According to a recent survey, the results of which have been published by the international travel website TripAdvisor, tourists have ranked England’s capital as the No.1 place to visit in the world!

The title of ‘Traveller’s Choice 2012’ was claimed by London, with New York City coming close behind in second place!  Here’s a list of the top ten destinations voted by tourists using the world’s largest travel site:

1. London
2. New York City
3. Rome
4. Paris
5. San Francisco
6. Marrakech, Morocco
7. Istanbul
8. Barcelona
9. Siem Reap, Cambodia
10. Berlin

Visit the TripAdvisor website to view the full list of the Top 25 Destinations in the World: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/TravelersChoice-Destinations-cTop-g1

This is great news for our students lucky enough to be studying at four of our St Giles centres located in THREE of the TOP FIVE tourist destinations in the world!  Our London Highgate, London Central, San Francisco and New York schools have officially been proven to be in outstanding locations!

So come and join us to study English in London, San Francisco or New York!  Or if the big city life just doesn’t appeal to you, check out our other locations on the St Giles website, or email us for more information – we will be happy to help you choose the right location for you and your needs!

I had a freestyle BMX bicycle and it was one of my treasures. When I was a high school student, I saw a man who rode a BMX and did some tricks. It was really cool so I wanted to buy one, but I didn’t have enough money. I decided to work hard to get enough money. Three months later, I was able to buy a BMX and I practiced everyday.

Two years later, I got better. By that time I was not a beginner anymore, so I decided to buy a new one. But a complete bicycle is always for beginners. So I bought just the parts I needed. For example, a frame, pedals, a seat, and wheels. I customized it. I spent a lot of money and built it myself. It cost over $2000. It became my “girlfriend”. I always hung out with it.

When I came to San Francisco, I didn’t bring my bicycle. One month after I arrived I missed it, so I asked my father to send it to me and he did. I always practiced riding it at the clock tower. One day, I went to school on my bike and parked it in front of the school. But I never saw it again. It had been stolen. I had locked it with my bike lock. I lost my “girlfriend”…

If you’d like to learn English in San Francisco, please feel free to email us or visit the main St Giles website for more information.  We’d love to welcome you at our school!

Here you can find out the correct answers to the questions, and the names of the lucky winners!  Did you know any of the answers to this quiz?

1. How long has the London Central branch of St Giles been located in this building?

b. Since 1997

2. How many nationalities studied at London Central last year?

a. 77

3. How many students are there in the school this week?

b. 560

4. When did Jonathan (the Director of Studies) first come to work at St Giles?

b. 1993

5. Who is the Platinum course director?

b. Barbara Williams

6. What are the Library/bookshop opening hours?

b. 1.05 to 5pm

7. What time does the last lesson of the day finish?

a. 17.40

8. Where is the Platinum Centre?

b. 4^th floor

9. What is Maxine Malvo’s job?

c. Residence Accommodation Officer

10. Which part of the United Kingdom is the Assistant Director of Studies from?

c. Wales

11. How many computers are there in the Self Access Centre?

a. 31

12. What time on Tuesday afternoon do leaving tests start?

c.3.45

13. How many classrooms are there on the first floor?

a. 6

14. What is the colour of the walls in the Principal’s office?

c. yellow

15. When was the building which is the current home of St Giles London Central built?

b. 1898

16. What is the name of the Café?

b. The Square

17. What was the location of the first branch of St Giles London Central in 1987?

a. Northumberland Avenue

And the winners are….

Cecil Dilcan

Gabriele Valloriera

Sochino Tanaka

Hirosumi Hayashi

Semil Soladetin Cherkez

Ceyrat Florence

Maryam Malakoutikhah

Joo Yeon Lee

Jun Okado

Durmus Yakin Kaya

Bertollin Federico

Mingon Lee

Ngoc Hung Pham

Lu Shi

Cristina Puentes

Seung Yoeb Lee

Concepcion Luis Munos

Julie Descloux

Lucia anzano Salazar

Zdybel Ireneusz

Yuki Isoda

Lukas Kuendig

If you want to find out more about our London Central school, take a look at the school’s video on our YouTube homepage, where you can also find videos for all our other centres across the world:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2gbprnceLk

Alternatively, please feel free to email us or visit the St Giles website to find out more.

On this special occasion Mark Lindsay, the Managing Director of the St Giles Group, gave a few words of thanks to all the staff and students over the years that have contributed to the continuing progress and success of the school:

When I opened this school all those years ago [in 1987], I opened with 21 students and 10 classrooms, so the building was empty. I did all the accounts, a lot of the maintenance and I had one general receptionist, two teachers and a part-time Director of Studies.

There are now almost one hundred members of staff in this school and last year we had 750 students at one point. Over 3000 students a year now attend this school and many come back. It is the largest school in the St Giles group and one of the biggest schools in London.

St Giles London Central has come a very long way and we are fortunate to have so many conscientious staff who care passionately about the quality of service we provide to the students. I would like to thank the staff for making the school a continued success, but most of all, I would like to thank the students because without them, we are nothing. I know that you have a choice, so thank you for coming to this school!

I would like to propose a toast to St Giles London Central – Happy 25^th Birthday!

If you want to find out more about our London Central school, take a look at the school’s video on our YouTube homepage, where you can also find videos for all our other centres across the world:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2gbprnceLk

Alternatively, please feel free to email us or visit the St Giles website.

We are delighted to announce that our English school in Brighton also did very well during its inspection and achieved Grade 1 (exceeds expectations) in every category. This great result in Brighton means we achieved Grade 1 across all four UK centres!

We would like to say a really big THANK YOU to all of our students at St Giles Brighton who helped during the inspection! Many students took part in an online survey, class observations or focus groups.

The successful result means we can maintain our Highly Trusted Sponsor status with the UKBA and continue to issue General Student Visas (GSVs).

If you are thinking about studying English in Brighton with us, you can the centre page on our website to find out more and discover why we did so well in the inspection: St Giles Brighton.

The categories assessed at all the schools were as follows:

• Quality of curriculum, teaching and learning
• Students’ welfare including health and safety
• Governance, leadership and management

We are delighted that all four of our UK centres achieved these fantastic results. It shows our commitment to delivering quality English language teaching at our schools, as well as excellent levels of support and welfare for students.

We look forward to welcoming you to learn English in England with St Giles soon, so you can experience the St Giles Excellence in English Language Training for yourself!

To all friends of St Giles,

The last day of my course is coming and I feel sad having to leave this school.  In the few days I was here trying to improve my English language skills, I learned many new things and important but beyond all this, one of the things that we consider with great importance it is the admiration and respect for all professionals that working here.

From the smiling and sympathetic friend who greets us every day in the school lobby until the directors that have always expressed concern with our good learning, and especially for all teachers at this school, for all patience and determination that always are willing to teach us how overcome our limits, I leave my eternal gratitude.

On the first day I got here, I was very well received and guided in the best way to have a good development in the course. I received information about the most appropriate level to attend my needs and the program of lessons that has been specially prepared for my personal development. Thus, I soon realized how much the staff of St Giles is organized and adequately prepared to offer us the best education in the right measure of our real needs and conditions of learning.

I don’t want to mention any names in particular because I am afraid of forgetting to thank someone who was important in this time I was here. But I want to leave each person with whom I had relationships, directly or indirectly, my most sincere and genuine thanks.

For all professionals in the St Giles College, I thank you for everything you guys have offered me and that helped me in learning the English language.  Sorry for repeating the same mistakes many times and to be resistant to learning new things but, rest assured that their efficiency and their restless energy could break my barriers and I made more progress than can be imagined.

Thank you and congratulations for the high quality of your work.

Laur Scalzaretto

If you are looking for flexible and specialised English classes and you want to make rapid progress, you can find out more about our tailor-made Platinum Courses on the St Giles website or you can email us for more information.

Welcome to St Giles! Are you a first-time student? I will give you some advice about St Giles life. Of course, you want to be good at speaking English, right? To do this, you should take my advice and follow some of my rules and tips.

First of all, you don’t use your mother tongue. Although you meet people who are from your country, you must not speak your language. According to many teachers at St Giles, they have seen a lot of students who use their language. And these students don’t improve their speaking skills.

Secondly, don’t be absent and don’t be late to classes. In the end, you might not receive your certificate from St Giles.

Thirdly, don’t be shy when you’re trying to speak. Please keep in mind that you are at St Giles to learn how to speak English. I know it is very difficult for you to speak to other people. But you have to overcome this problem. As you try to solve this problem, you can be better than before.

In conclusion, if you follow my advice, you can have a successful time and you will be able to speak English more fluently!

Thank you for reading 

If you would like to improve your English at St Giles and/or want to find out more about our English school in San Francisco, please do not hesitate to email us or visit the main St Giles website.

We are delighted with this result as it shows our continued commitment to delivering quality English language teaching at all St Giles centres, as well as excellent levels of support and welfare for students. It is the highest possible set of results.

The categories assessed at both schools were:

• Quality of curriculum, teaching and learning
• Students’ welfare including health and safety
• Governance, leadership and management

We would like to say a really big THANK YOU to all of our students currently at Highgate and Eastbourne for their help and support during the inspection. Many of you took part in an online survey, class observations or focus groups.

The successful result means we can maintain our Highly Trusted Sponsor status with the UKBA and continue to issue General Student Visas (GSVs).

If you are thinking about studying with us in Eastbourne or in Highgate, you can visit their pages on our website to find out more and discover why we did so well in the inspection:

• St Giles Eastbourne
• St Giles London Highgate

We look forward to welcoming you to learn English in England with St Giles!

Below she tell us what happened:

I had an exciting experience when I came to study English at St Giles New York.  On February 12^th my classmate Isabela and I were at Lincoln Center to see a program when someone lost his or her Fashion Week invitation. We both entered with the ticket we found and took a photo with the car, SL550 from Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week that was sent by them. We had a really fun time.

St Giles International offers a New York Social Program for students. On February 13^th we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge on a beautiful and cold afternoon, guided by our teacher Bernadette. We took many pictures of Manhattan and we had dinner in the famous pizzeria Grimaldi’s. I recommend it!

St Giles students can experience many adventures while studying at our English school in New York City. Studying English in New York offers great opportunities to explore this fascinating city.  Find out more about our New York Centre online here: http://www.stgiles-international.com/english-courses/locations/usa/new-york-city.php.

We now have the results from the inspection and are delighted to announce that London Central not only passed the inspection but achieved a grade 1 – exceeds expectations – in each of the three categories that were assessed. This is the highest set of grades possible!

The main three categories that were assessed were:

• Quality of curriculum, teaching and learning
• Students’ welfare including health and safety
• Governance, leadership and management

As well as showing our ongoing commitment to excellence in English language training, a successful inspection was also important for us to retain our Highly-Trusted status with the UK Border Agency and this allows us to continue to issue General Student Visas.

When the final inspection report is available we will send a copy to all present students and put it on the website as well.

Thank you again to all of you studying at the moment for being outstanding students!

If you have not studied with us yet, we look forward to welcoming you soon! You can find out more about our English language school in London online here: http://www.stgiles-international.com/english-courses/locations/england/london-central.php.