Glasgow Kelvin College

Glasgow Based Further Education College - newsite

College Finalist in Prestigious Green Gown Awards

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Glasgow Kelvin College is thrilled to learn that it has been shortlisted as a finalist in the Green Gown Awards 2021, Student Engagement category for its East End Community Garden project.

Green Gown Award - East End GardensWith four campuses across Glasgow’s East and North East communities, Glasgow Kelvin is committed to its ‘Green’ strategy, with a focus on delivering skills around renewable energies, carbon reduction and sustainability.

The Community Garden project has been developed over the past three years, transforming a piece of wasteground in Glasgow’s East End to create a peaceful and eco-friendly greenspace with environmental sustainability and learning at the core of its vision.

Students from the College, with staff supervision, have worked to design and build an inspirational and absorbing space which hosts a wide range of features supporting accessibility, bio-diversity and contributing to carbon reduction.  These include wheelchair accessible amenities, a kitchen garden, fruit trees and many more environmental elements to attract urban wildlife and add pleasure to the garden experience.

Mental wellbeing and health for College students and the local community is of real significance, especially throughout the pandemic, and it is hoped that the garden goes some way to creating a haven and escape from some of the societal pressures everyone has been experiencing.

The College has worked with a range of funding partners and contractors to help it create the garden and support its UN Sustainable Goals commitment.

Becoming a finalist in the prestigious Green Gown Awards has been the icing on the cake.

This year’s UK and Ireland Green Gown Awards’ Finalists, representing over 862,219 students and 156,000 staff, are leading the way with their commitment to the global sustainability agenda and proving the value that universities and colleges bring to the economy and society even in the most challenging times.  The Finalists emphasise an institution’s role in enabling and empowering young people to tackle pressing global issues to ensure they have a better tomorrow. Finalist projects show the power post-16 education possesses and the seriousness with which it takes its responsibility in creating a better world and a new generation of leaders.

Reflecting on this year’s submissions, Iain Patton, CEO, EAUC says

"It is clear from the number and quality of applications, that sustainability and the now irreversible sustainability movement is not only resilient but profoundly energised, opportunistic and dynamic! UK and Irish universities and colleges have turned Covid 19 challenges into opportunities and ensured that every change is a change for sustainability.”

Glasgow Kelvin College Principal, Derek Smeall, said:

Green Gown 2021 FINALIST LOGO“We are absolutely delighted to learn that our community garden project has been shortlisted for these prestigious national awards.  This is great recognition of the immense hard work which students and staff have put into creating this space and spurs on our commitment to sustainability and carbon reduction across the College.  Being shortlisted alongside so many excellent initiatives from our educational colleagues is a wonderful accolade and I am immensely proud of the effort and dedication of all those involved at Glasgow Kelvin to bring us this far.”

The ceremony will take place later this year and fingers are crossed!

Skills and Sustainability Through YGHP District Heating System

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Glasgow Kelvin College is helping to blaze a trail in delivering skills in renewable energy technologies.

Ryan working on equipmentGlasgow Kelvin’s Heating, Venting & Air Conditioning students will certainly have the edge in sustainable energy and carbon reduction when it comes to industry skills, all down to the generosity of employer and supplier partners.

Yates Group Heating Products (YGHP) have supplied a District Indirect Heat Interface Unit to the College’s workshops to ensure students and apprentices - the tradespeople of the future - are properly trained in this new form of heating technology which could transform the way you heat your home.

District or Community heating networks provide a central heat-generating point in a neighbourhood which can be linked to and controlled by the homes and businesses surrounding it, reducing the area’s carbon footprint and saving energy.  The networks are not specific to the technology used to generate the heat and can connect to a range of sources of heat supply including biomass, energy from waste, ground source heat pumps, geothermal heat or large power stations.  This means that they can adapt to whichever heat supply technology is most appropriate or economic at the time.

Glasgow Kelvin is creating a state-of-the-art Renewable Energies Hub at its Springburn campus which will, in the drive towards carbon reduction, provide a training centre of excellence to equip new and upskilling employees with the skills required in a sustainable future.  Contributions from energy-conscious businesses like YGHP will form the core of the skills offer.

Responding to a general enquiry from lecturing staff, YGHP flew into action and supplied the District unit to the College’s Springburn Campus workshops, providing installation and top-class training for staff and students alike.

The College is delighted to have this piece of equipment as it means students and apprentices can train on the most up-to-the-minute technologies which underpin sustainable energies and contribute to carbon footprint reduction.  It also ensures that staff update their skillsbase and keep their expertise current.

Not only do the students benefit from their training on the high-spec new system but, in their future careers, the product will very likely be their ‘go to’ preference when considering or recommending energy-efficient District or Community Heating Networks.

With over 30 years’ experience in the heating and plumbing sector, YGHP design and deliver high-calibre products to the heating and hot water market.

Robin Ashton, Vice Principal for Curriculum at Glasgow Kelvin, said:

“The College is thrilled that YGHP has had the foresight to make this investment in the skilling of Scotland’s people.  This ensures students have ‘the edge’ when it comes to understanding and working towards a zero-carbon society, especially when they’re performing in a competitive jobs market.  This generous donation from YGHP is another step towards the College embedding the sustainability agenda within all of its operations and its plans to create a Centre of Excellence for learning and teaching in this area.”

Aaron Lee Yates, Director and Shareholder at YGHP said:

“We at YGHP are a huge advocate for building a better tomorrow.  We believe that starts with training the new and existing generation of installers, designers and service men and women. ”

Online Art Exhibition from Glasgow Kelvin’s Remarkable Students!

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Online Art Exhibition - selection of pictures

Glasgow Kelvin College’s courageous Art & Design students have achieved some amazing work throughout this challenging year and, with the help of their lecturers, have been able to create an exciting gallery of the impressive portfolios from NQ Art, Design & Digital Media and HND Art & Design students.

Why not take some time out to view these at:

https://youtu.be/lfs0M1w7TAY  -  NQ Art Design & Digital Media level 5

https://youtu.be/isxKWIsqiR4  -  NQ Art Design & Digital Media level 6

https://youtu.be/FkHrY6h8ZBI  -  HND Art & Design: Digital Art & Illustration

and double-click for that spectacular full-screen effect.

A massive well done to the students and, of course, their lecturers, for making that remarkable effort to put this together!

College Applauds Community Achievers in Family Learning at St Roch’s Primary

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ESOL achievers with their awards

An innovative group of Glasgow Kelvin College’s Level 4 ESOL students have been busy gaining their Community Achievement Awards and helping to spotlight the importance of partnership working during lockdown!

Glasgow Life has supported the Glasgow Kelvin College students, all of whom are parents of children at St Roch’s Primary, to work with the school to provide storytelling sessions to the younger primary pupils.  It not only relaxes the children and gives them a bit of light relief, but is helping the students to improve their English language skills.

A mixture of Farsi, Arabic, French and Tamil-speaking residents, many of the students already have gained skills and qualifications in their country of origin but discovered that their qualifications aren’t recognised in the UK.

Taking on the storytelling project, they hoped to give something back to their new community and the initiative presented itself as a perfect vehicle for them to practice a new language and undertake their Community Achievement Awards.

ESOL achievers reading with childrenOver several weeks, the students worked together to identify and rehearse the chosen reading material and then delivered a delightful in-person storytelling session to the eager St Roch’s pupils.  They also recorded their stories so that these can be heard again and again.

Two of the learners are now volunteering for the Healthy Living Initiative by cooking and providing their products in the Royston Community Pantry.  Another is going on to study Health & Social Care at Glasgow Kelvin College and a further two have been recording their storytelling in their first language to feature on Youtube as part of the city-wide ‘Families in Partnership’ Project.

And two more have had babies during lockdown – which still hasn’t stopped their appetite for learning!

The hard work of Margaret Ramsey, the Glasgow Life Family Support and Engagement Worker, has been central to the activity and success of the initiative.  The project itself has been a very welcome confidence-boost for the students in building their resilience and feedback from the pupils and the school has been extremely positive.

The group were delighted to receive their Award certificates at a ceremony at Roystonhill Community Hub and are now looking forward to taking their studies to the next level.

The Community Achievement Award is a Scottish Credit & Qualification Framework accredited course which is designed to support, recognise and accredit learning and achievement in a community setting. The award is based around a 3 stage process:

  1. Planning – choosing an activity and setting milestones
  2. Implementing – carrying out the activity as outlined in the planning stage
  3. Evaluating – reviewing success, identifying learning and looking at the benefits to the self and others

The Awards are available up to SCQF level 7 (equivalent to an HNC).

As recognised qualifications, the award supports students to plan their next move - progressing into jobs or onto a college course.  In addition, the students all agree that the project has helped them to integrate more quickly into their community and make friends through the school.  In the words of one participant:

“This course has helped me be more involved in the community.  Now I feel more in control.”

Laura Kennedy, Family Learning Officer, Glasgow Life, said:

“Our Family Support and Engagement Worker Margaret has a very strong relationship with the parents at Saint Roch’s Primary.  She really went the extra mile in supporting the group to keep going during this challenging time. Meeting parents individually for walks or just outside their flats and helping with important issues such as accessing digital devices and free school meal payments meant that parents were then more able to think about furthering their own skills, and Margaret was very creative in considering new ways to deliver this learning during the pandemic.”

Tracy Leavy, Director of Curriculum for Health, Care and Community Learning & Development said;

“We’re delighted that this group of students have gained their Community Achievement Awards while not only studying another course at Glasgow Kelvin, but also supporting local children in their learning – storytelling is a marvellous way to bring cultures together.

We’re indebted to our school partner, St Roch’s Primary, and Glasgow Life for helping to drive this innovative project.  In particular we are grateful to Margaret for helping the students to build capacity into their own community.  This is precisely what the Community Achievement Awards are about.  Our heartiest congratulations go to them all for their hard work.”

This success story for ESOL students is yet another example of Glasgow Kelvin College’s commitment to its communities as a community anchor, and the many strong partnerships which help local residents to flourish.

Partnering to Support Sustainability

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Men working on hard landscaping

Waste and Resource Management Contractor, Enva, contributes to Glasgow Kelvin College’s Community Garden Project with a donation of compost from recycled green and food waste.

Glasgow’s East End is continuing to benefit from Glasgow Kelvin College’s ‘recycle reuse reduce’ ethos and its long partnership with waste and resource management contractor, Enva.

As part of its strong commitment to sustainability, Glasgow Kelvin College works closely with Enva to ensure as much of its waste as possible is collected and composted to go back into the soil and fertilise new growth.  This spring, Enva returned that commitment in the form of over three tonnes of nutrient rich, peat-free compost for the College’s East End Community Garden Project.

The College Estates Team helped to unload the high grade compost and were soon shoring it into the recycled tyre wall, ready for planting flowers to attract bees and other insects which will, in turn, bring more wildlife to the garden.

Stephen Cameron, Sales Director, Enva said;

“The close working relationship we have developed with Glasgow Kelvin College is founded on a mutual commitment to sustainable waste management and the environment.  We were delighted to be able to supply some of our high-grade compost, which is certified to British Standard PAS100, for the College’s East End Community Garden Project and hope that it will provide a haven for nature and students alike.”

Dump truck at garden siteThe Community Garden project has seen, over the past three years, the transformation of a piece of wasteground at the junction of Todd Street and Carntyne Road to create a peaceful and bio-diverse greenspace.

With environmental sustainability and learning at the core of the project’s vision, staff and students from the College have worked to design and build an inspirational and absorbing space which hosts: a poly-tunnel where students can grow vegetables and herbs for the training kitchen and local community ; a garden tool shed and bird observatory; wheelchair accessible gym equipment; benches and dedicated seating areas; frog life ponds; recycled wooden planters; brick planters made by the students; a recycled tyre wall; vegetable and flower growing areas; biodiverse plants to encourage insect life; fruit trees; recycling waste bins;  and a wheelchair compliant route around the garden along with many more environmental features to attract urban wildlife and add pleasure to the garden experience.

Mental wellbeing and health for College students and the local community is of real significance, especially in the current pandemic, and it is hoped that the garden goes some way to creating a haven and escape from some of the societal pressures everyone is experiencing.

Glasgow Kelvin College works with a range of contractor organisations which help it to hold to its UN Sustainable Development Goals commitment and is thrilled that Enva has supported its vision in this way.

Head of Facilities and Environmental Sustainability, Iain Gordon, said;

“Enva is one of our valued partners and we are delighted that they have been willing to assist us in our efforts.  Achieving long-term sustainability for our communities and our organisation is critical to global carbon reduction and our Community Garden has certainly benefited from their generosity.  We are extremely grateful for this donation of compost and hope that, with continued work from our students and staff, the garden goes from strength to strength.”