English has been open for 35 years, and to see such an important world player close doors is a sad day for everyone,” Languages Canada executive director Gonzalo Peralta told The PIE News.

He said the 375 students currently enrolled in EC’s Toronto and Vancouver schools would be placed by Languages Canada in alternative programs to complete their study, with priority given to students completing their courses in the next two weeks.

Over 25 Languages Canada member schools have already offered to receive displaced students, with other offers coming in, said Peralta.

At its peak in 2019, EC English welcomed up to 50,000 students annually through its adult and junior programs.

For students currently in EC accommodation, the company has said it will continue to provide accommodation and support for existing students until September 19 “while arrangements are made for their onward travel or return home”.

Meanwhile, Mangion paid tribute to the “thousands” of employees who have contributed to building EC from a single school in Malta to an internationally recognised education organisation.

“EC has been much more than a business to those of us who have built it and worked within it. It has been a community of extraordinary people united by a belief in the power of education to bring people and cultures together.”

“Our team worked incredibly hard to build and sustain this company,” Mangion continued, recognising the “enormous efforts” of shareholders, employers, partners and advisers.

In a statement published earlier today (September 14), English UK said it would begin coordinating student support immediately if EC’s closure was confirmed.

This would include the possible continuation of programs at other accredited language centres without additional fees, and emergency accommodation support, where needed.

It said other providers had already offered to help, reflecting “the strength and care of the English UK community”.

Since the pandemic, the global English Language Teaching (ELT) sector has continued to face severe headwinds and sustained drops in student numbers, with experts warning the lower levels reflect a new sector structure rather than temporary decline.

Meanwhile, In South Africa, English South Africa (ESA) said it is coordinating with member schools to support affected students and agents, with a number of schools already indicating they are able to assist with transfers and alternative study arrangements. The schools include Avenue English, Bayswater, ELC (University of Cape Town), Good Hope Studies, LAL and IH Cape Town.

ESA said its immediate priority was to minimise disruption to students’ studies and help those who had chosen South Africa as their study destination continue their programs wherever possible.

“This is a very difficult moment for the sector globally, a sector that was so hard hit first by COVID and then, in many top destinations, by politics and policies that are the antithesis of what language education stands for,” said Peralta.

He added that Languages Canada was “pushing hard” to influence policies to change the tide of the sector in Canada, but that the immediate priority was supporting EC students.