Members: join our campaign by sharing our new Covid-19 impact report

With definitive new figures showing the full extent of the damage caused to UK ELT by Covid-19, we are ramping up our year-long campaign for government support for the industry.

The latest English UK Covid-19 impact report  , published in March 2021, shows a £590m loss of revenue for English UK members in 2020. 91% of employees affected and over half released. Student numbers fell 79%, and student weeks by 65% compared with 2019. These figures are worse than our last survey in summer 2020, and the member outlook for recovery in 2021 is less positive.

Jodie Gray, English UK's chief executive, said: "This impact report lays bare the devastation wrought by Covid-19 on a thriving industry full of otherwise viable businesses, and to staff who have been so badly affected. Most of these businesses are on their knees, waiting for a change in travel restrictions that would allow students to return in significant numbers.

"We were bitterly disappointed by the failure of the Budget to officially extend the business rates holiday to ELT centres, and by the possible restriction of grants to businesses which were officially ordered to close. We are redoubling our political lobbying and urging members to do the same."

Get involved in the campaign

To help members join our campaign, we are sending out copies of the lastest English UK Covid-19 Impact Report   and our position paper calling on the government to help kickstart UK ELT.

We urge members to share the report with your MPs and other representatives, to encourage them to support our campaign.

Visit our member campaigning resources page to use our letter template and find guidance on how to reach out to your representatives in our campaigning toolkit.

Report highlights the importance of raising the profile of UK ELT 

The commentary on the impact report, written by our insight provider Bonard, says: "This report shows the devastation that the Covid-19 crisis wrought on the UK English language teaching industry in 2020, the continuing effects of which suggest that recovery will be slow. A fuller but still incomplete recovery, with business levels returning to 60% of pre-Covid-19 levels, is not expected until 2022.

With mobility not yet fully resumed, the pandemic hampered the further growth which the UK had been forecast to enjoy in 2020. In 2019, English UK member centres taught 508,614 English language students, a 1% increase over 2018 in a trend which had been continuing since the strong rebound in 2017."

It concludes: "respondents highlighted the need for English UK to continue its lobbying efforts to ensure the industry profile is raised and recognition is given to how UK ELT continues to be among the most impacted sectors nationally.

"This report shows the extent the Covid-19 crisis has damaged the UK ELT industry, and indicates that recovery will be slow given that the industry relies heavily on inbound visitors to the UK. Government support will be critical, as will the implementation of policies by all stakeholders to restore market confidence in the UK as an ELT destination."

• Visit our campaigning resources page for members