ESB International was delighted to reaffirm our long-standing and successful partnership with Europalso at a professional seminar this past weekend, represented by our Chief Executive, Tina Renshaw, and Chief Assessor, Anthea Wilson. The seminar was hosted for Europalo’s language school owners and offered a great opportunity for training, collaboration and networking.
ESB International CEO, Tina Renshaw, delivers updates to over 150 Europalso language schools.
ESB International was on hand to discuss another strong academic year, as well as outlining what the future holds for our work in Greece:
✅ 17 years of partnership – delivering high-quality ESOL International assessments for Greek learners. ✅ Innovation in assessment – from adult online assessments to our online assessor training platform, ensuring quality and accessibility. ✅ Outstanding May 2025 results:
B1 learners achieved their best overall results since 2020.
B2 candidates demonstrated strong language control and lexis above level expectations.
C1 performance was among the highest since 2020, with significant improvements in writing.
C2 candidates excelled in listening, reading and use of English skills
✅ 168 oral assessors delivered 100% error-free administration, and results were delivered faster than ever.
Looking ahead:
A 10-year collaboration plan, ESB-designed e-certificates, and continued growth in online learning and webinars.
ESB International will also be hosting an upcoming webinar on 6th November to support continued CPD for our online assessments.
The trip also represented Tina’s final visit to Europalso ahead of her departure from ESB International at the end of the year after 9 years as Chief Executive.
Europalso has always made ESB feel incredibly welcome, and I’m deeply grateful for the trust and partnership we continue to share. Your unwavering commitment to ESB International, and to the learners we serve, makes me incredibly proud and gives me every confidence for the years ahead.
Tina Renshaw, Chief Executive, ESB International
Our commitment to Europalso, language school owners and learners remains unwavering. Thank you to the Europalso community for your enduring trust and partnership.
Education, equality and industry leaders unite to remind government of its oracy pledge.
English Speaking Board (International) Ltd.’s (ESB International) patrons, Meena Kumari Wood and Dr Kush Kanodia, have joined the growing calls urging Prime Minister Keir Starmer to honour Labour’s 2023 pledge to embed oracy in the national curriculum.
ESB International Patron: Meena Kumari Wood
ESB International Patron: Dr Kush Kanodia
Their voices add weight to a powerful open letter signed by Tina Renshaw CEO of ESB International along with 60 other Oracy champions, including children’s author Michael Rosen and former education secretaries Charles Clarke and Estelle Morris, calling on the new government to prioritise speaking and listening skills as a core educational entitlement. The letter, organised by Voice 21, frames oracy as the “fourth R” in education—alongside reading, writing and arithmetic—and urges the Labour government to deliver on its commitment to ensure every child develops strong communication skills to thrive in a world shaped by artificial intelligence, inequality and rapid social change. Their voices add weight to a powerful open letter signed by 60 leading figures, including children’s author Michael Rosen and former education secretaries Charles Clarke and Estelle Morris, calling on the new government to prioritise speaking and listening skills as a core educational entitlement.
The campaign for oracy has also received significant backing from The Guardian, which published a leader editorial on July 27 describing oracy education as a “low-cost, high-return” policy and stating that the new government “should seize the moment.” The editorial supports the open letter’s message and affirms that teaching young people to express themselves confidently and coherently is essential to a democratic society.
In a separate column, Guardian journalist Simon Jenkins went further, writing that schools are “failing a generation” by neglecting public speaking. He describes oracy as “the very foundation of human interaction,” warning that an education system without structured speaking and debating leaves young people at a disadvantage not just in work, but in life. The founders of ESB International, Christabel Burniston MBE and Jocelyn Bell in 1953, identified that the power of human connection was central to their ideas about Oracy and the assessment of it. Their intention was to focus Oracy education on the interactivity of communication and the personal development it creates. That sense of personal agency and the development and enabling of authentic skilled voices continue s at the core of ESB International’s work today.
“A no brainer in 2025”
Meena Kumari Wood, an educational consultant, trainer, author, Honorary Fellow in Educational Leadership (Univ. Birmingham), Board Member of Chartered College of Teaching and former HMI (Ofsted), Principal (Secondary), Academy Principal (Adult College) and LA Education Adviser, has described the omission of oracy from the government’s interim curriculum review as deeply concerning:
Not to champion the cause of integrating speaking and listening skills—self-expression—into the school curriculum is a complete no-brainer in 2025.
Many young people demonstrate a lack of confidence in self-expression, possess a limited vocabulary, and struggle with face-to-face conversations—especially in difficult or professional contexts. Almost half of young people surveyed by CIPD in 2024 said they were never taught these essential skills at school.
“Oracy is currency for life”
ESB International’s Chief Executive, Tina Renshaw, a signatory of the open letter, has echoed Meena’s concerns and highlighted the practical contribution that ESB International’s unique qualifications can make to oracy education and on the employability skills of young people.
ESB International CEO, Tina Renshaw
As a vocational awarding organisation, ESB International recognises the valuable currency of oracy for life, work and study. Our most popular qualification among secondary schools is Speech for Employability, which builds confidence and competence in teamwork, business analysis, interview skills, and entrepreneurship. Oracy is not an optional extra, it is a foundation for success—and every child deserves access to it.
“Will Labour Deliver?”
Dr Kush Kanodia, an influential disability rights campaigner and social entrepreneur, emphasised that Labour’s promise to make oracy a central educational priority cannot be allowed to fade into the background:
Will Keir Starmer honour the Labour Party pledge by embedding teaching oracy in the educational curriculum? This moment represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create a fairer, more inclusive system that empowers every child with the skills needed for life and work.
Turning Promises into Policy
The Oracy Education Commission recently described oracy as “a foundational building block” and warned that, in an age increasingly shaped by automation, communication skills are more valuable than ever.
As the full report of the government’s curriculum and assessment review approaches, ESB International fully endorses the words of the open letter: “We urge you to turn that promise into lasting change.”
English Speaking Board (International) Ltd. (ESB International) is proud to lend its voice in support of the open letter from Voice 21 to the Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, urging the government to fulfil its commitment to prioritise oracy in schools. We fully endorse the findings of the Oracy Education Commission to embed oracy as a core component of the national curriculum — making it the essential “fourth R,” alongside reading, writing, and arithmetic.
Oracy — the ability to speak, listen, and communicate effectively — is not an optional extra. It is fundamental life skill that has a proven impact on improving the learning, wellbeing and future opportunities of young people. As Voice 21’s open letter rightly states, giving every child access to a high-quality oracy education is one of the most effective ways to tackle entrenched inequality, support mental health and employability and ensure all young people can thrive in school, work and life.
‘Oracy for All’ – 72 years of championing oracy
For 72 years, we have been dedicated to championing the value of oracy education and assessment in the UK and internationally. We have been assessing speaking and listening skills since 1953 and believe that in the age of burgeoning technologies such as AI, the ability for young people to express themselves clearly, thoughtfully, and authentically is more important than ever.
ESB International has consistently prioritised giving people of all ages and backgrounds the confidence and ability to develop their agency and speak passionately about their interests. Our accredited qualifications provide a structured, rigorous yet supportive way for learners to develop these essential skills. From our earliest days, we have worked to ensure that the speaking and listening skills so vital for success are not left to chance, or reserved for the few, but taught, nurtured and recognised for all learners.
Demonstrating impact
You can find our published article here in Curriculum Innovation & Impact, Issue 18 of the Impact Journal from the Chartered College of Teaching
Our commitment to oracy assessment is not just longstanding — it is also evidenced by clear and compelling results. Our Impact Report demonstrates the transformative power of oracy assessments in helping learners improve confidence, articulation and overall communication, while also supporting their learning in other subjects and personal development.
Moreover, our published article in the Journal of the Chartered College of Teaching sets out in detail the principles and practices that underpin effective oracy assessment, contributing to the wider professional conversation about how to make oracy education both meaningful and equitable.
So that oracy is not thought of as peripheral, but an essential curricula area, ESB International firmly believes that oracy skills should be assessed to ensure that it achieves parity as the ‘fourth R’ of education.
A call for action
Focusing oracy, the government has the opportunity to transform education for the better — making sure that every child, no matter their background, has the speaking, listening and communication skills they need to achieve their aspirations.
For over seven decades, ESB International has seen first-hand the difference oracy education can make. We stand ready to support teachers, schools and policymakers in making this vision a reality.
After nine years at the helm of English Speaking Board (International) Ltd. (ESB International), our Chief Executive Tina Renshaw is stepping down from her role. During her tenure, Tina has led the organisation through a period of growth and transformation, championing the values of accessible, high-quality assessment and communication skills for all. We thank her for her dedication and visionary leadership.
Tina has shared a personal statement reflecting on her time with ESB International, which you can read below.
Dear Centres, teachers and tutors,
I will be leaving my role as CEO of ESB International at the end of October, as I know that the time is right for me to find a new challenge and for the organisation to embrace new leadership and ideas.
For 9 years I have loved this leadership opportunity and feel that the whole ESB International team evolved a new phase for this wonderful organisation of which I am truly proud. To hear everyday of our impact on your children, young people and adults is life affirming and humbling – their improved Oracy skills or English language skills earning them a qualification. Yet our work together with you as centre organisers, exam teams, teachers, tutors and for your learners creates far much more than that- it grows their confidence, sense of agency and self respect, they feel the affirmation of achievement, of being listened to when speaking and experience the acceptance and service of learning from and listening to others.
Tina visiting Broadfields School, a primary school in Barnet that has been delivering ESB’s oracy qualifications for over 10 years.
ESB International’s Tina Renshaw and Chief Assessor, Anthea Wilson (left), attending the Europalso annual conference. ESB and Europalso have been working together for over 15 years.
Importantly the ESB International family have also ensured that the legacies of our founders Christabel Burniston MBE and Jocelyn Bell were honoured through our outreach work and showcased in our 70th anniversary celebrations with you, our learners and centres. A wonderful external accolade for our work together was being recognised as Awarding Organisation of the Year in 2023.
So ESB International has begun a new phase with its search for its next CEO. If you or someone you know is looking for such an organisation and role: to develop its amazing reputation and grow its reach as an Awarding Organisation and charity, do delve deeper into the information – you have a magnificent team waiting to create and deliver the next chapter with you.
Thank you for your loyalty to ESB International.
Tina Renshaw, Chief Executive
Tina visiting learners at the Supported Learning Centre at Belfast Metropolitan College
The Honorary Treasurer of ESB International’s Board of Trustees, Dr Jim McAtear, has offered his appreciation for Tina’s many contributions and longstanding commitment to the organisation.
Tina with ESOL Skills for Life learners at New City College, a valued partner who hosted a day of celebration as part of ESB International’s 70th anniversary celebrations.
It is with great regret that we begin to say goodbye to Tina Renshaw, our Chief Executive Officer who will leave us in October of this year.. Tina announced her resignation just this week and, in doing so, brings an end to nine years at the helm. She has steered ESB International successfully through to its 70th year as an awarding body as well as its recognition as Awarding Body of the Year in 2023. Tina’s work has ensured the success of our mission to improve the oracy skill, and therefore, the confidence of children, and the social mobility of young people and has promoted the value and benefits of learning English across the globe. We are grateful to Tina for everything she has given and achieved.
Dr Jim McAtear, Honorary Treasurer Board of Trustees
