Does British Council pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, British Council employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.1 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at British Council. This rating has improved by 2% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at British Council?

62% of British Council employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated British Council 3.7 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.7 for culture and values and 3.2 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at British Council?

English Teacher (162) , English Language Assistant (100) , Teacher (100) , Exam Invigilator (93) , Project Manager (67) , Invigilator (64) , Teaching Assistant (55) , Manager (45) , ESL Teacher (38) , Customer Service Representative (30) , Teacher of English (26) , Language Assistant (25) , IELTS Invigilator (24) , Administrative Assistant (23) , Consultant (23)

What are the pros of working at British Council according to real employee reviews?

"Meaningful and some great colleagues" ((in 174 reviews)); "Work life Balance is good" ((in 123 reviews)); "Great people to work with and for." ((in 116 reviews)); "Great working environment and friendly" ((in 73 reviews)); "It's just a shame that the good culture was destroyed by bad organisational management." ((in 69 reviews))

What are the cons of working at British Council according to real employee reviews?

"Salaries are low and you have to work from the office most of the time." ((in 205 reviews)); "Low pay and insanely bureaucratic" ((in 112 reviews)); "But yes Management is Poor and Biased !" ((in 104 reviews)); "Those in senior leadership positions tend to serve themselves and their careers ahead of the corporate mission." ((in 34 reviews)); "This permeates across different offices and countries too as the managers have very often mixed a lot in past roles." ((in 32 reviews))

What are employees saying about British Council layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about British Council layoffs and their outlook for job security at British Council in 2026.

British Council reviews

3.7

62% would recommend to a friend

(2,312 total reviews)

Ciarán Devane

57% approve of CEO

43% positive business outlook

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

British Council has an employee rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars, based on 2,312 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The British Council employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Gemeinnützige Organisationen & NGOs industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

2.0

Mar 16, 2020

It is all about your team

Strategic partnerships manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The people & the context within which the BC works is very interesting.

Cons

Highly politicised environment which can make traction difficult for new staff.

1.0

Jan 11, 2020

Teacher of English

Teacher of english

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Nice people - the teachers and students

Cons

Management don't really manage things - they just sit on the top and set rules, overwork you and then judge you, and ignore basic HR guidelines. When we question whats happening - we are told that we need to demonstrate the right 'behaviours' and not 'ruin our reputation'. Basically there is no positive goodwill built between management and employees... my goodwill was destroyed the first week I started. People stop caring about the job when they realise management don't care about them. And then it just becomes about rinsing money and getting away with minimum work without going noticed. It is truly a depressing environment.

4.0

Nov 6, 2019

Head of English

Head of english

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

I am working on an interesting, challenging, worthwhile education reform project.

Cons

The organisation is in no way agile, slow to make decisions and way too top heavy in terms of senior management.

Viewing 238 - 240 of 2,312 Reviews

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Jobs at British Council

Language Learning Project Officer

Service Enablement Co-ordinator - HE

Consultant, UK-German Connection (Comms & M&E)

Erasmus + Single Point of Contact(Wales, Scotland & Northern Ireland)

British Council

British Council reviews

Company ratings over time

Ratings by demographic groups

Reviews by job title

It is all about your team

Teacher of English

Head of English

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

Jobs at British Council