Edinburgh College – Page 35 – The NEN

Events students go bananas to raise charity cash!

Edinburgh College students have raised a whopping £5,000 for charity by organising a series of enterprising events, including a tropical-themed party.

As part of their coursework, the group of events students put their heads together and organised an imaginative programme of events to raise thousands of pounds for the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) and children’s charity When You Wish Upon A Star. As well as raising money, the projects gave them practical experience in managing real-life events.

HNC Events Management student Sonia Gruszczynska was part of the Tropical Escape team that organised the party, transporting guests to a tropical paradise in the city with the help of fruit headpieces, a full reggae and ska band, limbo competitions and Hawaiian hula dancing!

Sonia said: “It was fantastic to use our practical experience as events students to raise money for these worthwhile charities. You learn so much more about the practicalities of organising events when working on large-scale fundraisers such as this.

“The night before our event, the venue we had booked cancelled on us due to technical problems. Despite this massive dilemma, we found another venue within 24 hours and managed to tell our guests in time. The night was a success and, despite the enormous difficulties faced with the venue cancellation, we managed to pull off a great party and raised a lot of money for charity.”

Scottish SPCA animal rescue officer Lee Williams said: “We’re extremely grateful to the students from Edinburgh College’s HND Events Management course, who have decided to donate this money to us.

“As we rely solely on the generosity of the public to help us care for abused, abandoned and neglected animals each year, we’re very appreciative of every donation we receive. This was a fantastic gesture and we’d like to offer our sincere thanks to the students for choosing to donate half of the funds raised to the Scottish SPCA.”

Stephanie Donaghey, the Scotland regional fundraiser for When You Wish Upon A Star, said: “All of the events we attended were really well organised and it was great to be able to communicate our purpose as a charity to such a wide and diverse audience. The significant donation from the college will enable us to grant more special wishes to children in Scotland with life threatening illnesses. We were extremely grateful for the opportunity.”

Edinburgh College events lecturer Caroline Patterson said: “We believe it’s crucial to give our students first-hand experience in organising and managing their own events. The events industry in Scotland is expanding and is incredibly fast paced, so in order to give our students the competitive edge when they graduate we know it’s important to make sure they have this valuable experience under their belts. We’re very proud of them all for raising so much money for charity and we have every faith that they will succeed in the future.”

As well as the tropical-themed party, the HNC Events Management students organised a host of events including a tapas bar crawl, a 90s-themed night, an art exhibition, the Wee Gig Night, a masquerade ball, a prohibition-themed night, a country hoedown, a ceilidh, a scavenger hunt and a late-night screening of the Rocky Horror Show. Over the last five years, the HNC Events Management students have raised more than £16,000 for a variety of different charities.

Niko defies the odds to become Student of the Year

Niko pictured with his wife Eva (left) and cousin Joanna

An Edinburgh College student who came to Scotland for a fresh start and a chance to create a better life has fought against the odds to be named Student of the Year.

Niko Sadlowski – who studies NC Early Education and Childcare and is originally from Poland – received his award alongside 50 other prize winners at the Edinburgh College Further Education Awards ceremony at The Hub in the city centre. Niko was nominated by his lecturers because of his determination to succeed.

Niko, who also works part time at The Action Group charity for people with additional support needs and disabilities, said: “I was delighted and totally overwhelmed to find out I had won Student of the Year at the Further Education Awards.”

Niko added: “I left home as a teenager as I wanted to reduce the financial burden on my parents. I first came to this country at the age of 23 without knowing a word of English and I’ve worked really hard, in many low paying jobs, to create a life for myself and my family here.

“I grew up with deaf parents which meant I learned to communicate with them through sign language. I think this first triggered my interest in supporting people and their families with additional needs because I could understand the kinds of barriers they could face. My son was recently diagnosed with autism, so I also know what kind of support carers and their families require for a better quality of life.”

Edinburgh College childcare and social care lecturer Linda Paechter said: “Niko is an extraordinary student. His knowledge, skills and rich life experiences have been inspiring to his fellow students and I’m so pleased that he has been given the award of Student of the Year as part of the NC Early Education and Childcare course. His unwavering dedication to his studies has been incredible and he truly deserves the award.

“Professionals within childcare are predominantly female, yet the involvement of both male and female carers, educators and practitioners is incredibly important to allow for positive role-models for children. Niko is a wonderful ambassador for the benefits of more men in childcare and I know he has a very successful career ahead of him.”

Around 150 guests attended the Further Education Awards, which were hosted by Denise McAdam, celebrity hairdresser to the stars and presenter of the BBC programme Hair.

Denise, who studied hairdressing at Edinburgh College, has an impressive list of clients including Cindy Crawford, Grace Kelly, Princess Diana, Yasmin le Bon, and Naomi Campbell.

Granton Campus incident explained

There was some alarm flew – and some wild rumours – when a fleet of emergency vehicles attended an incident at Edinburgh College Granton Campus yesterday at around 1pm. At one point eight ambulances, police cars and fire appliances were on site.

However Edinburgh College later confirmed that all was well. A spokseperson explained: ” This was a fainting incident, likely the result of gardening activities below an open window. Emergency services came out as precautionary measure, but all clear.”

Pleased to clear that up …

Youth Employment blueprint launched at Craigroyston

Education Working For All report

The final report by the group tasked with helping Scotland develop a world class system of vocational education and training has been welcomed by the Scottish Government and education leaders.

Cabinet Secretary for Training, Youth and Women’s Employment Angela Constance joined Sir Ian Wood, fellow members of the Commission for Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce and representatives from COSLA, at Craigroyston Community High School to mark the publication yesterday.

Its recommendations include:

Youth unemployment should be reduced by 40 per cent
Enhanced careers education in Primary School
The opportunity to prepare for a Modern Apprenticeship (MA) in the senior phase of school
More support for employers to take on young employees
Closer links between employers and schools and colleges
Measures to improve gender balance in training
Measures to remove barriers for young disabled people, care leavers and black and minority ethnic groups taking up training opportunities.

Sir Ian believes that Scottish businesses have ‘got out of the habit’ of employing young people and said schools must prepare young people better for the workplace and ensure vocational training was offered as well as academic qualifications.

He explained: “It’s all about building a bridge between school and college into business and industry.

“We’re suggesting that we set up 15 to 20 employer-led groups across Scotland. They’ll have a three-year life and will facilitate every secondary school in Scotland having a long-term partnership with local employers, to include work experience.

“We’re suggesting a really worthwhile work experience and also better advice and career information.

“Frankly, business says ‘we would like to employ more young people, but we’re not sure how to, we don’t have the resource’. We’ve tried to do something quite concrete to change that.”

The Scottish Government will respond formally to the report in the coming weeks, with £12 million budget consequentials already set aside for youth employment.

Speaking at Craigroyston, Ms Constance said: “Today’s report sets out recommendations to deliver a 40 per cent reduction in youth unemployment by 2020 and a challenging programme to transform the way we work with young people, employers, schools and colleges to ensure that all our young women and men have the choices and opportunities they need to fulfil their potential.

“Our young people are an enormous asset in helping us to achieve our aspiration to strengthen Scotland’s economy. Our ambitions to see significant improvements in our youth employment numbers go beyond a return to pre-recession levels when, during a period of growth, youth unemployment stood 7.7 percentage points above that of the general population.

“A substantial amount of activity to help young women and men towards employment is already in place, including our very successful Modern Apprenticeship programme, which has seen over 77,000 new opportunities in the last three years. Opportunities for All also guarantees every 16 to 19 year old the offer of a place in education or training.

“The £12 million we announced earlier this year will help accelerate progress, and we will discuss with our partners in local government how best that is deployed.

“I would like to thank Sir Ian, members of the Commission and all those who have contributed to this landmark report which both matches the scale of our ambition and clearly sets out the challenges we face in delivering it.

“There is now much to consider and we will work closely with the public, private and third sectors on how the recommendations could be taken forward. Our partners in local government have a pivotal role to play in tackling youth unemployment and will be very much part of this work going forward.”

Minister for Learning Alasdair Allan added: “Curriculum for Excellence has been designed to equip our young people with the skills they need to succeed both in Scotland and in the global workplace, with local authorities having the freedom to shape education to meet the needs of our pupils, whatever their background.

“In order to truly give every young person the best possible chance of finding a sustainable career we need world class vocational education and training, allowing schools and colleges to join up with employers so that learning can be even more aligned to student needs.

“Today’s report builds on the steps we have already taken and I look forward to considering with our key stakeholders how it could make the difference we seek.”

Mandy Exley, Principal of Edinburgh College, has also warmly welcomed the findings in the Commission for Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce report. She said:

“The Wood Commission report’s emphasis on ensuring young people at college study courses that will lead to employment in the prevailing labour market echoes our commitment to delivering opportunities that are relevant to the economic needs of Edinburgh and Scotland.

“The report’s objectives of establishing of a world class vocational training system that puts employers at the heart of this process is positive and something we have already embraced at Edinburgh College.

“Greater involvement between employers and colleges fits well with our activity at Edinburgh College. One of our aims is to ensure most full time students have a practical work experience embedded in their course. This is already well established in some areas such as catering and hair and beauty through the college’s restaurants and salons as well as our close links with industry in areas such as creative industries, health and social care, engineering and construction. We are seeking to extend this across all the full time courses we offer, where practical and beneficial to our students.

“The South East Scotland Academies programme that we are involved in is an excellent example of education institutions working closely with schools and employers to equip young people with the skills, experience and attitude to make a difference in industry. We will continue to pursue such initiatives to ensure we provide young people with the experience and opportunities that will help them into employment.”

Cllr Douglas Chapman, COSLA Spokesperson for Children and Young People added: “This landmark report today by the Commission for Developing Scotland’s Young Workforce comes at a time of great change for Scotland. Whatever happens in September we have already embarked upon a decade long journey of renewal in education as a result of Curriculum for Excellence. The report today by the Commission in many ways represents the next steps that we need to take if we are to have a first class system of vocational learning in schools alongside the more established route to academic success.

“The report recognises the crucial role that our schools and teachers in local authorities across the length and breadth of the country can play at expanding pupil’s knowledge about the world of work and the job opportunities that are out there.

“The report’s recommendations are ambitious and transformational but in no way unachievable. This is because a key strength is that the recommendations are based, in part, on existing good practice which has been developed by local authorities, colleges and partners”

“We look forward to considering the report in more depth with Government in order to work together to progress the recommendations, as it is essential not only to support but also inspire young people with new opportunities to develop long-term rewarding careers.”

Great Scott! Music wizard visits Edinburgh College

A top music engineer who worked with David Bowie, The Beatles and Pink Floyd to create some of the most iconic albums of all time visited Edinburgh College on Thursday to share his sound desk secrets with students.

Ken Scott, who produced Bowie albums including The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars and engineered The Beatles’ The White Album, visited the college to pass on some of his skills to HND Sound Production students.

Ken gave a talk about his incredible 50-year career and answered questions from students before conducting a stdio workshop to demonstrate how he mixed some of his classic tracks, using the college’s state-of-the-art equipment in the CRE:8 studio.

Ken was one of only five engineers to record The Beatles over their entire career, initially working with them as part of his first engineering job on the Liverpudlian beat wizards’ A Hard Day’s Night album. Since then, he has worked with Pink Floyd, Elton John, Duran Duran, Supertramp, Jeff Beck, Devo, Lou Reed and many more, and is still recording music.

In 2012, he released a memoir, Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust: Off The Record with The Beatles, Elton & So Much More, which was crammed full of stories about his time working with some of the most legendary figures in music.

Jon Buglass, head of the Centre for Creative Industries at Edinburgh College, said: “Ken has been an integral part in creating some of the most groundbreaking and revered music of the last 50 years and it’s a privilege to have him here. Our students were delighted to get the chance to hear his trade secrets and learn from someone who really has seen and done it all.

“Sound engineers are crucial in allowing artists to achieve their vision in the studio and the likes of Bowie, Pink Floyd and all these other massive stars Ken’s worked with couldn’t have expressed themselves so fully if he hadn’t been in charge of the mixing desk.

“It’s a tricky job as you have to juggle the artists’ ambitions for their music, which can be pretty demanding, with the practicalities of actually getting it all to sound coherent. Ken is obviously a master of the technical side as well as the art of working with musicians so he’s a genuinely inspirational figure and the students learned a massive amount from him. It’s no exaggeration to call him a legend in the field.”

Ken said: “I was lucky enough to be a part of what I consider to be the best training ever, thanks to what is now known as Abbey Road Studios. If I can pass along one iota of what I learned then and subsequently throughout my career, I must try to do it. I cannot explain the feeling I get when a student approaches me after one of my talks to thank me for showing the passion and understanding for all they are going through and will continue to go through during their entire career.”

Edinburgh College students set to Glow!

Edinburgh College’s dazzling creative students are about to light up the city with a two-month celebration of their luminous skills!

The Let’s Glow festival will give Edinburgh the chance to enjoy performances and exhibitions from students covering everything from music, theatre and dance to photography, sculpture, illustration and much more.

The programme (see below) shines a beaming light on the inspirational talent of the Edinburgh College students and is a glowing testimony to the outstanding work they have accomplished this year.

Let’s Glow runs from 15 May to 18 July, with events taking place at venues across Edinburgh and some students taking their work down to exhibit in London.

let’s glow programme

Jobs Fair at Granton Campus

Edinburgh College is hosting a jobs fair next Wednesday (30 April), where job seekers will have the opportunity to meet potential employers.

The jobs fair is aimed at anyone looking for a new job, including students about to finish their studies and people looking to change careers. More than 20 organisations will be present at the event, where attendees will be able to find out about career opportunities, full and part-time vacancies, and volunteer and placement opportunities.

Organisations attending include: Skills Development Scotland; Volunteer Centre Edinburgh; Radisson Hotels; Smile Childcare; The Action Group; Blue Arrow; Apex Hotels; Autism Initiatives; the Army; the RAF; Jobcentre Plus; Scottish Ambulance Service; Specialized Security; Remploy; Business Gateway; Independent Living Services; Police Scotland; Brightwork Ltd.

As well as employers, the Support@Work group, which is part of the Scottish Trades Union Congress, will be available to advise on employee rights and explain how to resolve any issues with an employer. It has previously helped students with issues such as not receiving the minimum wage or a proper contract of employment. Edinburgh College’s Jobzone and Student Services staff will also be on hand to provide advice about careers.

The jobs fair is free to attend and is taking place on Wednesday 30 April between 3pm and 6pm at:

Edinburgh College Granton Campus,
350 West Granton Road,
Edinburgh, EH5 1QE

Our treat: college students develop a taste for charity

Scottish Federation of Chefs' Marie-Clare James ... and son! — Scottish Federation of Chefs’ Marie-Clare James … and son!

Edinburgh College serves up a treat and raises £885 for St Columba’s Hospice

More than 500 people tickled their tastebuds at Edinburgh College’s first food and drink festival last week – and they raised £885 for the college’s charity of the year, St Columba’s Hospice.

The treat food festival brought 20 local food and drink producers to the college, who offered a wide range of samples to guests. To name just a few, stallholders included Black & Gold rapeseed oil, Chillilicious chilli chutneys, dips and sauces, The Marshmallow Lady’s homemade flavoured marshmallows as well as a selection of Invararity wines, Thistly Cross ciders and Great Grog Scottish beers.

Edinburgh College’s hospitality students used their skills to create and serve complimentary hot meals, as well as produce breads, cakes and chocolates, which were available to taste and buy. Top chefs including Neil Forbes of Edinburgh’s Café St Honoré (pictured below) gave live cooking demonstrations and a charity fundraising prize draw was also held.

In total, the prize draw and donations from the public, students and staff, helped the festival raise £885 for St Columba’s Hospice, the college’s chosen charity of the year. All the money raised at treat and at other Edinburgh College charity events this year will go towards completing and running the charity’s new hospice, which will allow them to continue to provide the best possible palliative care to their patients and support their family and friends for generations to come. The building is almost complete and St Columba’s are preparing to open the doors of the new building later this spring.

Carol Fyfe, head of tourism and hospitality at Edinburgh College, said: “Treat has been a great shop window to show off our incredibly talented students and staff as well as create links with local Edinburgh businesses, restaurants and cafés. We would like to thank everyone who came along to support this event and for the great total that we raised for St Columba’s Hospice”.

The treat food festival will be taking place again in 2015.

Students and College agree ‘groundbreaking’ funding package

Deal gives students greater influence in decision-making at Edinburgh College

Edinburgh College Students’ Association (ECSA) will break new ground for the further education sector in Scotland with the best funding package of its kind, under a new agreement with the college.

ECSA – which was recently named the College Students’ Association of the Year at the National Union of Students (NUS) Awards 2014 – has signed a partnership agreement with the college that will ensure it has more influence on decision making and strengthen its ability to develop and meet students’ needs.

The college is providing a new funding package for ECSA, which is the biggest for a Scottish college students’ association and will allow the association to grow sustainably. The funding will ensure ECSA’s long-term employment of a permanent manager, a professional full-time position that provides continuity and support for the elected fixed-term sabbatical officers. ECSA is the first college students’ association in Scotland to employ a permanent manager.

ECSA president Kelly Parry said: “This agreement with the college gives us the opportunity to make sure we get the best for our students. We’ve already grown in size and influence over the last two years and I am proud of everyone who has contributed to getting the organisation where it is today. The college has shown great faith in ECSA, even when we’ve held opposing views, and our partnership approach is something that I hope will be adopted across the sector.”

“We’re absolutely delighted to win the NUS award. It’s the result of the hard work of so many people – students, student officers and staff – and it’s proof that college student associations can not only work but, given the right support, thrive.”

Under the new agreement, ECSA will have a stronger voice at all decision-making levels of the college. It already has a prominent role in key college decisions and is, for example, already being consulted formally about the development of the college’s regional outcome agreement. This sets out the targets the college aims to deliver in return for its funding from the Scottish Funding Council. The college has also just appointed a second student member to its Board of Management, increasing students’ influence at the highest decision-making level.

Edinburgh College chair Ian McKay (pictured above) said: “We’re immensely proud of ECSA and this new agreement demonstrates not just our faith in them but our wish to learn from them. They’ve proven to be tireless and effective advocates for our students and we’re supporting them to continue growing and developing their distinctive voice. The Board and college management need to have a robust, healthy relationship with our students’ association where views can be aired frankly on both sides. ECSA’s willingness to confer and consult with us – and strength of character to disagree with us – is both a tribute to their maturity and expertise and the bedrock for a healthy and honest future relationship.

“We’re thrilled that ECSA won the NUS award as we work very closely with the team and know how much they do behind the scenes to benefit our students. This is very much deserved.”

Cabinet secretary for education and lifelong learning Michael Russell MSP said: “I am delighted to welcome Edinburgh College’s steps to give students a powerful voice and enhance their influence over key decisions. A central aim of our college reforms was to put students at the centre, a promise we underpinned with legislation to increase their representation on boards and requiring institutions to have students associations.

“This announcement represents yet another step forward in strengthening the voice of students and I believe the college can only benefit from listening closely to the people who matter most.”

The agreement comes following ECSA’s award as the NUS College Students’ Association of the Year, which it picked up at the 2014 annual NUS Scotland Conference. The NUS Awards judges gave the honour to ECSA for its work over the last year, which includes vice president for women Katy Nixon’s efforts leading to a win at the NUS Scotland Women’s Awards as Inspirational Woman of the Year (a category that president Kelly Parry was also nominated in), and a win at the same awards in the Achievement of the Year for being the first college in the country to appoint a full-time women’s officer.

ECSA has worked closely with the college to help develop education provision, engaged students through a range of events and campaigns, provided opportunities through volunteering placements, and introduced new societies and sports clubs at the college to cater for students’ interests.

Although the college funds ECSA and works closely with it, it does not influence its ability to act as an independent voice for students and respects its right to disagree with the college and help find positive, common ground.

Quality! Edinburgh College cares

Edinburgh College has been awarded a national Buttle UK Quality Mark for its commitment to supporting young people from care backgrounds.

The college was given the honour in recognition of its support for young people in and leaving care. Buttle UK – a charity that supports children and families living in poverty – recognises colleges and universities that make exceptional steps in helping young people to succeed in their studies and reach their true potential.

The award coincided with a college event organised by Edinburgh College Students’ Association (ECSA) to support students from care backgrounds. The Care Leavers’ Event underlined the college’s commitment to supporting care leavers and saw current students from care backgrounds take to the stage to share their stories and break the stigma attached to those who have been in the care system.

Two Edinburgh College students and another young person with a care background spoke in front of a large audience including Colin Beattie MSP, senior managers and guests from other local organisations including universities. Colin Beattie sits on the Education and Culture Committee, which was instrumental in passing the Children and Young People Bill that addresses looking after children in care and care leavers.

The event was held in partnership with the young people’s voluntary organisation Who Cares? Scotland, and saw the college and ECSA both sign the Who Cares? Scotland Pledge. This, along with the Buttle award, strengthens the long-term support Edinburgh College will provide to students with care backgrounds.

The Buttle award recognises the quality of the financial, pastoral and educational support Edinburgh College offers to young people in and leaving care. The college’s holistic approach to support, as part of its Transitions for Young People Leaving Care (TLC) project, ensures that additional help is not just offered by student support teams but is also embraced by all teams at the college. This approach, as well as working closely with Edinburgh City Council and ECSA, raises the aspirations of care leavers and gives them equal opportunity.

Myra McCabe, head of Student Services at Edinburgh College, (pictured above with Kelly Parry) said: “Edinburgh College strives to reach some of the most under-represented and hardest-to-reach groups in our local communities. There is no doubt that the challenges facing young people leaving care are great, which is why we want to offer as much support as possible to give young people the chance to succeed.

“To be recognised by this national charity is a great endorsement of what we have achieved. Together with our recent Times Educational Supplement award in widening participation, we are pleased to be able to offer opportunities to those who need them the most or who would not normally consider college as an option. We are now one of only a handful of colleges in Scotland with the Buttle UK Quality Mark and we are delighted to have received the recognition for the real difference the college makes to our students and the local community.”

Kelly Parry (above), student president of ECSA, said: “I am delighted that the college has been awarded the Buttle UK Quality Mark. Care leavers are one of the most marginalised groups in society and are often overlooked and ignored. Over the last year, Edinburgh College Students’ Association and Edinburgh College have been doing some fantastic work to empower care leavers and give them the same chances and prospects as everyone else.

“The Care Leavers’ Event was unique because it was organised by care leavers for care leavers. By coming together to share stories and successes we send a strong message to other young people in care that they have the potential to achieve in education. This was the first time the students had addressed such a large and influential audience and they did brilliantly, speaking clearly and with passion.

“Signing the Who Cares? Scotland pledge is just the first step for us. We want to keep moving forward and to inspire other colleges and associations as well as wider society to really start delivering for care leavers and start transforming their lives.”

Twenty three-year-old Health and Social Care student Nathan Sullivan (pictured below) was one of the key speakers at the Care Leavers’ Event.

He said: “I’ve been through many different types of foster care – from foster care to respite to living in a residential home – and the reason for this was because my mum had a number of different illnesses. She passed away when I was 14 years old and at this point I was placed into a residential care unit. I was passed from from pillar to post, was confused, upset and angry because I had no stability in my life at that time.

“I then started studying at Edinburgh College, joined the Edinburgh College Students’ Association and realised that I wanted to be a social worker. I’m doing all that I can to achieve this and, with the support from the college and the Students’ Association, I have now set up a peer group for care leavers to help to support many others like me in the future.”

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