Climate Week Scotland 2018 took place last week, and it was a great opportunity to host events at the College aimed at raising awareness on issues regarding Sustainability.

On Tuesday 2nd October, a screening of the film ‘Just Eat It’ was hosted at West End Campus. The film is a documentary focusing on the global issue of food waste, and how supermarket food cosmetics and marketing standards consequently result in millions of tonnes of food being wasted every year.

Big thanks to those who attended! It was good to meet up with Art and Design students based at West End campus, and to hear their views and attitudes towards the issue of food waste – and to find out about their good food purchasing habits!

Wednesday 3rd October was one of our dedicated Active Travel Days, which took place at the Glasgow Kelvin Velocity Cycle Hub (Springburn campus). The day included a Bike Breakfast, in collaboration with the Student Association: this early event has been a great and enjoyable opportunity for students and staff, sharing a common interest in cycling, to meet up and enjoy a free breakfast.

Thank you again to those who were able to attend! More Bike Breakfast events should happen during the next few months… Stay tuned!

We also had a Dr Bike session running in collaboration with Bike for Good.

Thank you to Ricardo and Claudio from Bike for Good, for kindly helping our students and staff to fix and repair their bikes for free at lunch time!

Finally, on Friday 5th October, you may have noticed the funny bikes invading Springburn campus… Thanks to Norman from Free Wheel North for sharing these bikes with us - students and staff had a great opportunity to give these a try, which was thoroughly enjoyed.

Undoubtedly, everybody had good fun; and we are keen to say that this event has certainly demonstrated that cycling is a fun activity and should be accessible for everybody.

On top of that, Rab, a Go-Ride Cycling coach, came along and gave everyone a chance to try out a mountain bike and attempt the trail set up on the grassy area at the front of the campus. Many students seemed keen to give it a go, enjoying the exhilarating ride! Rab was able to discuss and provide them with valuable tips regarding cycling.

Did you miss it all? Don’t worry, Sandra, our Campus Cycling Officer is preparing more events to come!

If you have a question, a suggestion or have feedback to provide, please drop her a line at slavergne@glasgowkelvin.ac.uk

Glasgow Kelvin College is delighted that it has managed to lever-in significant match-funding towards its East End Community Garden project which is being developed on the vacant land behind the East End Campus building.

Almost £14k of funding has been received from The Levenseat Trust and EBScotland to help create the amenity site which will be open to students, staff and the local community.

Not only will everyone be able to benefit from being ‘out in the fresh air’ but the garden will feature raised planters, ground level plots, a toolshed, a polytunnel for propagation and will be fully accessible.

Trees will be planted and the College intends to provide workshops and skills-based classes to community residents and local housing association tenants to help them develop skills and make the most of their communal areas.  This will also support a healthy eating and nutrition programme.

In addition, produce from the garden will be put to good use by the Hospitality & Catering department.

It is anticipated that work will be finished by March 2019 with an official opening being planned for late spring/early summer next year.

As part of World Mental Health Day 2018, the College championed its innovative #selfcare initiative by promoting it at all four campuses.  Staff were fully kitted out in the appropriate T-shirts and encouraged students and staff to sign up to the Big White Wall to support their mental health and wellbeing.   People were encouraged to add their own 'brick' to the wall, expressing how they felt at that moment or to give words of encouragement to others who might need it.

Although this was a lighthearted and highly successful take on the issue of keeping good mental health, it also ensures that everyone engages with the serious side of mental health and provides people with necessary information and support.  Eradicating the stigma surrounding mental ill health is a key objective of the initiative and the message of 'It's okay to not be okay' was out there.

Everyone is reminded to:

• Be Active
• Take Notice
• Give
• Keep Learning
• Connect

A group of Glasgow Kelvin College students had a real treat this week when the Dog Handling section from Police Scotland dropped in to introduce their brave recruits.

The officer brought three dogs, Brodie, Billy and Boss, and she spoke about the service which Police Scotland dogs provide for the community and what a day in the life of a police handler looks like.

The students from the Personal Achievement Award level 2 found the visit highly relevant to their coursework and certainly found the visit to be a very positive experience for everyone involved.

Some of our female engineers attended the first meeting of Glasgow Kelvin Ada Engineers of 2018 which took place on Wednesday the 10th of October.

What was the purpose of the first meeting of the year

• To enable all female STEM students at GKC to meet up with each other, network, and realise that there are other engineers at different stages on their journey in to engineering.
• To celebrate the life and work of Ada Lovelace.
• To discuss career paths for females in STEM.

All full time and part time students were very welcome.

Glasgow Kelvin College Ada Engineers listened to a presentation on the life and work of Ada Lovelace and the contemporary relevance of renowned scientists and engineers such as this year’s Nobel Prize winner Donna Strickland and Jocelyn Bell Burnell who discovered pulsars. Then, over lunch, they had a lively discussion on the role and career paths of women in STEM chaired by Marcelle McIlroy.

The Restart a Heart Training day was organised and run by Springburn HNC Care & Administrative Practice students.  They decided to sign up and make a pledge with Save a Life Scotland to train as many people as possible in CPR in 1 day. Unfortunately, they could not do it on the official Restart a Heart Day due to the October holiday so did it a little early.

In the end the students managed to train and assess 138 students in 1 day from the following courses:

• Motor Vehicle Body Refinishing (Year 2)
• EVIP: Automotive Skills
• Motor Vehicle Mechanics (Year 2)
• SVQ3 Heating and Ventilation: Service and Maintenance (3B)
• NC Childcare (Level 6)
• NC Care (Level 5)
• ESOL Level 5
• Musical Theatre
• Mechanical Engineering HND

All the students loved it and enjoyed the chance to meet fellow students and staff from other courses and to teach them a valuable life skill.

They got excellent feedback from the attendees.

Would you like to appear in a nation-wide TV advert?

There is an exciting opportunity for a selection of 4 to 6 college students to take part in an upcoming TV for broadcast on STV from the beginning of November. The purpose of the advert is to highlight the benefits of a college education.

DEADLINE for entry:  5.00 pm Monday 15 October

Filming Date:  Friday 19th October from 8.00 am – 5.00 pm

If you would like to take part in the advert, here’s what you need to do:

Audition Requirements

Email wendy.grindle@cdn.ac.uk AND hramsay@glasgowkelvin.ac.uk to confirm that you are interested in taking part and attach a copy of a video from your phone.

The video should include the following three things:

• Say your name
• Say your course
• And give us a smile

Proud Motion will then select a mix of students to reflect the demographics required for the ad.

Please send your videos to wendy.grindle@cdn.ac.uk AND hramsay@glasgowkelvin.ac.uk no later than 5.00 pm Monday 15th October.

Filming Date: You must be free on Friday 19th October from 8am – 5pm

Location:  Location will be central Scotland and will be confirmed soon

Travel Expenses: will be paid

Requirements For The Filming

We will be looking to get shots of students in various locations including city, leisure, social and rural.  We will try to ensure the location picked can achieve all of these things without the need to move around too much.

Actions

Actions required from the students taking part will be national action shots, siting, walking, looking at something and each student will be required to do a smile to camera.

Costume

Each student should bring two costume changes of casual/stylish clothes (similar to what would typically be worn to college).  Please ensure these are clean and ironed and please also ensue clothing items have no visible brands or logos.

Release Form

Prior to filming, you will be asked to sign a Release Form giving your consent to your image being used in a TV/Social Media and Print campaign for a period of up to 24 months.

Don’t be shy! This is a fantastic opportunity to get involved in real TV production work experience – and to star in a TV advert! The advert will be aired on STV through November and will be used by colleges across Scotland on their websites, in-college TV screens and social media.

We are looking for a wide range of students on any course, of any age and background.

UCAS Drop-In Sessions

The College will hold UCAS drop in sessions to help learners with their application. These take place on a weekly basis.

Students can attend any campus session between 12.30 and 1.00 pm regardless if it is their regular place of study or not.

• EASTERHOUSE CAMPUS: Thursdays (SO3)
• SPRINGBURN CAMPUS – Wednesdays and Fridays (127a)
• EAST END CAMPUS – Mondays (MF26)
• WEST END CAMPUS – Fridays (Room 1/3)

UCAS Talks

The College will be holding a number of UCAS talks to outline the application process and allow our learners to hear from different universities.

The following dates have been arranged:

• Strathclyde University, Wednesday 10th October - Easterhouse Lecture Theatre 12.15-1pm
• Glasgow Caledonian University, Thursday 11th October- East End MF12 12.15-1pm
• Glasgow Caledonian University, Wednesday 24th October - Springburn Lecture Theatre 12.15-1pm

A set of 5 group sessions under the umbrella of positive mental wellbeing will be running in partnership with Clyde College for our Learners on the following dates:

• Dealing with Anxiety – 22nd Oct 2018,
• Coping with Low Moods – 29th Oct 2018
• Managing Stress – 5th Nov 2018
• Coping with Self-Injurious Behaviour – 12th Nov 2018
• Mental Wellbeing – 19th Nov 2018

Further information on the above sessions can be obtained from Jacqueline Gildea at jgildea@glasgowkelvin.ac.uk.