Malta language school opens branch in Brighton

One of Malta's largest language school groups, EC, has branched out to Brighton, England, and plans to operate adult language schools and junior programmes in another five UK destinations by 2008.

EC chief executive Andrew Mangion said that while he still saw growth potential in Malta in the next few years, the group had an aggressive growth plan for the UK, with London one of its target destinations.

EC Brighton was officially inaugurated on Wednesday and Foreign Minister Joe Borg flew to the UK to attend the ceremony which was hosted by Brighton's deputy mayor David Watkins.

The EC board of directors together with some of the company's top management were also present to inaugurate the school which is housed in three centrally located Regency buildings on the famous Brighton seafront.

The EC Group was set up in 1991 to meet the ever increasing demand for quality language programmes, and has since grown into one of the island's largest language school groups.

EC offers English language courses for teenagers, adult students and corporate clients as well as summer camps for eight to 13-year-olds and attracts students from over 60 countries.

"An all-round quality service has always been one of our primary foundations and EC was in fact the first, and remains the only language school in Malta to have achieved the ISO 9001 quality accreditation,"Mr Mangion said.

In 2001 EC sought new horizons and moved into Cambridge through a strategic alliance with a local Cambridge school, an experience which helped EC learn a lot on how to sell the UK as a destination, as well as how to compete in the British market.

Last year EC made a concrete move in the UK by acquiring a prominent Brighton language school named House of English.

This school, which has been rebranded EC Brighton, runs a quality adult language programme out of its centrally located 29-classroom building on the Brighton seafront.

"We wanted a school that had similar beliefs and quality standards as EC so that the transition into an EC school would not be too pain-ful," Mr Mangion said.

The school facilities include a language laboratory, a library and self-access centre, an Internet room, a student cafè as well as EC's offices in the UK.

During the past winter months, EC invested in a full refurbishment project, which was completed in June in line with its '5 P brand strategy' - product, people, price, promotion and premises.

EC Brighton also operates a junior language school programme in Brighton during the summer and Easter period and plans are underway for a summer camp programme for young children next year.

"I am a firm believer in the work ethics and capabilities of the Maltese people. While many of our UK staff will come from the UK and continental Europe, we also see new exciting job opportunities being created for ambitious young Maltese people who are not scared to compete and excel in an international environment," Mr Mangion said.

Mr Mangion said the reaction on people's faces in England when they learnt that a Maltese language school was operating in the UK, was one of complete disbelief.

"Growing up as a child in Malta I saw foreign companies coming to Malta to set up shop. I see no reason why the same thing cannot be done by a Maltese company," he said.