OCN London expands into Greece with ESOL suite
OCN London recently started working in partnership with Athens based human resources certification body UCERT, who are a part of D Group, an organisation recognised by the Greek National Ministry of Education (EOPPEP). D GROUP specialises in education, vocational training, and certification in HR and quality management systems. UCERT’s principal purpose is to deliver innovative certification services focused on the needs of their customer base and local labour market’s skills requirements. UCERT aims to provide knowledge and expertise through partnerships with European education organisations and certification bodies, so that they can provide equal educational opportunities to individuals and communities across the whole of Greece and the wider European landscape.
The team at OCN London was delighted to assist them in facilitating their ESOL International offering, and initially, our CEO, Carlos Cubillo-Barsi, collaborated with them to define their objective to support individuals looking to learn the English language. He said, “Seeing the work that team at UCERT and D Group do and how they support their learners resonates perfectly with our commitment to supporting individuals to realise their potential. Working with the team has been an absolute pleasure and I’m excited to see what the future holds for their ESOL offering.”
Our Curriculum Development Relationship Manager and ESOL specialist, Amarjit Dhanjal, assisted them further in realising their purpose of having a positive impact across diverse communities across the country, through education and learning. This collaboration represented a great opportunity for OCN London to diversify its range of qualifications, expand its capabilities (in terms of delivering external assessment), develop its international presence, and, most importantly, develop a partnership with one of Greece’s largest organisations of its kind. Given the case presented by UCERT, OCN London sought and received regulator approval for the accreditation of ESOL International qualifications. In tandem, a series of qualifications in ESOL International were created – based on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Addressing the levels from Entry 3 (CEFR B1) to Level 3 (CEFR C2), all assessments are, in the main, externally assessed.
Amarjit, who worked closely with the team at UCERT to establish their ESOL provision said ‘Together, UCERT and OCN London have successfully reached a number of milestones, including qualification recognition by ASEP (the Supreme Personnel Selection Board in Greece), lending further weight to our qualifications and enhancing their utility in supporting candidates into sustainable employment. A large proportion of candidates are already benefitting from OCN London accreditation, with many more to follow.’
In practice, UCERT (as a directly approved OCN London centre) facilitates the assessment of candidates at a range of centres across Greece, ensuring that assessments (and related practices) are carried out to OCN London’s exacting criteria. One of the key benefits of this model being the ability to reach candidates across the country, sometimes in remote areas where further opportunities to undertake such assessments may be limited.
Speaking of the partnership, Efi Douma, Head of Foreign Language Certification for UCERT said, “Collaborating with OCN London is a source of inspiration for us. We are fully committed to this partnership as it is founded on solid and mutual goals, intending to establish a long lasting and effective alliance, aiming to embrace all social groups and enhance their potential and further development. Not to mention the fact that all OCN London colleagues display an unprecedented professionalism, always meeting deadlines and providing extensive feedback for us. Above all, what plays a significant role for all of us in D Group, is the fact that we have the opportunity to work with individuals with great integrity who either visibly or behind the scenes promote the human element, which, after all, is what really matters in all aspects of life.”
OCN London is rightly proud of its collaboration with UCERT since we both share a commitment to facilitate learning in order to help individuals realise their potential and achieve their goals. This guiding philosophy is evident, not just in us working together, but also in our daily interactions, where the needs of our learners are at the heart of everything we do. If you are interested in exploring our ESOL suite, please contact us at enquiries@ocnlondon.org.uk.
