The British Council’s high profile work in English, the Arts and Education and Society helps hundreds of millions of people worldwide.
Our activities and programmes in Italy are based on mutually beneficial relationships with customers, partners and sponsors.
Arts
In the Arts we work with the best of British and international artistic and creative talent to develop events and collaborations which link thousands of artists, organisations and audiences worldwide. We partner with others on joint Arts projects and help develop creative leadership, professional networks and cultural educational programmes worldwide.
Since 1938 the British Council has been responsible for the British Pavilion in Venice, showcasing British artists at the longest-running and most prestigious international biennial in the world. The Pavilion always receives an extremely positive response from the press, the architecture world and the general public.
The British Council’s Arts programme in Italy offers a series of inspirational events that create new connections between top talents from the UK and audiences in Italy. We work closely with sponsors and companies to associate them with Innovation, Creativity and Excellence, the three values that underpin this programme. Our work includes events in Music, Literature, Theatre, Architecture and Design, Visual Arts and the business of Creativity.
Education
All over the world, people want greater educational opportunities to enhance their lives and employment prospects. We live in a globalised world so our focus in education is on bringing an international dimension to education in schools, technical colleges and universities, on raising educational standards by sharing the UK’s expertise, and on encouraging the best international students to study in the UK.
We work with governments to transform education systems to increase opportunity and employability through English. We also deliver English teaching and train teachers not only throughout our offices but also by radio, web and tv programmes.
We have extensive and mutually beneficial relationships with state schools and with the local offices of the Italian Ministry of Education through our Bilingual Education project, exams services, as well as via our programme of seminars, conferences and training for teachers, our online services and much more.
Our online services about Studying in the UK give full advice to students, teachers and families, from choosing a course to planning travels.
Society
Thousands of policymakers, academics, researchers, artists, sportspeople, scientists, curators, creative entrepreneurs, head- and classroom teachers work through us with their counterparts in the UK to develop policy, professional standards and participation in English, the Arts, Education and civil society. In the process, they create new opportunities and possibilities for the UK and their own countries.
Our key event in this area is the Pontignano Conference. Established in 1993, the Pontignano Conference brings together British and Italian leaders from politics, academia and business to discuss the key challenges facing the two countries in Europe today. Over 20 years it has established a rich network of high level participants and become a key moment for developing new ideas in a unique atmosphere of friendship and trust.
English
In line with our Royal Charter, we bring high quality English materials to every learner or teacher who wants them around the world. We provide this in person at our schools and online, with our wide range of websites and other online resources.
Our global network gives us access to the expertise of qualified and professional teachers, and provides the very latest in the field of teacher training both for our teaching staff and for state school teachers. We draw upon rich and comprehensive resources, including cutting edge technology, for the benefit of our customers and corporate clients at our teaching centres in Rome, Naples and Milan.
Thousands of candidates come to our Italian offices each year to take an exam to enhance study or career opportunities. We provide everything from Young Learners exams to Cambridge Preliminary, First, Advanced and Proficiency to the IELTS test as well as specific British professional exams, such as ACCA or CIMA.
The British Council is accredited by the MIUR for the training of school staff in accordance with Directive 170 of 21/3/2016, article 1, paragraph 5.