Yesterday morning (April 11 2018) Sky News ran a feature on the Mandarin Excellence Programme, in light of newly published YouGov research.

Mark Herbert (Head of Schools, British Council) and Flynn Thomson, a Mandarin Excellence Programme Student, joined Sarah-Jane Mee in the Sky News studio as part of the channel’s morning Sunrise programme.

Whilst in the studio they discussed newly published research which reveals that three in four British business leaders believe speaking Mandarin will give school leavers a career advantage. The survey sought to understand more about the language needs of British businesses, with a particular focus on Mandarin.

Flynn joined the programme back in September 2016, and is one of over 350 students who will be going to China to study Mandarin for two weeks this July.

The Mandarin Excellence Programme is a Department for Education funded programme which is being delivered by the UCL Institute of Education in partnership with the British Council. State schools in England can apply to join the programme from September 2018, with funding available to support successful delivery.