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The role of BAC
The British Accreditation Council has provided the national quality assurance scheme for independent further and higher education in the UK since 1984. Our accreditation is recognised the world over by students, agents and government officials as the clearest mark of educational quality in the private sector. Alongside the British Council, whose Accreditation UK scheme serves as the definitive guide to the country's English language centres, we have overseen the inspection of private post-16 education for more than two decades.
We are committed to both encouraging the highest standards of education offered by independent colleges and providing prospective students with an invaluable guide to quality in an often complex sector. Our charitable status informs our efforts not merely to pass judgement on institutions, but also to nurture their attempts to raise standards and the quality of education for all. Our second great responsibility is to advise government on the bona fides of international students entering the country and the colleges who recruit them. Through our system of inspections and accreditation we are able to identify those institutions which uphold the UK's reputation as a top destination in the international education market.
Accreditation by BAC is recognised by the UK Border Agency (UKBA), part of the Home Office, as a qualifying requirement for institutions wishing to enrol visa students. BAC works closely with and is itself monitored by Ofsted on behalf of the UKBA. BAC accreditation enables institutions to apply for a UKBA licence under Tier 4 of the Points Based System for Managed Migration: students from outside the EEA will only secure a UK visa if they have a genuine offer from a licensed institution.
