Student age
These ages are averages from recent years, a guide rather than a guarantee for your visit.
8 nationalities
Japan
14%
Türkiye
13%
Switzerland
12%
Italy
10%
South Korea
8%
Brazil
7%
France
6%
Saudi Arabia
4%
This mix of nationalities is an average from recent years, a guide rather than a guarantee for your visit.
You'll learn English five minutes' walk from the British Museum, in the heart of London, at St Giles London Central. Founded in 1955 and now St Giles's largest London school, it's built around an on-site student residence, a rooftop terrace and a dedicated Platinum Clubhouse for executive learners.
Your classes stay small, averaging 8 students, and you'll be taught by native-speaker teachers who all hold a recognised teaching qualification and a university degree. The school holds accreditation from both the British Council and English UK.
St Giles is right for you if you…
This school suits students who want a large, central London campus with a lively, career-oriented international atmosphere. It has the scale and energy of a big city school rather than the quiet, boutique feel of a smaller one.
Start with the students. Start date, trip length and language level are set per student next.
See how busy the school typically is throughout the year and choose the month that best suits your preferences.
One of the calmer months. A good fit if you like a relaxed school where it is easy to get to know your teachers and the people around you.
Busyness describes how full the school is, not class size or who you will study with.
The offering of St Giles
Everyday classes for speaking, listening, reading and writing. The starting point for most students.
From €435 per week
Longer stays cost less per week.
See the 8 coursesEveryday classes for speaking, listening, reading and writing. The starting point for most students.
From €307 per week
See the 8 coursesOne teacher, one student. Content and pace follow whatever you need to work on.
From €934 per week
Longer stays cost less per week.
See the 3 coursesOne teacher, one student. Content and pace follow whatever you need to work on.
From €1,162 per week
Longer stays cost less per week.
See the 5 coursesOne teacher, one student. Content and pace follow whatever you need to work on.
From €947 per week
Longer stays cost less per week.
See the 2 coursesTargeted practice for official exams, built around the exam dates.
From €474 per week
Longer stays cost less per week.
See the 4 coursesA smaller group of students over fifty, with a slower pace and a cultural programme included.
From €974 per week
See the 2 coursesFrom €154 per week
See the 3 coursesA building full of other students, with shared kitchens and common rooms. Easiest way to meet people.
From €558 per week
Sunday to Saturday.
See the 2 staysA private room in a local household, with meals at the table. The most of the language you will speak outside class.
€270 per week
Sunday to Sunday. Your family is matched after booking.
How host family matching worksBefore you travel, you sit an online placement test, so the school already has a sense of where you sit before you arrive. On the first day itself, a welcome session introduces you to the school team and the other students starting alongside you.
From there you get your timetable and class placement, and a welcome activity rounds off the day before lessons properly begin.
Step 1 of 4
Take a further written and spoken assessment on arrival to help confirm your level.
A typical week might include a market visit, a conversation club and an origami-making club, plus a sports day in Regent's Park, a games evening and a Soho walking tour. The school doesn't fix a set number of activities each week, so the line-up changes. Optional paid outings, such as beer tasting or visits to major London sights, are there for anyone who wants to go further. Free weekly options cover food market tours, conversation tables, cultural workshops, sports sessions, board game nights and city walking tours, and a welcome activity gets things started from day one.
Welcome activity
A welcome activity in your first days introduces you to other new arrivals before lessons properly begin.
Weekly activity programme
Free activities such as a food market tour, conversation table, cultural workshop and board game night run through the week and bring students together outside class.
Rooftop terrace and café
The rooftop terrace and student café are popular spots to chat with other students between lessons.
Pre-arrival Facebook group
Join the school's Facebook group before you travel to start chatting with other students ahead of arrival.
Included for free
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Included for free
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Included for free
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Included for free
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Included for free
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Included for free
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Illustrative image
Teaching at St Giles London Central is learner-centred, with lesson plans built around your needs and interests and plenty of discussion and activity-based practice. Standard group lessons run from 09:00 to 13:00, Monday to Friday. Some courses, such as IELTS preparation or Global English for Work, add further lessons in the afternoon, from 13:45 to 17:40 or 13:45 to 16:45. Courses are organised by level, from beginner to proficient, and span general English, exam preparation, academic, business, one-to-one and executive Platinum pathways.
The school's student community is genuinely international and shifts shape across the year, with a mix of ages and nationalities and most people arriving as solo travellers rather than in groups. A welcome activity brings new arrivals together in the first days, the rooftop terrace and student café work as informal meeting points between lessons, and the ongoing activity programme keeps giving you fresh reasons to run into the same faces again. Many students also join the school's Facebook group before they fly out, so a few names are already familiar by the time class starts.
An even mix of men and women.
Japan
14%
Türkiye
13%
Switzerland
12%
Italy
10%
South Korea
8%
Brazil
7%
France
6%
Saudi Arabia
4%
A weekday here, as most students experience it.
From where you study to where you unwind: this is what you will find at the school.
British Council
External inspection.
English UK
Requires a separate accreditation or inspected status.
Safety at St Giles London Central starts with fast, direct contact. You can reach the school by phone, WhatsApp or a dedicated emergency line, including outside normal school hours, with an average emergency response time under five minutes. A designated support contact handles day-to-day questions, and on your first day staff give you a safety briefing along with the key emergency numbers, so you know who to call long before you ever need to.If you need medical help, staff can walk you to the pharmacy, help you register with the GP surgery next door, or call NHS 111 for advice while you are with them. In a medical emergency, staff call 999 and give first aid while you wait for an ambulance. Every member of staff is background-checked and trained in first aid, and the school logs safety incidents under a formal safeguarding policy overseen by its own Safeguarding Officers.
154 Southampton Row, London WC1B 5AR, UK
Nearby
Flying into London City Airport is the most direct route into town. You can arrange a taxi transfer straight to your accommodation, or take the Docklands Light Railway into central London and change onto the Underground from there.
Arrange a taxi transfer from London City, Gatwick, Heathrow, Luton or Stansted airport, or from St Pancras station, straight to your accommodation.
From London City Airport, take the Docklands Light Railway into central London; it connects at Bank with the Central, Northern and Waterloo & City lines.
Direct bus routes 129, 473 and 474 also run from London City Airport.
Licensed London Black Taxis wait at the rank just outside the terminal, or you can pre-book a minicab or executive car to collect you.
“I highly recommend this language school! I spent four months here. As I was also staying in the residence, I had the opportunity to meet and receive support from many teachers and staff members. Everyone was very frie…”Sep 2026
“I highly recommend this language school! I spent four months here. As I was also staying in the residence, I had the opportunity to meet and receive support …”
“I was there for just two weeks but it was the best time ever. I appreciate every lesson and everything I learned. Even though it was a short stay, my confide…”
“I was able to learn English because of these enthusiastic teachers at this school. My English knowledge is not perfect, but this is not their fault. I am a b…”
The key school facts, terms and travel information in one place.
After the school confirms your booking, you pay a 30% down payment within 5 days. The full payment is due 29 days before arrival.
Flexible date changes and a full refund, up to 15 days before arrival. 10% cancellation fee between 13 and 1 days before arrival. No refund after the course starts.
Flexible date changes and a full refund, up to 30 days before arrival, 50% refund between 29 and 15 days before arrival. No refund after 15 days before arrival.
London has the following national holidays. Please note that schools might be closed on these days. The school will inform you about the exact dates once you request a booking.
Practical answers about the school and your stay.
Pay easily with your preferred payment method
From €334 per week, including course materials. You pay the school price, with no extra charge.
See schools in London that may fit you better on one important point.
