English Speaking Board (International) Ltd

Category: ESOL Skills for Life

  • Funding Information

    The Department for Education (DfE) has recently carried out an exercise to streamline the number of qualifications available for government funding. 

    This is to confirm that, from 1st August 2022, the following English Speaking Board (International) Ltd (ESB International) qualifications will no longer be available for government funding:

    • ESB Entry Level Award in Introducing Oral Skills for Interviews (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Communicating with Art (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Communicating with Drama (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Communicating with Music (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Communicating with Others (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Developing Independent Communication Skills (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Developing Oral Interview Skills (Entry 2)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in First Steps in Communicating with Others (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Independent Communication Skills (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Inspiring Confidence in Employability (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Inspiring Confidence in Employability (Entry 2)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Inspiring Confidence in Employability (Entry 3)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Oral Communication in the Community (Entry 2)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Oral Communication with Others (Entry 1)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Oral Interview Skills (Entry 3)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Preparing for Performing Within a Team (Entry 2)
    • ESB Entry Level Award in Reading to a Child (Entry 3)
    • ESB Level 2 Certificate in Speech (Grade 5)
    • ESB Level 2 Certificate in ESOL Skills for Life
    • ESB Level 3 Award in Travel and Tourism for Oral Communication Skills for Overseas Resort Representatives

    You can find out more information here.

    To find out information on which ESB qualifications are still funded, please click here: https://esbuk.org/web/funding/external-funding/

    Don’t worry though, you can still deliver these qualifications and you may also be able to access our Christabel Burniston Fund. 

    Please contact our business development team for more information: business@esbuk.org.

  • Welcome back to all of our UK based centres – Academic Year 2021-22

    Thank you so much to all our centres that booked assessments with us last year. We all worked hard so that your learners could achieve, in spite of the continuing challenges. I want to thank the head office team, our assessors and markers for their part in making that happen for you and your learners.

    As we are starting the new academic year, I wanted to update you on our position for face to face assessing for all our Skills for Life and Speech qualifications occurring in the UK. It is our intention that for the academic year 21-22,face to face assessing will return for all these speaking and listening assessments. However, should public health guidance change, or a local situation emerge ESB will be able to consider using adapted assessments again (remote assessing) as Ofqual has allowed us to adapt in this way, if necessary.

    We will be releasing an ESB News later in the term so we can share all the activity that is happening in the ESB English language and Oracy world.

    I earnestly hope that this year is a year full of potential and positivity for you at your centre.

    Best wishes,

    Tina Renshaw, CEO

  • Attention all centres, ESB wants to hear from you!

    ESB International is always looking at ways to improve its service for its centres. The best way to do this is to find out exactly what individual centres want – deliver it where possible – and as a result build customer loyalty and high satisfaction levels. Your honest feedback enables ESB to provide an outstanding customer experience to all. 

    With that in mind, ESB is embarking on a new venture – which will make that process even simpler. You can now share real time feedback and experiences with ESB through the launch of its new Trustpilot Account!

    What you will need to do:

    1. Please follow this link to start your review (you will need to have booked an assessment with us in order to leave a review): https://uk.trustpilot.com/evaluate/esbuk.org
    • You will need to register as a Trustpilot user to leave a review. If you do not already have an account, this will be done automatically.

    ESB values transparency as one of its most defining characteristics and it hopes that this new feature will bring us closer together with our centres and deepen our working relationship. ESB hopes to see a continuation of the many, many positive views that centres already feed back to us on a regular basis and constructive feedback is always welcome. 

    Your input is invaluable to us and will be listened to. Please help to empower positive changes at ESB by leaving your feedback today. Together, we can continue to raise – and celebrate – the achievement of our learners!

    ESB thanks you for your continued and invaluable support.

  • Communications to centres: Ofqual’s Extended Extraordinary Regulatory Framework (Update 2)

    From the 2nd November until 2nd December 2020, ESB International assessments will take place remotely, using the video-conferencing facility that your centre habitually uses and that your learners are used to. We have already offered this adaptation in the summer, and the learners, assessors and teachers found it to be valid, reliable and a very positive experience. The assessor conducts and assesses the learners’ assessment in real-time and the assessment has the same content and procedure as face-to-face assessments.

    From the 2nd November until 2nd December 2020, ESB International assessments will take place remotely, using the video-conferencing facility that your centre habitually uses and that your learners are used to. We have already offered this adaptation in the summer, and the learners, assessors and teachers found it to be valid, reliable and a very positive experience. The assessor conducts and assesses the learners’ assessment in real-time and the assessment has the same content and procedure as face-to-face assessments.

    Detailed information about each qualification, how we are adapting it, and what centres and learners need to do to prepare are set out in the guidance documents below.

    ESB Centre Guidance for ESOL Skills for Life Assessments
    from 2nd November     Download
    ESB Centre Guidance for Speech Assessments
    from 2nd November    Download

    If centre staff have any questions about these guidance documents or delivering adapted assessments, please email product@esbuk.org.

    We thank you for your continued support and we very much looking forward to working with you in 2020 and 2021.


    Tina RenshawChief Executive
    English Speaking Board (International) Ltd.