Founded by the journalist Sir Evelyn Wrench in 1918, it aims to bring together and empower people of different languages and cultures, by building skills and confidence in communication, such that individuals realise their potential.

[1] With 35 branches in the United Kingdom and over 50 international ESUs in countries around the world, the ESU carries out a variety of activities such as debating, public speaking and student exchange programmes, runs conferences and seminars, and offers scholarships, to encourage the effective use of the English language around the globe.

National winners meet in London for the final, part of a five-day programme of events including public speaking, debating and performance workshops, and cultural excursions.

British students, having completed their A-Levels, can spend two or three terms at a private prep school in the United States or Canada during their gap year.

[18] Charles Duguid, Scottish medical practitioner and Aboriginal rights activist, helped to found the Australian branch of the ESU in Adelaide, South Australia, and was chairman from 1932 to 1935.

The Lindemann Trust Fellowships are a prestigious research grant awarded to postdoctoral scientists of "exceptional promise" in the pure and applied physical sciences,[22] designed to enable British and Commonwealth citizens resident in the UK to perform research in the USA.