Foreign language students bring us £207m ... don't cut them off (From Bournemouth Echo)
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Foreign language students bring us £207m ... don't cut them off
11:24am Monday 11th March 2013 in News
Language school boss Mike Francis
THE English language industry is worth £207million to Dorset, with the bulk of income ploughed back into the Bournemouth economy.
Foreign students across the UK generate a staggering £2.5billion, according to latest figures from English UK, the national association for accredited language schools.
Outside Greater London, where the estimated value of foreign students is almost £931million, Dorset benefits most.
Scotland is third in the table with Brighton and Hove in fourth place and Oxfordshire fifth.
Language school boss Mike Francis MBE said: “Foreign students bring an incredible amount of money to Bournemouth where there are 24 accredited language schools.
“It is a huge industry which is helping many host families to weather the recession.
“Our figures have been slightly affected by visa problems but fortunately the industry seems to be recession-proof.
“The weak pound is working to our advantage, giving visitors more money to spend here.
“Tourism generates £590million a year for Bournemouth, with foreign students contributing a third of that amount.
“It’s a massive cash injection for the area. Our language schools and standard of host family accommodation are rated very highly across the globe.”
Mike, who is MD of Westbourne Academy and has been involved in the foreign language industry for more than four decades, hopes ‘scaremongering’ doesn’t pave the way for tighter visa controls.
He said: “Immigration has become a big political issue but, in all my years in the business, I’ve never come across a single foreign student from a language school who has become an illegal immigrant.
“We want the government and UK Border Agency to work with us and be more supportive to this very vital industry.”
The Home Office is currently looking at introducing visa restrictions for short-term visitors from Brazil, which could cost the country 7,500 jobs.
Mr Francis told the Echo: “I agree with immigration controls but if Brazilian students can no longer request their visitor visa on arrival in the UK it will cause delays, increase costs and ultimately mean that they will choose to go elsewhere.”
Comments(28)
radical
says...
1:00pm Mon 11 Mar 13
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And they probably cause double that in damage to property after a night out in Bournemouth clubland.
If they plough £207 million back into the Dorset economy why am I paying so much in council tax
boardsandphotos
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1:46pm Mon 11 Mar 13
I would be happy to wager more violence and vandalism is caused by UK Nationals in Bournemouth Town Centre every weekend than by visiting foreign students.
I would hate for Bournemouth to lose its status as a centre for Foreign Languages and not every student that comes to the UK from abroad is looking for an easy ride or looking to overstay illegally.
The Foreign Student population actually brings a bit of vibrancy to Bournemouth in my opinion, although the buses do tend to get a bit packed in the summer but it's a small price to pay!
wonderway
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1:55pm Mon 11 Mar 13
BmthNewshound
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2:24pm Mon 11 Mar 13
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Is Francis in denial or just turning a blind eye ?
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This story gets dusted off and published on a regular basis by the Echo. Its not just the UK Border Agency who should be sniffing around the language schools. I wonder how many of the host families declare their income from letting rooms to the tax man ?
Baywolf
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3:17pm Mon 11 Mar 13
boardsandphotos
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3:58pm Mon 11 Mar 13
wonderway wrote:I find it ironic that someone could post four lines of text (over 50 words) without a single element of punctuation, on a News article about foreign students coming to the UK to lead English... Brilliant!!
they were complaining last moth they were not getting enough students now they state it ression proof only people who gain from this is people like mr francis charge excessive charges for sub standard tuition they cant make up where they stand this is a non story
boardsandphotos
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4:01pm Mon 11 Mar 13
boardsandphotos wrote:*learn English!! .....Brilliant!!
wonderway wrote:I find it ironic that someone could post four lines of text (over 50 words) without a single element of punctuation, on a News article about foreign students coming to the UK to lead English... Brilliant!!
they were complaining last moth they were not getting enough students now they state it ression proof only people who gain from this is people like mr francis charge excessive charges for sub standard tuition they cant make up where they stand this is a non story
Glashen
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4:05pm Mon 11 Mar 13
mummy123abc
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5:59pm Mon 11 Mar 13
mummy123abc
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6:00pm Mon 11 Mar 13
charlie2004
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6:44pm Mon 11 Mar 13
boardsandphotos
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7:25pm Mon 11 Mar 13
mummy123abc wrote:I get the M1/M2 to work and back everyday and almost everyday my ears are subjected to English young adults f-ing and blinding on the bus as well as playing music from their phones on loud speaker.... You can have a go at foreign students all you like but you should look in your own backyard before you comment on the behaviour of visitors, what are the foreign students supposed to think? "When in Rome"
Students are disrespectful and ignorant.. I can understand their language and the way they talk about people who live in this town on the buses ect is discusting. They party most of the time they are here and a few weeks ago some German guy actually cut in front a poor old lady in the shop.. he didnt say a word to her. I hate Bournemouth in student season they ruin the town for us who live here.
boardsandphotos
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7:31pm Mon 11 Mar 13
charlie2004 wrote:What's your point? They are spending money with local businesses? That's a good thing? Are you saying there are too many students and too many restaurants in charminster? Maybe we should get rid of them and create yet another ghost high street full of pound shops and charity shops, no new money spent there, pensions and benefits......
Most of the money goes to the numerous 'cosmopolitan' restaurants in Charminster. That's where all the students can be found from dawn until dusk.
ashleycross
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8:33pm Mon 11 Mar 13
Dibbles2
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9:08pm Mon 11 Mar 13
mummy123abc wrote:Thats pretty much 52 weeks a year though as lots stay here for the summer. If you hate it so much why live here? At least they arent mugging old ladies like english kids! We would nd up a hopeless town if they didnt come down with evn higher rates of unemloyment. I dont quite get your coment on them ruining the town?
Students are disrespectful and ignorant.. I can understand their language and the way they talk about people who live in this town on the buses ect is discusting. They party most of the time they are here and a few weeks ago some German guy actually cut in front a poor old lady in the shop.. he didnt say a word to her. I hate Bournemouth in student season they ruin the town for us who live here.
Dibbles2
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9:11pm Mon 11 Mar 13
mummy123abc wrote:God your thick! It is spent in our local economy. What have you produced apart from kids?
Anyway all that money bring in and the council use it on what??? Nothing productive anyway!!
charlie2004
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10:22pm Mon 11 Mar 13
boardsandphotos wrote:Are you Mike Francis himself as you appear to be quite rude to any poster who's opinion does not conform to your train of thought.
charlie2004 wrote:What's your point? They are spending money with local businesses? That's a good thing? Are you saying there are too many students and too many restaurants in charminster? Maybe we should get rid of them and create yet another ghost high street full of pound shops and charity shops, no new money spent there, pensions and benefits......
Most of the money goes to the numerous 'cosmopolitan' restaurants in Charminster. That's where all the students can be found from dawn until dusk.
If, without exception they go back to their country of origin as soon as their agreed study time has expired I don't have a problem with them. My point is, I thought they were supposed to be here to learn English. If they spent a little more time in school instead of sitting in restaurants conversing in their own language they might be able to actually speak some of the language they have come here to learn. I thought that was the whole idea.
Maybe I've misunderstood the whole concept!
BIGTONE
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10:41pm Mon 11 Mar 13
HRH of Boscombe
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10:57pm Mon 11 Mar 13
Baywolf wrote:The only people who gain are the schools; hence this advert whoops article.
So where is all this income given to Bournemouth actually going? My dealings with foreign students are that when they are out in packs they are rude arrogant and pretend not to understand English when you remind them that elderly people and disabled have priority on public transport, they fill up busses to ride just a few stops. Surely with this money they should be given their own bus to ferry them around just like Wally Polly students do as to lazy to walk to the campus.
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His 'students' ruin business. 8 of them willl go into a bar,take up the biggest table and order half an orange juice with 8 straws and sit there yapping for 3hrs.
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Didn't Gadaffi study English at Kings School of English in Bmth???
beachcomber1
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11:14pm Mon 11 Mar 13
portia6
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2:49am Tue 12 Mar 13
Cosmopolitan and is a vibrant town
with loads of diverse restaurants.
Must admit the buses do get packed
in the summer but you can't say they
are all badly behaved!
Baywolf
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5:23am Tue 12 Mar 13
mummy123abc
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7:21am Tue 12 Mar 13
Glashen
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8:33am Tue 12 Mar 13
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If you think foreign students are rude, you should look at how some of our home grown young people behave.
beachcomber1
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11:13am Tue 12 Mar 13
annees
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11:22am Tue 12 Mar 13
International students help to keep university courses open, bring vital funds to 1000s of homestay families in the local area, provide income to local businesses and services (I'm sure local taxi drivers would notice if international students disappeared from Bournemouth) and generate business links with the area.
If, however, you would like to trade all of the above for slightly emptier buses in the summer-time, then on your head be it. That is, if the local Council could even continue to run buses (or many other services) if there were no international students in Bournemouth.
As for bogus students - educational institutions now have to pass stringent accreditation processes in order to accept international students from outside the EU. If somebody wanted to come into the UK and stay illegally, it would be much easier for them to come in on an ordinary tourist visa and then simply "disappear" rather than jumping through all the hoops and regulations needed in order to get a student visa.
http://exeduk.com/ke
y-facts/
Graham Rees
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2:32pm Tue 12 Mar 13
Justin666 says...
12:42pm Mon 11 Mar 13
You may not have done but the Foreign Office has. Your blinkers must be pretty effective as there are thousands of illegal immigrants in this country who have been granted visas on spurious applications and never even took up courses. It was worth the losing the fee deposit just to get in.