This issue of news contains the following information:

• Recognition of City & Guilds International ESOL (IESOL) Diploma by the Home Office Border and Immigration Agency Points Based System

This edition of News follows/replaces the previous edition sent in November 2007.

Recognition of City & Guilds International ESOL (IESOL) Diploma by the Home Office Border and Immigration Agency Points Based System

We are pleased to announce that City & Guilds IESOL Diploma has been recognised as meeting the requirements of the Home Office Border and Immigration Agency’s Points Based System.

The Points Based System, which comes into operation in 2008, is designed to manage the flow of migrant workers to the UK. As part of that system, nationals from outside the European Union who wish to come to or remain in the UK, to undertake highly skilled work, will have to provide evidence that they have an acceptable standard of English i.e. that they have passed an English language test which is recognised by the Home Office.

The City & Guilds IESOL Diploma C1 Expert level has been approved by the Border and Immigration Agency as being appropriate evidence of language competence for Tier 1 workers i.e. highly skilled migrants.

We foresee that further details regarding other levels of approval will be published later in the year.

*Note:  the IESOL Diploma is issued on request, for a fee, to learners who have completed City & Guilds International ESOL (8984) and City & Guilds International Spoken ESOL (8985).