A MAJOR investigation is under way into a college that has been charging immigrants £250 for English certificates which are a step towards British citizenship.

Police, the Home Office and the exams watchdog are all looking into claims of “malpractice” at the institution in Blackburn.

It is believed the certificates were being awarded to people without basic English skills after just a fraction of the 120 hours’ training offered by bona fide colleges.

English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) skills for life certificates were brought in by former Home Secretary David Blunkett.

They are used as part of an application for citizenship, and the courses are supposed to involve speaking, listening, reading and writing elements.

But now immigration bosses have put a freeze on applications which have been linked to the UK Citizenship Centre while the investgation takes place.

It is understood the centre, set up in May, traded until recently at an address in Boyle Street.

It has now closed and another unconnected business is in the premises.

Companies House documents show its registered address at Whalley Street, with the director listed as 41-year-old Masood Khan, of Whalley Street.

One man contacted the Lancashire Telegraph to say his wife had sat a test at the centre earlier this year.

She was issued with a certificate carrying the name of the Lincolns Group of Colleges, which has branches in London and Manchester, and is fully licensed to run the ESOL courses.

But the man, who did not want to be named, said his wife had not been to the Lincoln Group, having sat a brief test at the UK Citizenship Centre.

He said she had been coached through the exam and told how to pronounce a transcript about Indian cooking.

“There were people there who could not even spell their name in English and they were being given certificates,” he said.

The woman’s application was later rejected by the UK Borders Agency, her husband said, because of the certificate.

When we contacted the woman in charge of Lincolns college, 38-year-old Burnley resident Shanaz Hussain, she said: “I am not aware of any investigation going on that brings Lincolns and the UK Citizenship Centre together.”

“We have done our own internal investigation, and everything is running properly.”

However, the UK Borders Agency has refused to accept citizenship applications supported by Lincolns Group documentation while its links to the UK Citizenship Centre are investigated.

And the company in charge of awarding the certificates through Lincolns, Lancaster-based Ascentis, has launched its own investigation.

Chief executive of Ascentis Phil Wilkinson said: “UK Citizenship Centre is not, and never has been, approved or accredited by Ascentis to deliver ESOL Skills for Life or any other Ascentis qualifications “We are aware of some possible irregularities in relation to a number of ESOL Skills for Life certificates and we are in the process of investigating these possible irregularities in liaison with the relevant authorities.

“Ascentis will take all necessary action within its powers as an awarding organisation to maintain the integrity of its ESOL Skills for Life qualifications.”

The investigation is aiming to uncover how many people have been given certificates through the UK CItizenship Centre.

A spokesman for Ofqual, the quango in charge of regulating the exams, said: “We have been working with Ascentis to monitor their investigation into Lincolns to see whether it is linked to the UK Citizenship Centre.”

He added: “Ofqual is aware of concerns about ESOL qualifications.

"Where allegations of malpractice are made against a centre or college, we require the awarding organisations involved to investigate and take action in accordance with the statutory regulations in order to maintain the integrity of the qualification.”

Accrington and Rossendale College, which puts 550 students through course each year, said it was aware of complaints having been lodged about some centres offer the course.

Russell Hodson, the college’s skills for life manager, said: “We have had students coming and saying they paid £250 for a course for about an hour in a centre, where it looks like they have been told what to say. Then it comes out as a certificate which we take 120 hours to deliver.

“It belittles what is a very important thing. People are also worried whether their ceriticates are legitimate.

“Citizenship is a life-changing event, it’s not just a qualification.

Blackburn MP Jack Straw said: “Abuses have to be rigorously investigated and rooted out.”

Stages in citizenship process

WHEN they are submitted to the UK Borders Agency, English for Speakers of Other Languages qualifications are the first stage of the process of becoming a UK citizen.

Citizenship tests were introduced in 2005, following similar models in France and the United States.

As a result, anyone applying for British Citizenship or Indefinite Leave to Remain has to provide evidence of their knowledge of English and of the UK.

Around 80 per cent of applicants take the Home Office “Life in the UK” test.

Other applicants with less strong language skills are able to complete an ESOL Skills for Life qualification, as well as taking part in a programme of citizenship teaching.

A spokeswoman for City and Guilds, one of the bodies in charge of awarding the certificates, said in some quarters the ESOL certificates were seen as a “quick route” to citizenship.

She said: “This goes against the spirit of the UK Border Agency’s regulations for the citizenship part to involve a minimum level of teaching – although strictly speaking not against the letter.”

According to the Government, the concept of citizenship was introduced because becoming a British citizen or deciding to settle permanently in this country should be an important event in someone’s life.

Ministers said that as well as having basic language skills, it was important for potential UK residents to demonstrate a broader knowledge of the country’s culture and its history.