Tag: Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar

Graduation day as 10 Edinburgh youngsters complete ‘mini PhD’ in abacus

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar presents trophies and certificates at education ceremony

Twenty-three of the brightest minds in the UK – ten of them from Edinburgh – were honoured in a ceremony in Glasgow last month (16th September) to celebrate their completion of a leading abacus training programme.

The War Memorial Hall in Bishopbriggs, packed with family and friends of the winners, rung with heartfelt applause when Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar MSP presented each of the children with their awards.

The celebration was organised by computer scientist and educator, Dr Rashmi Mantri, head of The British Youth International College (BYITC), who set up the organisation in 2015 after teaching her own son, Druhv, maths using a counting tool that has been used for millennia – the abacus.

Now BYITC and its Supermaths programme is the leading abacus training provider in the UK and has also developed the world’s first games-based abacus maths application.

“Clearing all levels of Abacus is no walk in the park as it requires a lot of hard work and typically takes students 3 – 4 years of practice to complete this. It really is like a mini PhD for these incredible young people,” said Dr Mantri.

“As well as enabling people to do mental arithmetic in super fast time, the abacus is a highly effective brain development tool for concentration. The touch and feel nature of it makes it very popular for children with dyslexia also for example.

“With Maths Week Scotland fast approaching at the end of the month, we want parents and teachers to know that the abacus is a tried and tested tool to improve mental maths. Our annual maths competition called an Olympiad, is launching on 25th September – it is very popular as it is open to anyone to enter and is free of charge.”

Of the 23 winners at the graduation ceremony, 10 were from Edinburgh (listed below), 7 from Glasgow, 1 from Falkirk and the remainder from across England and Wales.

·       Mishika Pandey, 10, who attends East Craigs Primary School

·       Shariva Lasure, 12, who attends Craigmount High School

·       Aaliyah Deepak Krishnaveni, 11, who attends Tynecastle High School

·       Gauri Shrikande, 12, who attends Craigmount High School

·       Aarush Gosain, 12, who attends Rosehill High School, Wallyford

·       Taran Vighnesh, 9, who attends Kirkliston Primary School

·       Shreya Navratna, 15, who attends Tynecastle High School

·       Rishon Ashley, 14, who attends Tynecastle High School

·       Santiago Prieto, 12, who attends St Augustine’s RC High School

·       Tanush Venkat, 11, Cramond Primary School

The parents of Rishon, 14, from Edinburgh, said: “As parents of the millennials, we stand before a crowd of highly intelligent and capable future leaders – today’s kids.

“Abacus classes run by BYITC are really effective and have made it worth these the kids’ time in preparing, attending and undertaking homework assignments provided by able teachers and coordinators.

“We are humbled by the extent and quality of their input and happy to be part of this fitting recognitions.”

Leader of the Scottish Labour Party and Member of the Scottish Parliament, Anas Sarwar, said: “It is a great privilege to meet, and present completion certificates, to all of these high-achieving young people.

“Highlighting the outstanding achievements of young people across the United Kingdom is vital for their own development and the future of our nation, and I congratulate each and every one of them on their awards.

“I would like to congratulate the work of Dr Rashmi Mantri and the BYITC team in continuing to develop and teach the next generation of STEM superstars.”

To find out more about the awards and how to sign up for the free maths competition, visit the BYITC website.

Labour politicians celebrate Employee Ownership Day

Labour MSPs attend Jerba Campervans’ Employee Ownership Day staff event

THE SCOTTISH Labour leader pitched in to celebrate the 10th Employee Ownership Day (EO Day) at a fun-filled afternoon with staff at a leading campervan converter yesterday.

East Lothian based Jerba Campervans, a 100% employee-owned business since 2018, welcomed Anas Sarwar MSP along with fellow MSP Daniel Johnson, before downing tools and hosting a staff barbeque.

EO Day (Friday 24 June) raises awareness of the benefits of employee ownership and is celebrated by many of the estimated 1000 plus EO businesses operating in the UK, at least 146 of which are Scottish-registered and employ 5,350 people.

Jerba Campervans founder Simon Poole has been a flagbearer for the employee ownership movement and EO Day marks his last full working day before he hands over the reins to new MD Paul Kimberlin, before taking on a part time role as Chair of the company.

Simon said: “EO Day is a great way of raising the profile and highlighting the benefits of the employee-owned business model which naturally is one that we fully support.

“Anas Sarwar has previously expressed an interest in employee-owned businesses so we thought it was a great opportunity to invite him in to see the work we do and he seemed impressed by what he found.

“The day also provided a chance for all the staff to let their hair down and to relax a bit after what has been a very busy period for the business. With a two-year order book in front of us, it’s important to enjoy some downtime when the chance comes up.”

The politicians in attendance were given a tour around Jerba’s workshop, providing them with the opportunity to scope out a number of its in-progress conversions and to discuss the value of employee ownership with the staff. Both were also invited to join the barbeque in the afternoon.

Scottish Labour Leader Anas Sarwar said: “It has been a pleasure visiting Jerba Campervans on Employee Ownership Day 2022.

“The site is a wonderful example of both the benefits of employee ownership and the scale of the employee ownership sector in Scotland.

“The team at Jerba are highly skilled and are creating high quality products in a growing market for Scotland.

“I want to thank the team for showing me around and wish them continued success.”

James de le Vingne, Chief Executive at Employee Ownership Association which organises EO Day said: “With this year being the 10th annual EO Day, it’s great to hear what Jerba Campervans has been up to.

“In raising awareness of the benefits of employee ownership, it helps us plant the seed of EO in the minds of the nation to #GrowEO like never before.”

Jerba Campervans was launched in 2006 and specialises in converting and customising Volkswagen Transporter vans for those passionate about adventure and the outdoors.

Converting Volkswagen T6.1 models, the North Berwick based firm is officially recognised by Volkswagen as a Motorhome Qualified Converter, and is the only firm in Scotland to receive this qualification.

With a dedicated and flexible team, the Jerba Campervans’ family adapts to the needs of their customers, creating a house on wheels with the highest UK level of road safety, assuring customers of a safe, and stylish ride.

To find out more about Jerba Campervans, visit www.jerbacampervans.co.uk