UK English language schools: 2026–2027 prices and city choices

Katerina Galkina · EN · 05/10/2026

What does an English course in the UK really cost?

An advertised weekly tuition fee rarely answers the useful question: how much money will you need for the trip? This comparison covers 12 actual schools and campuses, official tuition and accommodation tariffs, and worked four-week calculations. It is a shortlist for requesting quotes, not a school ranking or a promise of availability.

Checked on 5 October 2026. The Wimbledon, St Giles and BEET examples use published 2027 tariffs. Other examples explicitly use 2026 prices and must not be carried over to a 2027 booking. Before paying, obtain a named quote with dates, the exact course and the room category.

Choose your programme first using our English language schools guide ↗. This article focuses on prices and locations.

How to read the comparison

All amounts are in pounds sterling, for one adult. Tuition uses the price band applicable to a four-week booking, without individual discounts. Accommodation is a standard single homestay room with half-board outside summer and Christmas supplements. HB usually means breakfast and dinner; confirm lunches and kitchen access separately.

The products are not identical. Teaching time is shown in clock hours excluding breaks wherever the timetable allows this to be established. Four teaching weeks also do not necessarily buy 28 accommodation nights. Registration, books, accommodation placement and deposits have not been added to the weekly table prices.

TLI's figure includes guaranteed single occupancy: £210 base accommodation plus £25. LILA* describes its homestay rate as six nights: ask for the total continuous stay and final-night charge. Oxford School of English's Morning 15 uses 50-minute academic hours: 12.5 clock hours, consistent with its timetable.

Compare teaching time before comparing fees

Standard and Intensive are product names, not standard measurements. Use lessons × minutes per lesson ÷ 60. Twenty 45-minute lessons equal 15 hours; twenty 50-minute lessons equal 16 hours 40 minutes. Independent study, conversation clubs, outings and homework can be valuable, but should be recorded separately from paid teacher-led lessons.

Class size is a separate consideration. Published limits include Celtica ↗ 10; IH Bristol ↗ and TLI ↗ 12; BEET ↗ normally 13, rising to 14 in summer; and ELC Bristol ↗ 14. These are published limits, not the expected number in your particular class. Ask about mixed-level classes and reduced hours when enrolment is low.

Dividing the weekly price by teaching hours helps explain the product, but does not measure teaching quality. Consider level placement, your learning objective, feedback and opportunities to use English outside school. Choose a workload that leaves enough energy for homework and conversation rather than automatically selecting the longest timetable.

Four weeks, including specified compulsory extras

These calculations cover the stated course, accommodation and listed fees. They are not complete trip budgets. Every example excludes flights, any required visa or entry permission, insurance, transfers, local transport, meals not provided, personal spending, examinations and paid activities. Refundable security deposits are separate. Do not apply a calculation to another course or set of dates.

London: Wimbledon, 2027

Standard General English with standard seven-day breakfast-and-dinner homestay: 4 × £455 + 4 × £280 + £65 registration + £55 materials + £60 first-week accommodation supplement = £3,120. Illustrative accommodation dates: 9 January–6 February 2027, 28 nights; classes 11 January–5 February. Availability requires confirmation. Official tariff ↗.

Manchester: BSC, 2026

GE20 plus standard homestay: 4 × £350 + 4 × £245 + £45 placement = £2,425. Registration and materials are included. Illustrative accommodation: 11 October–8 November, 28 nights; classes 12 October–6 November. A separately listed £25 bank-transfer fee is excluded and applies if relevant. Official tariff ↗.

Cardiff: Celtica, 2026

Morning GE20 plus standard homestay: 4 × £310 + 4 × £190 + £70 registration + £50 materials + £50 placement = £2,170. Illustrative accommodation: 11 October–8 November, 28 nights; classes 12 October–6 November. Places and level suitability require confirmation. The current Celtica website links this Celtic English Academy 2026 tariff ↗.

Bristol: ELC, 2026

Course and homestay: 4 × £355 + 4 × £245 + £60 registration + £60 materials + £60 placement = £2,580. The usual Sunday arrival on 11 October and Saturday departure on 7 November give 27 nights. Adding an available £45 night makes £2,625 for 28 nights, subject to approval. Official tariff ↗.

These totals are not a ranking: teaching time, locations and tariff years differ. They demonstrate the calculation. For your own shortlist, compare the same year, dates, number of nights and required teaching hours.

Choosing a location for your trip

London. Decide whether you need to be in the centre every day. A school in Wimbledon and a central London school create different daily routes. Compare the teaching building with the accommodation address, not just the word London. If you plan events and meetings after class, include the journey home in your schedule.

Brighton, Eastbourne and Bournemouth. Consider the coast if seaside walks are part of the trip you want. Leisure plans and intensive study still compete for time. Make a deliberate choice between morning and afternoon lessons, and check your evening route to the host. Summer dates need a separate price check.

Oxford and Cambridge. Include these cities if a university setting appeals to you. A course at a private language school does not mean enrolment at the University of Oxford or the University of Cambridge. Check the exact school entity and certificate issuer. Do not pay for an assumed university connection that is absent from the programme description.

Manchester and Liverpool. Treat them as destinations in their own right. Make a list of what you want outside class: sport, music, meetings or museums. Check whether those plans fit the timetable and transport from your accommodation. Compare quotes after adding accommodation and fees.

Bristol and Bath. This table contains two verified Bristol school examples; no Bath tariff has been inferred from them. If you specifically want to live or study in Bath, request a separate quote. For a trip combining both cities, investigate the daily journey first: a weekend excursion and getting to the first lesson are different requirements.

Edinburgh and Cardiff. Consider them if you want to experience Scotland or Wales alongside English lessons. Your interests and the class you join matter more than a notion of one correct British accent. Verify accommodation prices and availability for your actual week, particularly around major events.

Belfast. International House Belfast closed at the end of August 2026. Old booking listings and PDFs remain searchable, but are not current offers. English UK confirms the closure ↗. No verified alternative Belfast four-week offer is included here.

When the same week costs more

St Giles' 2027 tariff adds £31/week to tuition from 21 June to 20 August; accommodation has a separate seasonal window. Do not assume both sets of dates match. Official source ↗.

Check separate lines for special diets, under-18 supplements, Christmas, late arrival, extra nights, accommodation changes, bank fees, coursebooks and examinations. Dietary supplements depend on the school: do not automatically assume vegetarian, halal or gluten-free meals are free. Declare essential dietary requirements before accepting the accommodation.

Do not multiply an advertised 24-plus-week tariff by four. The relevant band depends on the actual booking length. A long-course discount also does not imply that you can shorten the course without losing money after arrival.

Homestay and residence: compare what is included

A homestay with dinner and a residence with a kitchen create different budgets. For a residence, add groceries, any laundry charges, initial household purchases and cooking time. For a homestay, ask about dinner times, weekend lunches, kitchen access and returning late.

A kitchen, Wi-Fi and heating appearing in an amenities list does not establish that all bills are included. Request an itemised written list covering utilities, internet, linen, towels, bedroom cleaning, common-area cleaning and laundry. Ask whether there are limits or extra charges.

Celtica residence, 2026: 4 × £235 = £940, plus £150 refundable deposit: £1,090 before other costs. Deposit repayment depends on the room inspection. Source ↗.

Travel time matters too. BSC Manchester publishes a 30–60-minute homestay journey. Similar room prices do not mean similar convenience. Ask for a route from your actual address to your teaching building, the first service and the last practical journey home. See the accommodation guide ↗.

Cancellation: ask separately about the course and accommodation

Do not add a booking deposit twice if it is credited towards the balance. Do establish how much can be retained if you cancel. A refundable damage deposit, advance tuition payment and administration fee are three different things.

IH Bristol's terms ↗ tie refunds to notice periods; leaving a course early normally does not produce a tuition refund. Visa refusal has separate evidence and notification requirements. TLI's published terms ↗ contain overlapping cancellation bands of 8–11 and 4–10 weeks. Request written clarification before payment rather than silently correcting the school's contract.

Obtain answers for four scenarios: visa refusal, a delayed decision, your own cancellation and early departure after starting. Ask separately about accommodation, transfers, books, insurance and an intermediary's commission. Establish who must receive notice and what counts as the receipt date. Our booking guide ↗ explains the wider process.

A request that produces comparable quotes

Send every school the same information: age, level, objective, teaching dates and hours, accommodation arrival and departure times, single-room requirement, meals, diet and preferred journey time. Request itemised GBP prices, the number of nights, compulsory extras, deposit and cancellation terms, quote expiry and payment deadline.

Suggested wording: “Please quote for four teaching weeks and 28 accommodation nights for an adult student. Confirm teaching hours excluding breaks, maximum class size, separate tuition and accommodation prices, registration and materials fees, all seasonal supplements, refundable deposits and cancellation terms. Please list anything payable in addition to the quoted total.”

Save the quote and its terms with your booking confirmation. If money is tight, change one variable at a time: dates, lesson timing, room type or location. You can then see what creates the saving.

For help with your shortlist or trip questions, contact Tell Me London on Instagram ↗ or the Telegram bot ↗. Have your dates, level, objective and total budget including accommodation ready.