The UK’s leading awarding body for work-related qualifications, City & Guilds, has signed a licence agreement with Greek training and certification group, PeopleCert S.A (PeopleCert).

The occasion was marked by a spectacular press conference held at the Grand Bretagne hotel, in the shadow of the Acropolis, in Athens.

Around 40 of the country’s top education journalists attended the event, to find out more about how the contract will facilitate City & Guilds’ rapid expansion into Greece.

As one of the leading operators of vocational education in Greece, PeopleCert has over 1200-approved centres across the country. They will now have the opportunity to offer City & Guilds qualifications.

Speaking at the press conference about this ‘exciting business opportunity’ head of marketing from City & Guilds Nigel Moore said:
“This means more than just the rights to distribute our products; with this contract, People Cert will be licensed to use the City & Guilds name.

“A name that is recognised in over 100 countries across the globe; that carries over 130 years’ experience in skills and education and qualifies over 1.8 million people each year from engineers in Zambia to chefs in Australian and now, Greek people who want to learn with the best.”

“We have been working with People Cert for three years to ensure this company has the right people, resources and experience to put our business at the heart of education and training in Greece.  Today, we are celebrating the fact that People Cert has proven that it has the credentials to do the job – congratulations!”

Also announced on the day, was the launch of City & Guilds International English for Qualifications (IEQs)  in Greece. The new qualifications, which will be available at six levels, have been mapped to the competencies set out by the Common European framework (CEF) .

Mr Moore said the new qualifications were designed for those who need a ‘passport to work, study and travel around the globe’.

“They are recognised by employers, educational institutions and professional bodies worldwide. Our IVQs offer maximum flexibility and give training providers the opportunity to design their learners’ progression towards language and communication proficiency in the skills and areas that they need. To ensure they are comparable between the levels, they have been mapped to the Common European framework.”
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Media queries:
Phillipa Thomas
City & Guilds
Tel:  020 7294 2556
Email:  phillipa.thomas@cityandguilds.com

Notes to Editor:
City & Guilds (http://www.cityandguilds.com/ ) is the expert and leading authority in vocational education and training - both in the UK and beyond.

In operation for the last 130 years, City & Guilds is the UK’s leading awarding body for work-related qualifications. Twenty million people in the UK have City & Guilds qualifications, and the organisation awards a further 1.5 million qualifications to learners every year.

City & Guilds also enables people to develop essential leadership and management skills through its Institute of Leadership and Management, which is the largest provider of management qualifications in Europe.

City & Guilds creates prosperity from skills for individuals, business and nations within and beyond the workplace.

City & Guilds’ qualifications are offered in over 100 countries and are widely accepted for employment and educational advancement.