British Council welcomes Soft Power Survey results
19 November 2012
The British Council - the UK’s international cultural relations body - has welcomed the UK’s number 1 ranking in Monocle magazine’s annual Soft Power Survey. Now the organisation is calling for a sustained effort from all the UK’s great cultural and educational institutions to promote the UK’s assets and retain the top spot.
John Worne, the British Council’s Director of Strategy, said: “To know us is to love us - and the survey goes to show that, when the UK puts its culture and excellence on the world’s stage as it has in 2012, everyone’s a winner.”
“We may call it ‘soft power’, but there’s nothing soft about the economic dividends that a great reputation overseas can bring. Our own research this year showed that our soft power assets are helping to build trust worldwide – and that, vitally, those who trust us are more interested in doing business with us,” Mr Worne added.
But Mr Worne also sounded a note of caution: “It’s also clear from Monocle’s survey that the UK’s top table position is due in no small part to the great Games of 2012 - Olympics and Paralympics. So, if we want to stay on top, we’ll need to keep on finding new smart ways to share our soft power assets: English, our education system, our vibrant arts scene and our entrepreneurial spirit to name but a few.”
The British Council works in more than 100 countries worldwide to build trust, opportunity and prosperity for the UK through English, education and the arts. Three-quarters of the British Council’s turnover is earned through teaching English, delivering contracts for donors and funders and in partnership with great brands like the Premier League. Core public funding now accounts for less than a quarter of turnover.
In May 2012, the British Council published a report called Trust Pays, which found that people in ten key countries who have interacted with the UK through education and culture are more likely to trust the UK. In turn, the research showed that those who trust the UK have a greater interest in doing business with the UK.
For more information, contact Mark Moulding in the British Council Press Office on +44 (0)207 389 4889 or mark.moulding@britishcouncil.org
Notes to Editors:
The British Council creates international opportunities for the people of the UK and other countries and builds trust between them worldwide. We are a Royal Charter charity, established as the UK’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations.
Our 7000 staff in over 100 countries work with thousands of professionals and policy makers and millions of young people every year through English, arts, education and society programmes.
We earn over 75% of our annual turnover of £739 million from services which customers pay for, education and development contracts we bid for and from partnerships. A UK Government grant provides the remaining 25%. We match every £1 of core public funding with over £3 earned in pursuit of our charitable purpose.
For more information, please visit: www.britishcouncil.org. You can also keep in touch with the British Council through http://twitter.com/britishcouncil and http://blog.britishcouncil.org/.
