I hold many events at the residence to promote educational providers or organisations, such as the Business Link Education Agency, which help to match up education providers in the UK with customers in Ukraine. We have also been able to host some valuable charity events. But it’s unusual to have an event which combines the two.
The education sector in the UK is a massive growth business. At promotional events for British educational services I find it easy to speak with conviction about the quality of the education available to Ukrainian children and adults in the UK, and about the wider benefits of the English language, of a broad world view, and of time spent living in and visiting England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
At a recent reception, Business Link present two other interesting features of a British education. The first is a so-called “English club”, designed for Ukrainian parents who educate their children in the UK to exchange ideas and discuss the practical side of putting your children into school in the UK. The second idea, presented by Steve King from the Kingham Hill school in the UK, is about the strong British tradition of charity in education. Steve describes how many British schools were originally set up as charitable foundations and explains how many children are still able to attend such schools as the result of part-funding of scholarships. This develops into an interesting discussion about social responsibility and mutual support; and there is enthusiasm among the parents present about the idea of setting up some kind of charity initiative. You can see a set of photos from the event here.
We all know how bringing together people from different backgrounds can sometimes produce brilliant ideas. This looks like an area where one area of cultural cross-fertilisation – education – could lead to another, equally valuable set of ideas on charity.