The city council’s new Adult Education programme is now available, offering lots of opportunities to learn something new!
Day, evening and weekend courses start next month and from anthropology or arts and crafts to walks or even writing children’s stories there’s surely something there for you!
For further information on what’s available, call 556 7978, visit your local library or community centre or go to www.edinburgh.gov.uk/adultcourses
Thousands of college places ensure opportunities for young people
College places in a wide range of courses to suit all levels and preferred modes of study are still available right across Scotland, ahead of the new term starting.
While there has been an increase in the number of young Scots being accepted into university, there are also a number of other options for young people to move forward in education or help them take their first steps into the jobs market.
As well as colleges offering hundreds of varied courses with clear career outcomes, the Scottish Government has funded 1,000 places specifically to help students to progress from further to higher education.
Cabinet Secretary for Education Michael Russell said:
“The most recent UCAS figures have been welcome news for Scotland, with two per cent more young Scots accepted to university compared to this time last year, including thousands who have taken up a place through the clearing process. Other young Scots will be pursuing their education and careers through other routes.
“Colleges deliver a wide range of top quality vocational courses and provide pathways to more advanced learning and work. In the coming weeks, thousands of young people will start a full time further education course at one of Scotland’s colleges. In recent years, the Scottish Government has sought to get the very best from our college sector and important reforms will see it become highly efficient with strong links with employers, universities and schools. Additionally, as part of a £10 million package to increase participation in higher education we have funded 1,000 additional places specifically to help college students move to university.
“We can be very proud of Scottish education. Our excellent exams results and record numbers of school leavers staying in positive destinations such as university, college, or employment are real marks of success. And we have guaranteed every 16 to 19 year old the offer of a place in education or training. Students wishing to continue with their education have plenty of options and, for many, a college course will make a huge difference to their lives and the start of their future success.”
Twenty three new classrooms have opened their doors to pupils today as the City of Edinburgh Council tackles the pressing issue of rising school rolls. The Council has spent £8m on creating new classrooms at Towerbank, Corstorphine, Granton, Trinity (pictured above) and Wardie Primary Schools, while Blackhall also received an upgrade.
Additional class spaces have also been created at a further six schools where there has been increased pressure for places – this means up to 750 new pupil places have been created across the city.
Due to rising rolls £2m has been spent on the extensions to the other three primary schools. Trinity Primary School has four new classrooms, Wardie Primary School has three new classrooms and Granton Primary School has two new classrooms.
In addition to the new classrooms, the temporary units at James Gillespie’s and Blackhall have been refurbished, while extra space has been created at James Gillespie’s, Holy Cross, St Mary’s Leith, Craigour Park and Oxgangs to allow for more pupils.
The new accommodation at Granton, Trinity and Wardie Primary Schools has been carried out with partners Hub South East Scotland and Morrison Construction.
Councillor Paul Godzik, Education Convener for the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “Many local authorities across the United Kingdom are struggling to find sustainable solutions to the increase in pupil numbers.
“In Edinburgh, primary school rolls are predicted to rise by 19% by 2020 – bringing our primary school population to over 31,000. That’s why the Capital Coalition has pledged an extra £15m to tackle the issue.
“The foundations we are laying here in Edinburgh demonstrate that the capital is prepared for the complex challenges that lie ahead. We believe our approach allows us the flexibility to plan much better for the future, and we are working with school communities and parent councils as we move forward. Whether or not it is traditional extensions, new built units or the refurbishment of existing space, we are committed to providing the very best educational environment for our pupils.”
Mari Smith, P6 class teacher at Trinity Primary School, said: “The classrooms are a fantastic addition to our school and provide a bright and stimulating learning environment. The children are so excited about starting the new school year in their brand new classrooms.”
Paul McGirk, Chief Executive of Hub South East Scotland, said: “We are delighted to continue our successful partnership with the City of Edinburgh Council and hope that the pupils of Granton, Trinity and Wardie Primary Schools enjoy their new classrooms.
“This is a great example of how Hub South East Scotland can work with our partners to deliver modern, innovative solutions, providing facilities more quickly, more effectively, and with more time and cost certainty than ever before.”
David Wilson, Project Director for Morrison Construction, said: “This has been an exciting and challenging project to be involved with and we would like to acknowledge the patience and understanding shown by the head teachers, the teaching and support staff, the pupils and our neighbours throughout the construction phase.
“We look forward to continuing this spirit of partnership in the future phases of the Rising Rolls project.”
The Towerbank and Corstorphine extensions have been planned for a number of years but the others are as a result of a unique approach taken by the Council to deal with rising school rolls.
When schools are identified as potentially needing extra accommodation for the next school year, the relevant design and planning permissions are taken forward however it is only when the final registration numbers are confirmed in the following January that a decision is taken to go ahead with building the new classrooms.
This means that extensions are only built when the Council is confident the extra classes will be required. Previously this decision would have been taken much earlier before final numbers were known. It also means that additional classes can be added as, and when, they are needed depending on the annual review.
Wardie Primary School now has planning permission for a further two classes and Granton Primary School has planning permission for two further phases which would deliver five more classes if and when required.
The Council has already identified five more primary schools where new extensions may be required for the 2014/15 session to meet the increased demand from catchment pupils and are already starting to plan for the delivery of these for August 2014 should they be needed.
So £8 million for emergency extensions is good news for pupils and parents – but it does make you wonder (again) at the wisdom of closing schools like Royston prematurely …
Two per cent more Scots have a place confirmed on exam results day.
22,770 Scots were accepted to Scottish universities on exam results day this year, an increase of two per cent. Figures released by the University and College Admissions Service (UCAS) show 550 more Scots have a place at a Scottish university for 2013-14 than at the same time last year.
Welcoming the increase, Minister for Youth Employment Angela Constance said: “We’ve already delivered access to university based on the ability to learn, not the ability to pay backed up with increased university places. It is great news that some 22,770 Scots are already accepted to a Scottish University to study for a degree on exam results day.
“These students will also be among the first to benefit from the best package of support in the UK when they take up their places. While the additional places we have provided to widen access will ensure more young people from deprived areas are taking their place on our universities campuses next year.
“Of course, some young people will be disappointed today but help is at hand. We guarantee every 16-19 year old the offer of a place in education or training and I’d encourage anyone who is still considering their next steps to call the SDS helpline on 0808 100 8000 for advice.”
Standard Grade and Higher results at record levels
The nervous wait is over – the 2013 exam results were published today, and Scotland’s school pupils have excelled themselves with great grades.
Minister for Youth Employment Angela Constance has congratulated the 151,000 candidates who sat exams this year, and has also emphasised that help is available for those who hadn’t achieved what they’d hoped for.
Key results show:
Ms Constance said:
“The wait for tens of thousands of Scotland’s pupils and their families is finally over, and I am delighted that so many have come out with strong grades, leaving them well positioned for whatever they choose to do next. The exam pass rates are building on a solid record of achievement, meaning that today is a time for celebration. Record pass rates in a set of rigorously assessed exams confirm Scotland’s strong record in attainment and I wish the class of 2013 the very best of luck in their next steps, be it another year in school, or moving on to college, university, training or employment.
“For those young people out there who haven’t got what they had hoped for, did even better, or who are simply unsure what to do next, there is help available. The Skills Development Scotland exam results helpline on 0808 100 8000 offers dedicated advice on potential next steps. We have guaranteed every 16 to 19 year old the offer of a place in education or training, and I am working hard to ensure as many employers as possible are making young people their business in the ongoing difficult economic climate.
“Standard Grades have served our young people well for their academic and working lives since the 1980s. However, the introduction of National 4 and 5 courses next year are a fundamental part of Curriculum for Excellence, meaning that young Scots will be better prepared than ever to succeed in learning, life and work.”
Edinburgh’s schools shared in the national success story, enjoying a double-digit increase in the number of students scoring passes in their Highers.
City council education leader Councillor Paul Godzik said: “Early indications from the SQA exam results show that 2013 has been another really positive year for all our pupils, and I’m delighted by all their successes. Our pupils should be very proud of themselves, too – all their hard work has certainly paid off.”
Every secondary school in Scotland will be offered financial help to carry out educational visits to European battlefields as part of the Scottish Government’s plans to commemorate the centenary of the Great War, First Minister Alex Salmond announced yesterday.
A £2,000 grant will be made available to every senior school in the country to help them meet the costs of trips to Western Front battlefields and war graves so pupils can learn more about the sacrifice made by the many thousands from Scotland and elsewhere during the First World War.
The £1 million fund, which will be administered by Historic Scotland, will include additional subsidies for groups travelling to the continent from schools not on the Scottish mainland.
The educational grant scheme, which will span the six school years from 2013, comes after the First Minister announced a £1 million fund to allow communities across Scotland to refurbish and maintain their war memorials ahead of the commemorations. A full programme of commemorations in Scotland is expected to be announced by the First Minister shortly.
The First Minister said: “The sacrifice made by the many thousands of Scots and those fighting for Scottish battalions during the First World War must never be forgotten, and it is absolutely crucial that we take the opportunity presented by the centenary to help young people develop a deeper understanding of the causes, consequences and horrors of war and the devastation wrought by the conflict on communities in all corners of the country.
“Many of the soldiers who were sent to War in 1914 were not much older than school age and educational trips to see WWI battlefields provide an unforgettable experience for our young people, giving them a powerful insight into the trench warfare endured by millions on the Western Front.
“Many schools already run educational trips to the European battlefields, but this additional £1 million in funding will ensure that every secondary school in Scotland is offered financial help to take pupils and teachers to Europe during the centenary of the War, broadening the pupils’ knowledge of the conflict and ensuring that a new generation of Scots never forgets the unimaginable price paid by their forbears a century ago.”
Rev Norman Drummond, the chair of the Scottish Commemorations Panel body set up by the Scottish Government to recommend a preferred approach to Scotland’s commemorations of the Great War, welcomed the announcement. He said: “I am delighted that the Scottish Government will be funding Battlefield visits for our secondary schools. It is vital that we create an educational legacy as part of Scotland’s commemorative programme and these visits will enable our pupils and teachers to experience at first-hand the significant service and sacrifice given by so many Scottish servicemen and women throughout World War One.”
Denise Dunlop, President of the Scottish Association of Teachers of History, said: “This is a fantastic initiative that I hope all of Scotland’s secondary schools will welcome. Battlefield visits are a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for school pupils to learn first-hand about war and its horrible consequences. Many of these conflicts are glamourised in today’s society, and these trips offer a chance for young people to learn the truth about what happened to so many thousands of soldiers – many of whom were not much older than school age.”
Students Hit the Right Notes When It Comes To Music Business
Inspiring Edinburgh College students are hosting an event in the capital to showcase the culmination of a year’s worth of work. As part of the HND Music Business course students were required to set up their own independent record labels, scout for new artists and host a single launch party to showcase the results of final year project.
To highlight the artists and some of the most exciting new labels emerging on the east coast, the launch event will be held
this Friday 3 May at The Underground in Teviot Row
Seven independent record labels have been set up by the HND Music Business students, who hand picked artists from across Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Colin McGregor, from Edinburgh, is a student on the course and he will release a single titled ‘September Weekend’ by Glasgow band The Maybes. Colin, who says that the experience has been a real eye opener, will launch the single through his independent record label, Offtrack Records.
He said: “It has been a great experience working towards the single launch and setting up our own record label has been rather surreal. As I have a lot of experience performing, I began this course to get a more rounded knowledge of the music industry and it has been a huge learning curve for me. Edinburgh College has given us real working life experience in that we have had to do everything from setting up our own official record labels and talent scouting for artists to marketing, finance and management.”
During the course, students gain invaluable experience of how an established record label operates, giving them a vast amount of inside knowledge of the music industry.
Singles from each of the artists were recorded at the state-of-the-art CRE:8 Studios at Edinburgh College’s Milton Road campus and they were released simultaneously on Monday (29 April) and are now available for download through iTunes.
The tracks were produced, mixed and mastered by former students from the College’s Sound Production course, and engineered by current Sound Production students facilitating a unique collaborative approach to establishing the labels.
Paul Turnbull, Music Business lecturer at Edinburgh College said: “We constantly strive to provide students with projects that will bring together a variety of disciplines and different strains of knowledge. The students have done an outstanding job in what they have achieved so far and I know the launch night will be a huge success. The experience the students have gained will ensure that students have the relevant knowledge to be successful in the industry.”
Edinburgh College has its own record label, Feast, which was created by three lecturers in late 2010 and is synonymous with the Feast Blog which strives to promote new independent music in Edinburgh and across Scotland. Feast was born through an initiative called Bright Ideas and was set up as a sustainable business from an educational perspective – giving past and present students invaluable experience for future employment opportunities.
Those on the label and at the college have access to its vibrant creative centre which has outstanding facilities for students and musicians, sound engineers and TV Producers and has already been used to host London punk rock band The King Blues amongst others.
The modern fully equipped auditorium allows performance space for gigs, films and other events. Through this affiliation with Feast, the courses at Edinburgh College bring together managers, musicians, bands, engineers and even the filming students in line with education to create original music and videos.
Students at Edinburgh College benefit from study and performance opportunities unrivalled in the sector. Previous students have performed live at the O2 Arena and collaborated in a concert with Jon Lord at the Usher Hall, Edinburgh while recent students have attended master classes in music and sound production with the producer of Oasis.
Students are assisted to find employment through a partnership with ‘Music for Scotland’ or provided with the opportunity to start their own business in a college commercial incubator unit.
Finmeccanica company Selex ES (formerly Ferranti) is joining forces with Heriot Watt University to fund and create the “Selex ES Professorial Chair in Laser Devices and Engineering” at the university’s School of Engineering. Dr Daniel Esser will take up the position in May and will lead a research group to develop innovative new laser technology.
Selex ES, at its site on Crewe Toll, is at the forefront of laser design and production with customers all over the world including in the US. One of the reasons the company produces such advanced laser products is due to its world-class laser research programme and this in turn is boosted by Selex ES’s links with leading academic institutions.
“A close partnership with a first-class university such as Heriot-Watt is vital to access emerging technology for future product development and to further strengthen our position as an innovative technology supplier” said Selex ES’s Chief Technologist for Electro-Optics Professor Robert Lamb. Results from the research on future innovative emerging laser technology will support the company’s laser designation business.
The chair builds on Selex ES’s significant work with academic institutions aimed at inspiring the next generation of engineering talent. This is the second chair sponsored by Selex ES, the first being the Selex ES/Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chair in Signal Processing at Edinburgh University. The company also plays a strong role in initiatives such as the annual Edinburgh International Science Festival and Big Bang Fair and regularly hosts schools for its “Rampaging Chariots” robot building competitions. The schemes are well regarded and successful – many of the company’s laser and signal processing engineers graduated at Heriot-Watt and Edinburgh universities.
Traces of horsemeat have been found in food supplied to six city schools including Craigroyston, Pirniehall, St David’s and Forthview, the city council has confirmed.
Tests carried out on a batch of frozen mince in February found that the meat contained between 1% and 5% horsemeat. The sample was taken from the shared kitchen of Pirniehall and St David’s, and the same batch was also supplied to Forthview, Craigroyston, Oxgangs and Braidburn primary schools.
A letter from Mike Rosendale, Head of Schools and Community Services, has been sent to parents of pupils at each of the six schools, advising them of the test results and reassuring them that there is “no risk to health from consuming horsemeat”.
Councillor Cathy Fullerton (pictured below), the council’s vice convener of education, said: “It’s very important to emphasise that there is no risk whatsoever to people’s health from consuming horsemeat, but obviously we all want to be certain that we know exactly what we are eating. This is why the council chose to seek extra assurance that our external suppliers were not providing any products containing horsemeat by carrying out our own testing.
“Parents can be reassured that we have taken absolutely the correct course of action in immediately making sure there is none of this frozen mince remaining in school kitchens. We have written to all parents in the six schools to let them know about this and will be happy to discuss any further queries they may have.”
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Food at all six of the schools is procured by the PPP contractor, who sourced the frozen mince from catering firm 3663. 3663 recalled all batches of this product on 8 March.
The council has been carrying out tests on meat products supplied to schools, residential homes and other local authority establishments since 14 February under the direction of the Food Standards Agency as part of their UK-wide authenticity survey. Eighty-five meat product samples have been taken from council catering establishments to date and to date all except one have tested negative for the presence of horsemeat. The results have been reported to the Food Standards Agency.
Alison Johnstone, Green MSP for Lothian and food spokesperson for the Scottish Greens, says the confirmation is further proof that we need to rethink our approach to food. She said: “This latest revelation will be a great worry for parents and it proves we need greater investment and increased traceability in our publicly-procured meals. The council’s website claims that it uses local suppliers for meat so it is extremely important we are told what has gone wrong.
“I have real concerns about the way our schools have moved away from real meals cooked in proper kitchens to ready meals heated up in microwaves. It’s also hard to have confidence when the many of our schools are supplied by massive companies who describe themselves as strategic outsourcing providers rather than caterers, and whose main motive is profit. This isn’t exactly suprising as public procurement favours cheaper bids.
”In recent months in parliament I have highlighted the Soil Association’s Food for Life programme which currently ensures one in ten schools in Scotland has confidence about where its food comes from. I again urge ministers to increase their support for the scheme and encourage local authorities to adopt it.”
The Boys’ Brigade receives credit for its top training course
King George VI Youth Leadership Training (KGVI), The Boys’ Brigade’s premier training course, is among a number of Community Learning and Development programmes (CLD) to be credit rated onto the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework. The KGVI course has been rated at level seven, with 13 credit points.
Credit points are used in Scotland to give learning outcomes a currency and allow learners and employers to compare different qualifications. The number of points is based on the amount of time that an average learner should expect to take to achieve the outcome. It is also possible to transfer credit points to other programmes, such as university and college courses.
Alan Hunter, Training and Development Officer at The Boys’ Brigade said: “It is a great boost to receive this level of recognition, for a programme which has so much impact on the 17-22 year olds participating. The credit points represent significant value to those moving into further education.”
In 2012, a record 35 BB members took part in the KGVI course, which began in the 1950s in memory of King George VI. As part of the two year course, the future leaders, all aged between 17 and 21, attend two residential weeks at The Boys’ Brigade HQ at Carronvale, where they are mentored and visited by course staff members. The course includes training in child protection issues, leadership and drill as well as physical training.
Liam Boath ,21, is a current KGVI candidate and a fourth year student at Abertay University and is hoping to move on to Teacher Training. He said: “KGVI being credit rated is excellent because, it will help show to future employers, or universities, that we can learn new skills and apply them to our lives, not only to help ourselves progress, but to help those around us to be the best they can be, just like the KGVI course encourages us to be.”
Mitchell Kinnen, 17, is a sixth year pupil at Calderside Academy and is hoping to start University after the summer. He said: “Part 1 of KGVI helped me overcome a big confidence issue, which I have had since Primary School. It has helped me decide on my further education options and being able to get credit points for my uni application, is totally awesome. KGVI is an amazing experience and I have enjoyed every minute of it.”
Alison Chambers, former member of KGVI staff and Faculty Head at Moffat Academy said: “SCQF is being used more and more to measure achievement in schools, colleges and universities and now KGVI, what an achievement! Having the course on the SCQF scale allows cadets to use this as a focus point in personal statements, CV’s and job interviews. When asked about their rich KGVI experience they will now be able to say that the course is at the same level of Advanced Higher in schools or HNC in colleges. The experience of the KGVI course is very different to the experience of working towards an Advanced Higher or HNC but when it comes to a broad leveller, KGVI is up there at level 7!”
The Boys’ Brigade was founded by by Sir William Alexander Smith in Glasgow on 4 October 1883. From this one Company the BB has grown in to a worldwide movement and has worked with millions of children and young people. In Scotland, around 20,000 young people aged 5 to 18 take part in one of its 450 groups every week.
