City & Guilds Group

Name

City & Guilds Group

Legal name

City & Guilds Limited

Website

https://cityandguilds.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1878

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Vocational Education and Certification Services

NAICS

Technical and Trade Schools (6115), Apprenticeship Training (611513)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

National/Institutional Accreditors (Career, Faith-Based, Distance, etc.) (EDADACAB)

Keywords

• Vocational qualifications
• Apprenticeship assessment
• End-point assessment
• Skills certification
• Leadership management training

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Qualification and Certification Fees: Centres pay candidate fees for registration, assessments, and certification of learners undertaking City & Guilds qualifications. These fees are the primary revenue stream from the 10,000+ approved centres network serving nearly 2 million learners annually.
2. End-Point Assessment (EPA) Services: As an End-Point Assessment Organisation (EPAO), City & Guilds charges for EPA of apprenticeships, structured with registration fees upfront and remaining balance upon EPA completion. Charges are matched to apprenticeship funding band points.
3. Qualification Approval and Centre Fees: Centres pay approval fees to become and remain approved City & Guilds centres, including annual minimum spend thresholds. Additional costs for qualification approvals, centre visits, and quality assurance services.
4. Apprenticeship Levy Management: Employers with a pay bill of 3 million GBP or more pay the apprenticeship levy, accessible via the Apprenticeship Service for apprenticeship training. City & Guilds receives payment through this government-facilitated funding mechanism.
5. SmartScreen and Learning Materials: Sale of digital learning resources, textbooks, and SmartScreen subscriptions to centres and learners as part of qualification delivery.
6. 19+ Advanced Learner Loans: City & Guilds qualifications at levels 3-6 are approved for 19+ Advanced Learner Loans, allowing learners over 19 to finance their studies through government-backed loans, which flow to approved providers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

City & Guilds Group is an Ofqual-regulated awarding organisation that develops, awards, and certifies over 500 vocational qualifications across 20+ industries, delivers end-point assessment (EPA) services for apprenticeships, and operates proprietary digital platforms (Walled Garden, E-volve, Proficient, Digital Credentials, Remote Invigilation) for centre administration, online assessment, and digital certification, distributed through a network of 10,000+ approved centres worldwide.

Product overview

City & Guilds offers a comprehensive suite of vocational education and skills development products and services. The core offering centres on over 500 qualifications across 20+ industries, delivered through a multi-platform ecosystem: Walled Garden serves as the primary secure administration portal for centre management, learner registration, and EDI data exchange; E-volve provides the online assessment delivery platform; Proficient handles EPA booking and management; and Digital Credentials/e-Certificates provide digital certification. Supporting platforms include SmartScreen (learning content), Learning Assistant (LMS), and the Moderation Portal. The group operates several subsidiaries including ILM (leadership/management), Gen2, Intertrain, The Oxford Group, and Trade Skills 4U. Remote Invigilation adds AI-monitored at-home testing capability to the assessment suite. The product portfolio serves providers, employers, governments, and learners across 10 key sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Walled Garden: Secure administration system for customers to register learners and book end-point assessments
• SmartScreen
• Learning Assistant
• E-volve
• Proficient
• Assured
• Digital Credentials

Products and services

• Walled Garden Secure online administration portal for City & Guilds approved centres enabling learner registration, exam booking, results entry, e-certificate management, order processing, and EDI data exchange across five role-based user profiles (Primary, Secondary, Tutor, Finance, Read-only).
• E-volve Online assessment platform for centres to manage tests, schedule exams with 30-minute lead time bookings, access learner and apprentice results, and compare centre performance against global pass rate averages.
• End-Point Assessment (EPA) Service Independent end-point assessment service for apprenticeship standards, verifying that apprentices have gained required skills, knowledge, and behaviours. Pricing is matched to apprenticeship funding band points (£1,500-£27,000) with a small upfront registration fee and remaining balance upon EPA completion.
• Remote Invigilation AI-monitored online assessment invigilation service allowing learners to be assessed at home or in the workplace via the E-volve platform. Includes identity verification, environment checks, webcam/screen sharing monitoring, and AI behaviour flagging at £34 per learner per test.
• e-Certificates Digital certificates with QR codes and authentication codes as a sustainable alternative to paper certification, available 24 hours after results are claimed in Walled Garden. Verifiable through MyCertis third-party verification platform.
• Digital Credentials Verifiable digital badges packed with skills and achievement information, shareable on LinkedIn, email signatures, and websites, backed by QR code and certificate authentication for verification.
• Qualifications Portfolio Over 500 vocational qualifications across 20+ industries, including vocational qualifications, apprenticeships, T Levels, Functional Skills in maths and English, and technical qualifications. The broadest portfolio of any UK Awarding Body.
• SmartScreen Digital learning resources and subscription service for learners and centres supporting qualification delivery through textbooks and digital content.
• Learning Assistant Digital platform supporting centres with learning management and delivery features for vocational qualification programmes.
• Moderation Portal Online portal for moderation processes and quality assurance activities supporting Ofqual compliance and centre assessment standards scrutiny (CASS).
• Proficient (EPA Pro) End-point assessment booking and management platform for apprenticeship EPA services, supporting the full EPA lifecycle from registration through completion.
• Paper Certificates Traditional printed certificates awarded upon qualification completion, featuring security holograms and the City & Guilds trusted logo.
• Assured Recognition service for validating internally-developed employer training programmes, issuing dual-branded certificates (City & Guilds and customer logos) as both printed certificates and digital credentials.
• ILM (Institute of Leadership & Management) Leadership and management qualifications, apprenticeships, certificates, and credentials brand offering development programmes across leadership and management. Shares the Walled Garden platform with City & Guilds.
• Gen2 Specialist training provider subsidiary focused on technical and vocational training, particularly in engineering disciplines.
• Intertrain Training provider subsidiary specialising in railway training services.
• The Oxford Group Training provider subsidiary offering management training and development programmes.
• Trade Skills 4U Trade skills training provider subsidiary delivering vocational trades training programmes.

Quantifiable outcome

• 99% employer recognition
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

AI capability2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered supporting and core.

• Tribal Technology LtdsupportingTechnology or IntegrationTribal Technology Ltd provides EBS, a Management Information System (MIS) capable of sending and receiving EDI data with City & Guilds systems. Integration allows centres to submit registrations and results electronically.
• Unit 4 SoftwaresupportingTechnology or IntegrationUnit 4 Software provides QL, a Management Information System capable of EDI data exchange with City & Guilds Walled Garden, enabling centres to submit learner data electronically.
• Capita (UNIT-e)supportingTechnology or IntegrationCapita's UNIT-e MIS system supports EDI data exchange with City & Guilds. Some older Capita systems (DITA, Dolphin, Portfolio) do not support EDI and users are being transitioned to UNIT-e.
• Corero Systems LtdsupportingTechnology or IntegrationCorero Systems Ltd provides REMS, a Management Information System capable of EDI data exchange with City & Guilds, allowing centres to send and receive data electronically.
• Compass (ProSolution)supportingTechnology or IntegrationCompass provides ProSolution MIS, which supports EDI data exchange with City & Guilds Walled Garden systems for centre administration.
• Avco Systems (on behalf of JCQ)supportingTechnology or IntegrationAvco Systems developed an interim migration application for the A2C Data Exchange Project on behalf of JCQ awarding organisations, providing a free tool for point-to-point data exchanges between centres and awarding bodies.
• EAUC (Alliance for Sustainability Leadership in Education)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerCity & Guilds joined the Race to Zero for Universities and Colleges, run by EAUC and UNEP, committing to reduce carbon emissions by at least 50% before 2030 and achieve net zero by 2040 or sooner. This supports City & Guilds' digital certification transition and sustainability agenda.
• PeopleCertcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCity & Guilds is part of PeopleCert, bringing global reach and long-term commitment to the skills agenda. This is a core strategic ownership relationship, not a product partnership. Together they are investing in developing and awarding new V Levels and reformed Level 2 qualifications.
• The Wow ShowsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerCity & Guilds Foundation partnered with The Wow Show to produce video content emphasising everyday skills learners can draw on to succeed in training, work, and lives.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cityandguilds
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC7XBw8Jmwc0YpS6Q0F9Hdkg
• Facebookfacebook.com/lionawards
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/city-and-guilds
• Instagraminstagram.com/cityandguilds/?hl=en

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments3 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about City & Guilds Group