Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Regency College, Brighton

Not a lot of people know this, but Sandy has a network of Tefl spies peppered around the South coast of England, where dodgy outfits outnumber the bona-fide schools by about 2:1. My latest damning intelligence report concerns a rather vile little setup in Brighton, Regency College.

We'd like to nominate Regency College in Hove, Brighton, as a candidate for Crap Employer of the Year. The senior teachers there, Andy and Sheena, offer little support to new teachers, even for teachers coming in who are newly qualified, just having got a CELTA. Yes, there are complete novices there, straight out from the CELTA classroom. They just wanted somebody who would accept all the students that none of the other teachers wanted - a most noble educational sentiment!

As for the other management, the D.O.S is hardly ever in the school building, but this may well be to her partner having passed away recently. However, her deputy, Mary the ADOS, is aggressive, shouting at students and teachers alike, and generally serves only to create a hostile atmosphere. She likes to employ methods of 'psychological bullying' intimidating and undermining less experienced teachers, making comments like 'where are all our important teachers?' when only the newbies are around. Motivations skills like that must be very hard to acquire!

The students are given precedence and power over teachers, even to the extent of some teachers feeling bullied and unable to do their jobs properly. More worryingly, many of the college's students are working illegally against student visa regulations, with the full knowledge of the school managers. They typically work as cleaners in nightclubs or have jobs in hotels as chambermaids, or as cooks and waiters in restaurants etc. - all this is common knowledge at the school.

Other staff have reported being offered a job in writing and then having it retracted at the last minute, while the teacher was on the way to the school to sign the contract itself. One teacher was offered a contract which was then withdrawn it as the management shifted their schedule round to keep certain teachers on.

Teachers' morale is generally low there, with everyone looking out for themselves - even to the extent of hiding new teachers' administration papers so it looks like they are at fault. In general it's a nasty place to work, and best avoided.

Clearly this is a dodgy outfit that needs to be be checked out. We have accordingly informed the British Council and UKBA, and look forward to co-operating with them soon.

So, sounds like a cracking place to work, eh?! What do you have to say in your defence, Regency?

67 comments:

Anonymous said...

This sounds more like a bog standard crap school- there's nothing in this report like LTC Eastbourne.
How bad is the pocket money?

Norfolk Streetboy said...

Not just the bog-standard Tefl craphole, but one that's seriously bent too. Pocket money's crap as well - just as bad as the 'management', in fact.

Anonymous said...

Informing the British Council is one thing, but going to UKBA is taking things a little too far. As if cleaning bogs in a Brighton nightclub isn't punishment enough for some wrong deed in a past life. You're working for the Man now, Sandy. Shame on you!

The TEFL Tradesman said...

Not true. If UKBA manage to get even half of the shite-hole Tefl shyster places closed down, my 'collaboration' with them will be justified.

And it's not just the 'Room above a kebab shop run by a Paki' type of schools that deserve to get roasted, but the ones that have BC 'accreditation', whatever that means nowadays (very little in terms of ethics and credibility), too.

And what's this about me cleaning out Brighton bogs for a living? Surely some mistake, here; in fact, I'm doing important research into the private habits of international students - really, it's true, I tell ya!

Anonymous said...

A few students scrubbing floors in a dodgy nightclub to help pay the wages of crap teachers is, I think, quite different from the visa factories.
Anyway, all that will happen is the student will get deported and subsequently blacklisted. The school will probably just get a slap on the wrist as they'll deny any knowledge of the student having a part-time job. Doesn't quite seem right to me. Besides, the new visa regulations are unfair and misguided - good on the students for putting two fingers up at the system.

Suedehead Nigga said...

Yeah, and he's used words like 'Yiddo' and 'Pikey' too, I do remember. Shame on you, Sandy!

Ipmilat said...

Sandy, anybody, dirt on INTO, please.

The TEFL Tradesman said...

INTO? Best of a rather bad bunch, I've heard.

I mean, if they take over your Uni's ELT provision you will probably still have a job, but with a pay-cut, a smaller pension, and you'll be treated as an office commodity and expected to work a 9 to 5 day.

But they WON'T cut your balls off.

Clarence Rhode said...

Whenever I hear someone say they work for a 'crap school' , I simply ask them to apply the Windsor Analysis and answer 5 simple questions.

1. Is the proprietor a convicted criminal?

2. Does he write obscene stories and post them on the Internet?

3. Does he claim to suffer from 'depersonalisation' - the same affliction as Dennis Nilsen, the Muswell Hill mass murderer?

3. Does the school pay newly qualified teachers £11 per hour?

4. Is the school building used for various bizarre activities such as a B&B and dormitories for students?

5. Does the proprietor believe that the building is governed by a central brain to which only he has access?

If the answer to these simple questions is 'YES' then your school is officially at Windsor level, and you should take measures accordingly.

EFFULGENCY MADE FLESH said...

INTO the abyss with you SCUM INTO the vilest of all DECLEVITIES into you know not WHAT
I have pushed the BOUTON on you, matey boy
Wots dat sound? ITS sumfink goin over yer head. DUH!

Anonymous said...

Clarence, what did this central brain do?

UNALLOYED PURITY said...

Oh this is the VILEST of ALL
That the BRAIN should recieve CALUMNY and debasement at your INKY FINGERED Hands

HIS brain is YES like a rare METAL

Mined in the quarry of GENius

Smelted in the forge of INSPIRATION

Formed on the ANVIL of characTER

HONED in the finest salons of BUCkingHAMSHIRE

IT CUTS like a RAPIER

LIKE a laser
Woosh and WOOSH Bzzzz wush

My metal shall not be DEBASED

48 CARAT said...

NO DEBASEMENT no not at your slovenly MITTS

The architrave shall ENDURE
The poet the philosopher the visionary

the guru the sage

the ICON DAMMIT

The role model for so MANY
There will be statues of him yet YOU SHALL SEE
Oh yes BRONZEN EFFIGIES that MAIDENS shall trail their slender hands upon
All this encompassed in the brain
BUT not on YOUR level TESOL WAGE SLAVE
HE IS paraMOUNT

48 craps said...

Paul, is the extra-strong cider on special offer at Tesco's this wekend? It seems you have bought more than your allowance, my sad little shyster!

HIGH TIDE OF SPIRIT AND DAUNTLESS AVATAR OF UNBRIDLED INTELLECT UNLIKE SOME WHO ATTENDED BRUMMY UNI said...

WILL NOT FAIL WILL NOT FAIL WILL NOT FAIL WILL NOT FAIL WILL NOT FAIL WILL NOT FAIL WILL NOT FAIL WILL NOT FAIL
FAIL NOT WILL FAIL NOT WILL FAIL NOT WILL FAIL NOT WILL FAIL NOT WILL FAIL NOT WILL FAIL NOT WILL FAIL NOT WILL

Just something I learned at a FEE PAYING school!

Clarence Rhode said...

Will not fail/Fail not will

That's actually very clever. Was it Baden Powell or someone like that?

And if you say it repeatedly it sounds like Gaelic.

Impressive.

UTTERLY EFFULGENT BEAM OF INCOMPREHENSIBLE LIGHT BEAM EMANATING FROM A SOURCE OF PURE UNALLOYED ENERGY BLAZING IN A PURE GLASS VESSEL FLOATING ON AN OCEAN OF UNIMPEACHABLE MORALITY said...

Foulness pervades the CARBONUMDRUM

But WOT is my MOTTO?? This:

Centrifuge not SUBTERFUGE
Tutelage NOT CAmouflage
DIAMETRIC not DIAGNOSIS
HOLIstic not alcoholisTIC
SEQUINS not obsequiance

Which makes you FEEL very small does it NOT??

A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules from the Centre of the Ultraworld said...

Has Paul been playing his old Orb albums for inspiration for his effulgent titles?

Shighter Of Supreme And immmaculate VOLUMNITY DREEMEEEM AND EFFULGENCE said...

WIBBLE WIBBLE WiBBLE FLUFFY NIGHTDRESS ARCHITRAVE OF SUBLIME EFFULGENcE. Where is my carer to CLEANSE MY BACKSTAIRS VOID

William Frederickson,wishing that he had fisted Amy winehouse said...

No,possibly Bronski Beat and The Communards,pervertebrating QUIDNUNC that Paul 'Paedo' Lowe is!

Clarence Rhode said...

Jimmy Saville.

Anonymous said...

In reference to the original post concerning Regency College. I think I know the teacher who was behind writing that post. As I remember, that teacher was relieved of their duties because management received so many complaints from the students concerning that teacher to the point that students were walking out. This wasn't just one class either. And I spoke to some of the students and the general consensus was that the teacher couldn't really be bothered to teach. I'd just like to say in defense of the college that most of the teachers there are excellent, highly experienced and highly qualified. Newly qualified teachers should realize that TEFL is hard work and we now live in a competitive TEFL world. My advice would be go abroad, get some experience and become a better teacher instead of writing posts on the internet which damage people's reputations in a sector which is under stress and an important part of our economy.

And if you can't stand the heat..

ps I am not Andy, Sheena or Mary!

The TEFL Tradesman said...

Hmm, my suspicions are roused here, and I can only offer this enlightened follow-up to those ridiculous comments immediately above.

1. My advice would be that it's unwise to offer jobs to newly-qualified EFL teachers if you have neither the resources nor the will to offer them the necessary support. 'Sink or swim' is not the hallmark of a reputable education outfit.

2. My second piece of gratuitous advice is that you really should not get employees who are not too hot at English to write comments such as these (clearly it's not an EFL teacher, as the English is so poor). It reflects very badly on the college.

3. As Regency has already lost its fight with UKBA and no longer has any 'trusted status' to issue visas, it all looks like a desperate attempt to halt the inevitable scuttling of a sinking ship. So long, suckers!

SM

PS: 'defense' (sp) - are you an American, by any chance? Or is your spelling as poor as your syntax?

Huw Curry said...

Lovely vindaloo tomorrow.

Anonymous said...

Heard through the grapevine this school is now shut.

daisy said...

"I spoke to some of the students and the general consensus was that the teacher couldn't really be bothered to teach."

Yeah, that's the way to go - gather a bit of anecdotal 'evidence' and sack the poor bugger, not even giving him the chance to defend hinself.

This is a hallmark of the worst example of people management, and EFL schools like this appear to revel in such human degradation.

If this school really has gone belly-up, it's all for the best!

Anonymous said...

A cracking result, Sandy! From Regency College's Facebook page ...

Regency College English Language School

We regret to tell you that Regency College has closed. Thank you to everyone who has worked and studied with us. We wish everyone luck and success with what happens next.

23 minutes ago

Anonymous said...

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Regency-College-English-Language-School/92435587580

Anonymous said...

This is fantastic work. Seriously, I really admire the writing and recognise, some/much of the critique.
I really hope the author works to integrate their capability into their real and unhidden life.
Good luck and peace

Anonymous said...

You are lucky they gave you a job when you are obviously such a deceitful, vile and cowardly person, whose blog personifies your social inadequacies and highly delusional self-regard. Regency is missed by a great many students and staff alike. Nobody ever missed you. Hope you can move on and actually do something positive in your life.

Huw Curry said...

On Monday it's chicken korma.

The TEFL Tradesman said...

Perhaps the Regency owners and management would like to let on as to just WHY they have gone belly-up? Or do they have something to hide?

And just WHY did they take the cowardly step of announcing their closure via facebook, instead of telling all parties in person?

It all stinks - and my job is to waft the stench outwards!

We're waiting to hear your answers, Regency - many hundreds of people in fact!

The TEFL Tradesman said...

PS: "deceitful, vile and cowardly ... personifies ... social inadequacies and highly delusional self-regard." (above)

Sums up Regency quite nicely, I feel!

Evening Argus said...

This man should be able to help:

http://www.actionlearningassociates.co.uk/associates/tobylindsay.html

In fact, he posted a mesage on the Regency College facebook page, promising to reimburse all parties involved ... and then the message disappeared!!

Come on Toby - you're the Big Cheese at Regency and you do claim to have "an inquiring, light touch, high impact style with a focus and commitment to achieving results. "

Let's see some results here, then - WHY has the college let so many people down so suddenly?!?

Anonymous said...

You can find Toby Lindsay here too:-

http://uk.linkedin.com/pub/toby-lindsay/29/98a/440

It seems he's one of the Governors of Meridian Community Primary School - hardly inspiring news, is it, if he's a school, governor AND running (or failing to run legally) a bent language school!

nemesis said...

I've informed the local paper, The Argus. I'm sure they're aware of Mr Lindsay and his antics already.

The TEFL Tradesman said...

There's a fine Regency historical document here on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9PDy502JIA

I wonder if they'll be equally candid about their closing the school! Somehow I doubt it.

They've even scrubbed their own facebook page now!

highly delusional self-regard said...

Didn't Toby Lindsay say in the Facebook page that students would get their fees back from EnglishUK, presumably through the Endsleigh insurance service? If so, it will be interesting to see what an insurance company makes of Mr Lindsay's handling and running of his business affairs.

A post on Dave's says that teachers and other staff were not paid. As fees were paid in advance, the cash was there to pay them, so what happened to it?
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=92747

Scrubbing a Facebook page is hardly covering their tracks, especially as it's still available in Google cache:

Enter http://www.facebook.com/pages/Regency-College-English-Language-School/92435587580?sk=wall in Google and choose the cached version.

And don't forget to save a copy just to annoy whoever tried to scrub the page.

Anonymous said...

I find it amazing that there are people willing to defend these shitty schools - see above:
"Regency is missed by a great many students and staff alike."
No doubt, as both groups are missing money owed!

Anonymous said...

Here's an old article about Regency as an overnight success, before they became midnight runners:

http://www.theargus.co.uk/archive/2005/03/08/The+Argus+Archive/6706692.Language_school_is_overnight_success/

Anonymous said...

There's a Wikipedia page about them

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regency_College

Toby's Got an deadly dull twitter account, that shows he spends to much time on the BBC news website

http://twitter.com/#!/tobylindsay
His TobyLindsay site seems to be down, possibly deleted:
http://www.tobylindsay.org.uk/

It's in Google cache and he says:
Thinking about leadership, uncertainty and getting close to the edge of chaos. The edge of chaos being a fascinating, turbulent, anxious and exciting place.

I would be interested to see his current thinking on the issue of leadership and chaos.

Anonymous said...

He's been planning his exit for some time now:

Work wise I applied for a job, yep things have got real bad
Posted on July 11, 2011 by Toby Lindsay

http://www.tobylindsay.org.uk/
(From Google cache)

Anonymous said...

You can catch him here:

Mr Toby Lindsay. Post: Associate Tutor (Business and Management). Location: Mantell Building. Email: T.Lindsay@sussex.ac.uk

hot dog said...

I hear tomorrow's Argus will be covering this college's untimely demise and Toby's apparent disappearance.

Albert Prince said...

Ah, the old "Windsor Shuffle!"

Rake in the fees, close the school and don't pay the staff. Always a crowd-pleaser.

It is often followed by a performance of the "Lowe-Lowe-Lulu" - a convoluted and implausible excuse delivered in a squeaky voice to a Crown Court judge.

Experts sometimes round off the display with a rendition of the rarely-seen "Community Crawl" in which the performer scrubs the streets in a high-vis vest while trying to remain aloof and debonair.

Classic tefl routines, all of them.

Toby 'Cunt' Lindsay said...

http://www.theargus.co.uk/news/9350186.Hove_language_school_closes_suddenly/

Anonymous said...

This is what Toby has to say about himself:

Toby 'Cunt' Lindsay is a tenacious, adventurous and creative [failed] developer of people in organisations. He blends ten years of experience [failed] in the education sector, as a leader and teacher, with his [Mickey Mouse] Master’s degree in People and Organisational Development, to offer client focused [if they don't mind him running off with the cash] , inquiry based routes and solutions [running away] for the development [failure] of people and organisations. Toby is absolutely committed to [cheating and running away] work for and from, his client’s needs [his needs being greater]. He works, in partnership [by running away without paying], to discover and implement, meaningful and effective strategies for lasting change [running away]. Toby is fun, challenging, supportive and resourceful [a cunt] and is delighted to have conversations [by running away], exploring how he could possibly work to help others [by cheating them], and their businesses, grow, develop and profit [by fucking them up and running away].

http://chamber.com/toby-lindsay

Kudos, Sandy, for going for this cowardly, fraud.

Anonymous said...

cowardly, fraud.

Forgive the punctuation. I am afraid Toby's semi-literate garbage affected me badly.

Anonymous said...

This is all very funny...lol! Although, you TEFL teachers are probably laughed at on a daily basis (mainly because your not actually real teachers) so, I'm not surprised how angry you all are. Keep these posts going though because its just so entertaining. I would suggest though, if you have the time amidst all this bitching and moaning, to maybe get a qualification in something worthwhile. Finally, you all seem rather socially inept, spend some time in a real job working with real people...in the real world! Good Luck!

Anonymous said...

in the real world. with people like you who use 'lol' and can't spell 'you're' properly.

Anonymous said...

I'm not full of hatred and bitterness...also, gladly, I'm not a "teacher" if that's what you call yourself.

Zagreb said...

Hmm, shrewd advice from one of Toby's 'mates' ... "spend some time in a real job working with real people...in the real world"

Perhaps you'd like to enlighten us as to what the 'real jobs' are, and where we can discover 'the real world'.

Could it possibly be ... selling insurance? decorating houses? dealing crack?

Please, let us mere pleb Teflers in on the secret, oh mighty one!

DER TEUFEL! said...

Is Toby perhaps a writer?
Does he have a novel in him?
Would he enjoy a day out in England?

Your a real teechur said...

What is an Associate tutor?

Associate Tutors are employed by the University on an hourly paid basis to undertake teaching duties. They are usually postgraduate students of the University undertaking D.Phils, though some parts of the university (notably the Centre for Community Engagement, Sussex Centre for Language Studies and those involved with professional practice) use different types of Associate Tutors.



http://www.sussex.ac.uk/tldu/associatetutors/atfaq

Its a real job said...

According to this, the hourly rate for an associate tutor goes from £10.15 to the dizzy heights of £17.30:

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/humanresources/documents/latest-hourly.pdf

Wonder which grade a star like Toby's on and how many hours he's got. They say that normally it's not over 18 a week. Rock on, Toby.

Anonymous said...

Bullying someone on a blog is easy. Much easier than running a language school and keeping students and teachers happy whilst making ends meet and staying in business. The latter actually takes some courage. I don't see much courage on this blog, just a load of nasty, gutless, bitter, angry people. I dread to think what kind of a job you people would make of running a school or anything else really. Work out what you want from life and have the courage to give it a go, with compassion, and stop looking for enemies to blame. Good luck. PS No I'm not Toby or even a friend of his, I just think this blog is exposing how very weak you people are and felt compelled to point it out.

Anonymous said...

to the above poster:

toby has run off with other people's money. students who paid in good faith.

people found out they had lost their jobs on the internet and weren't paid.

there is no other way of looking at it.

he therefore deserves all the criticism he gets.

if he writes things about himself on the internet which basically make him sound like an efl alan partridge and people mock him it's his own fault.

there may be bitter angry people on this blog, but i can guarantee you they are not as angry and bitter as the teachers who have lost their jobs and pay and the students who have lost their money.

Anonymous said...

does running off with other people's money require courage? i would say it's far more cowardly than writing on this blog.

Anonymous said...

Much easier than running a language school [it went down the pan] and keeping students and teachers happy [he left without paying or supplying the courses] whilst making ends meet [he didn't] and staying in business [he didn't].

Good luck! Toby!

A couple of days ago you were begging for more, but now you're whining. You failed and left without even the leadership or courage to tell people.

You boast about real teaching in proper jobs when you're an hourly paid temp earning pocket money, and you want to teach people how to run things. There's nothing wrong with your pre-/non-career grade teaching post, but there's a whole lot wrong in running away from your responsibilities.

I am not an angry teacher but an angry manager, sick of two-bit tossers like you screwing things up in EFL for honest businesses that pay their staff and bills.

Anonymous said...

"Much easier than running a language school [it went down the pan] and keeping students and teachers happy [he left without paying or supplying the courses] whilst making ends meet [he didn't] and staying in business [he didn't]."

I know! He failed. That proves it was difficult. Evidently more difficult than writing a comment on a blog.

Would you like me to talk you through it one more time? Jeez! No wonder the industry is struggling.

Anonymous said...

He failed because his business model was pants- it proves nothing about the industry. Many schools are doing fine- the ones who are offering courses to the students he shut out, for example, are still trading despite the changes in the visa rules. It is not a case of if Toby failed, anyone could fail. He was incompetent and fell at the first because his business was built on sand. Other schools will weather the recession, and the best will grow.

While you're jeezing our stupidity, could you just lay out the moral high ground for running away without paying the teachers? For a business turning over the kind of money Toby claims, it wouldn't have been too much to ask to lay out a few grand before ditching people.

The question you are avoiding is the management and leadership guru who ran away and left people in the lurch. Why did this splendid chap run away in such a cowardly manner?

Anonymous said...

I actually agree with everything you are saying. I never defended him, I actually think if he really ran off without paying teachers for hours they had worked then he is an absolute arse. It's totally unforgivable! Especially, as you say, for a "leadership guru" or "Management Consultant."

I wonder if they will get paid on pay day, rather than the date the school was closed which of course would never have happened anyway. I would be interested to hear if they eventually get paid. I also feel sorry for any students studying there, especially if they were in the middle of an exam course, that much disruption (changing school) is simply not fair.

However, I stand by what I said. I pointed out the difficulties in running a language school because they are true, and running any business takes courage. Try it if you don't believe me. I actually think a lot of schools will be closing over the next couple of years. Toby Lindsay should have handled the closure of his school very differently. I would imagine he's absolutely gutted to lose his school.

My comment above was really about this blog. I hate the way whenever someone is on the floor everyone has to run in and give a good kicking. Villain or not. I just find it sickening opportunism. A lot of the comments seem a little too pleased about what has happened and a little too gleeful about the witch hunt for my liking. I do think it's cowardly.

It's clearly more about hate for Toby Lindsay (or EFL managers in general?) than compassion for the teachers and students involved. I felt compelled to give a little balance that's all. Half of what is being said is criticising his business model. Is this really what angers you? Get real!

So to sum up, I don't much care for Toby Lindsay or any bad managers, they are bad for the industry. Also, demotivated, constantly moaning and bitter TEFL teachers(you know who you are)who are looking for an easy target sicken me too. Please leave the industry if you don't like it and do something you enjoy. Thanks for reading.

Anonymous said...

There's a lot of ugliness on this blog, but it's not just about kicking them when they're down. The first entry on this school was a couple of months before it went down and before the changes in the visa rules, and behind the venom and abuse there's other activity.

I like the industry, but some parts of it are beyond the pale- remember Evendine College (2,000 students losing their fees and their teachers unpaid), the endless visa scams, etc. I don't see much wrong with going for them and trying to expose them, though things do go over the top.

Sandy blogged Regency and took it up with the authorities. You may see this as a foul-mouthed vigilante blog, but it's not just about gloating. I'd say it's more about kicking them down than when they're down.

Disliking someone who damages the profession doesn't mean you dislike the profession, though there are malcontents here too.

Anonymous said...

And while Twitter, Facebook and his TonyLindsay site have been scrubbed, the college homepage is still up, advertising courses for next year without a mention of having shut down. He's also promoting himself as a business guru based on running a successful school. Shouldn't he update his college page to reflect the truth and change his guru description at least not to make false claims?

He's had time to change a lot on the internet, but hasn't done that. Gutted he may be, but he is still offering courses on his site.

Anonymous said...

OK I think we are more or less in agreement then. It is really strange the site is still up. Criminal even? It's hard to believe it's an oversight.

Anonymous said...

My name is Leigh, and I taught in the school for the last two years it was open. I have to say that Regency was the nicest place that I've worked in so far. The teachers there were very experienced, interesting and keen to help new staff. Shame :)

Clarence Rhode said...

C'mon guys & gals!

Pour a Babycham

Put a Liquid Gold 45 on the new Pye hi fi

Watch a few episodes of 'Mind Your Language'on Betamax

Read the NME cover to cover

Light up a spliff of Red Leb

Pretend it's 1979 all over again. . .


Do the Windsor Shuffle!