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LONDON, April 26 (Reuters) - Global education group Pearson
said strong demand for online learning courses had
helped the group to post a 5% rise in underlying revenue growth
in the first three months of the year.
The British company, repositioning itself as a
consumer-facing group offering training and skills for life
beyond its core schools and colleges remit, said it continued to
expect to deliver revenue and profit growth in 2021.
Trading was boosted by a 25% jump in demand for programmes
in its Global Online Learning division, as people around the
world enrolled for courses at virtual schools.
"It's been a good start to the year for Pearson, delivering
5% sales growth in the quarter," Chief Executive Andy Bird said.
"This is despite a longer period of disruption from COVID-19 in
the quarter compared to last year."
Pearson was hit during the pandemic when restrictions forced
schools to close and exams to be cancelled, sending its annual
profit down by 40%, but boosting demand for online courses.
The group, under new boss Bird, plans to increasingly offer
those services to people looking to retrain after the pandemic
and wants to work with corporations or workers to provide new
skills through their lifetime.
(Reporting by Kate Holton, Editing by Paul Sandle and Sarah
Young)
