The fifth annual English UK Business English Trainers' Conference, in association with Business English UK and supported by Cambridge ESOL, was held on a wet and windy Saturday 28 April at International House London.

68 delegates enjoyed talks on areas including English for Lawyers, Getting Started with Business English, Small Talk, E-learning, ESP Course-books, Developing Listening skills and Meeting the Needs of Pre-service Business Learners.

One major discussion theme, echoed by both of our plenary speakers, Evan Frendo and Ian McMaster, was the intersection between corporate, skills-based or competency-based training and the more traditional concerns of ELT practitioners, including focus on form and lexis.

A generous lunch spread and refreshments from International House kept delegates fed and watered throughout the day and a small business focused exhibition featuring Oxford University Press, Macmillan, Macmillan English Campus, Trinity, Pearson and Cengage gave plenty of ideas for new materials.

Huan Japes, Deputy Chief Executive (Professional Services) said "It was a fantastic day.  It's good to see that even in such trying times people are prepared to invest in professional development. We had a good number of delegates, up on last year, and will work hard to continue this trend."

Jon Grant, of Cambridge ESOL added "The 2012 Business English Trainers' Conference had an excellent and varied programme; thought-provoking professional development sessions, and a great chance to catch up with teachers involved in ESP and Business English."

To view photos from this conference, please visit the English UK Facebook page.