All posts by S. Bullock

College Development Network, Colleges, Community Learning and Development, Expressive Arts, Health and Wellbeing, Higher Education, Literacy, Social Studies

Prison Learning – What’s the Point? Labels, Stigma and Hope

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On 11th June the creative writing and drama students from Glenochil Prison Learning Centre hosted a creative conversation as part of College Development Network’s The Emporium of Dangerous Ideas.

This was the culmination of a six week drama/Scottish Studies project in which students explored aspects of labeling and learning in Scotland through drama and writing processes.

The students performed a powerful piece of theatre and then hosted five separate conversations, based on topics of particular relevance to them in an open space format.

The aim of the final creative conversation was to be able to explore a range of crucial questions in a creative and innovative way with a range of participants from within and out-with the prison.

Questions included:

  • Are labels self-fulfilling?
  • When are labels useful, needed or important?
  • Positive learning in prison vs negative/sensationalist labels in the media
  • Is personal growth as important as gaining qualifications in learning?
  • Prisons learning and progression – how to progress on release with an offender label.

Following the event students wrote up their findings and identified areas that could be developed further by themselves, the Learning Centre or other parties.

Who was involved?

The project was delivered by New College Lanarkshire, Glenochil Prison Learning Centre and Scottish Prison Service.

Participants included students: fellow prisoners, prison learning manager, prison psychologist, prison chaplain, offender outcomes manager, lecturers from other prisons, artists, criminal justice researcher and Business Gateway representative.

What core skills were developed?

Students developed questions for the final event through performance, presentation, drama, reflection and writing processes.

The final performance/conversation event required all participants to challenge preconceptions, raise questions and explore potential solutions to problems with open and enquiring minds.

Performers had to be prepared for potential hostility from an audience who may have very different ideas/experiences to their own; they had to develop strategies to facilitate conversations that may include points of view they might disagree with. Likewise, guest participants had to be open to the lived experiences and emotions of the performers as well as to views they may disagree with.

According to participant feedback and learner reflections, the following characteristics were developed:

  • Motivated and ambitious for change for the better, including in their own capabilities
  • Confident in the validity of their own viewpoint
  • Able to apply creative processes to other situations
  • Able to lead and work well with others

What impacts did the project have?

The project has had the following impacts on participants, students and staff:

  • More engaged learners
  • More understanding and support for this kind of work within the prison
  • Expressions of interest in future collaborations across agencies both within and outwith the prison – eg. learners suggested a similar event could be held with trainee social workers
  • Staff learned not to be scared to do new things, to contextualize work appropriately and to ask for support when necessary

An unexpected outcome was that prison staff from other departments engaged positively with the whole project, enhancing processes across the board.

You can contact College Development Network here:

info@collegedevelopmentnetwork.ac.uk

01786  892 000

Creative Scotland, Expressive Arts, Health and Wellbeing

Breath Cycle – the impact of singing on cystic fibrosis

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Scottish Opera and Gartnavel Hospital created Breath Cycle – a music making project with 17 young Cystic Fibrosis (CF) patients which saw work being created virtually on-line. The project ran for almost a whole year (May 2013 – January 2014).

The project set out to measure the impact of singing on the lung function of people with CF.  We wanted to take residence at Gartnavel’s respiratory unit and work with their patients and staff to create vocal exercises and songs; solos, duets and little pieces each written especially for, and sung by, people with fragile voices because of their condition.

We wanted to create beautiful music whilst measuring if singing increased lung function and could be used as an alternative to physiotherapy treatment (typically unpopular with patients).

The project had a huge impact on the 17 participating patients, none of whom had any previous experience of opera or performing. The medical staff at the Respiratory Unit and our team of artists were also strongly affected by the project: it was an entirely new experience for them too.

Scottish Opera’s Composer in Residence Dr Gareth Williams led the project with our partner, Lead Consultant at the Respiratory Unit, Dr Gordon McGregor. One of Scottish Opera’s Emerging Artists Marie Claire Breen devised and delivered all the work in the Unit, with the support of our repetiteur Laura Baxter, and we worked with librettist David Brock who co-conceived and co-created the project with Gareth.

This was the first long term residency Scottish Opera had ever undertaken in a health setting; and moreover, in an acute ward. We were creating work especially for fragile, limited voices – work that was taking us, Scottish Opera, into new areas.

Innovative Thinking

The project was the first of its kind – creating artistic projects with, and for, people with CF.  Previously, projects with people with lung problems such as COPD have been choirs where participants sing along.  In this project, the participants worked with our artists to create their own music. We also used the internet in a new way: to rehearse with the patients (who cannot be in the same room together) and to broadcast their singing.

The project greatly developed the creativity of the participants.  There was a very low interest level in the arts prior to the project and a subsequent low awareness of their own innate creativity or confidence in their creative skills. Breath Cycle also developed the creative practice of all artists and gave them the experience of working in an acute hospital setting.

The participants were encouraged to take a leap of faith into the unknown.  They were encouraged to do this by the medical staff who were well known to them as well as by our artists who visited the Unit regularly.

The vocal exercises were designed to be done regularly: the patients are used to physiotherapy treatment demands but compliance can be very poor.  The one-on-one attention the patients received with the vocal coach meant that their engagement levels remained consistently high.  They were encouraged and nurtured by Scottish Opera’s artists but they were also tested and pushed.  Each of the participants met the high expectations placed upon them.

Impact

Medically, the participants benefitted hugely from the project.  Physiotherapists supporting the project noted that participants had increased breath size, more controlled expiration, occasional expectorating after singing as well as improved physical fitness post singing practice.

Lead consultant at Gartnavel’s respiratory unit, Dr MacGregor and his team were greatly encouraged by the psychosocial benefits of the bringing people with CF together.  Usually segregated to prevent cross infection, this project encouraged peer interaction and support.

A more tangible benefit of the project was the increase in lung function as measured in FEV testing; measuring the amount of air a person can force out in one second.  During this project, the participants enjoyed a 13% increase.  Dr MacGregor cites this as one of the best results of the project and cites the project as a whole as an incredibly positive intervention. These medical results are all evidenced through clinical research.

The artistic impact of the project is evidenced in the interviews and qualitative tools used and displayed on the website. The project’s reach is due to be expanded as co-conceiver Dr Gareth Williams has been appointed as Research Fellow at the University of Edinburgh to further pursue the work.

All the participants said the project created amongst them, a sense of community.  CF patients must be isolated from each other top prevent cross infection.  We created a project structure which meant that the participants worked together on-line.  This proved to be incredibly successful and participants have maintained this new community post project, supporting each other and enjoying music beyond the life span of the project.

www.breathcycle.com

This website hosts all the information about the project as well as songs performed by the participants.

Careers and Pathways, College Development Network, Colleges, Secondary

Inside a Kelpie – the finale to the Emporium of Dangerous Ideas

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The finale of the Emporium of Dangerous Ideas was held on June 19th inside one of the iconic Kelpies. It brought together over 100 people who had hosted and attended preceding events during the Emporium. Participants congregated at Helix Park and took part in a range of dangerous conversations en route to the Kelpies. Conversations were hosted by people who had facilitated events during the Emporium, giving participants an opportunity to catch up on anything they may have missed. Once inside the Kelpie, the Emporium was reviewed and the key themes of changing perspectives, risk and failure were explored.

The key reason for hosting the event inside a Kelpie was to raise awareness of perspectives, and how we may restrict ourselves by only viewing something (The Kelpies or education for example) from a particular standpoint. By exploring a Kelpie from the inside we were challenged to consider the different components through all of our senses, thereby changing our understanding and perspective. We were also able to consider the role and experience of failure by reflecting on events that didn’t go to plan or achieve the outcome that was hoped for.

An event like this has never been held before and it required a great deal of partnership work and creative thinking on behalf of the organisers, College Development Network, and their partner education and arts organizations. It provided a model for others in risk taking, celebrating failure and success and providing opportunities for participants to experience a change in perspective.

Throughout the event participants were actively encouraged to think differently, to reflect on their preconceptions and to imagine the possibilities of a change in their thinking and perspectives.

From feedback there would appear to be a willingness to take more risks and an acceptance that failure is an important part of learning.

“ Took away many thoughts…creativity is not hierarchial, always put ideas into practice regardless of expectation to fail, ….we need leadership which allows us to take proper risks if we never fail, we never know the real way to go push boundaries”. Event participant

One of the key things learned from this event was that participants expect us not just to talk about creativity and innovation in learning and teaching but to take risks, model different approaches and share experiences of failure.

Careers and Pathways, College Development Network, Colleges, CPD, Skills Development Scotland

Is Education Killing Creativity and Enterprise?

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College Development Network event as part of the Emporium of Dangerous Ideas

This key event of the Emporium of Dangerous Ideas, June 2014, highlighted creative approaches to curriculum delivery and enterprising approaches to learning and teaching.  In the morning sessions presenters, including Skills Development Scotland and the RSA, gave a national and international  overview of employability and enterprise while Dundee and Angus College and Team Academy explained how their approaches to curriculum delivery were radically different, and how they helped develop creativity, enterprise and employability skills in learners. In the afternoon, participants had the opportunity to take part in an enterprise activity facilitated by Team Academy teampreneurs illustrating how teaching can be done without a classroom or timetable and can be very much student focused. Participants then had the opportunity to indicate areas they were interested in taking forward realizing the potential for more innovative approaches to schools-college partnerships and delivery of a range of curriculum areas.

This event built on the success of the Creativity and Employability event for strategic partners of Scotland’s Creative Learning Plan, organised by Creative Scotland in May. It aimed to encourage practitioners to consider how they could develop a more creative and enterprising approach to learning and teaching and curriculum design within a wider European and Scottish context.

The event was organised by College Development Network in partnership with SDS, RSA and Team Academy and was attended by practitioners from schools, colleges and universities as well as partner organisations.

The event gave participants the opportunity to consider how they could radically change their curriculum design and delivery. By being actively involved in an enterprising workshop activity staff could realize the potential for teaching in a very different way, that could potentially lead to lessening the restrictions of the timetable.

Participants were encouraged to consider their enterprise and creativity skills and how they could use these more effectively in their work setting. They pitched extremely imaginative ideas for education businesses which would solve some of the current timetabling and resourcing issues impacting on education across all sectors.

As a result of the event, participants have agreed to work on some SQA units over the summer to see if it is possible to offer a curriculum that is more enterprising and creative.

TES article: http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6435209

Community Learning and Development, Creative Scotland, Expressive Arts, Health and Wellbeing

The Big Dance Pledge

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The Big Dance Pledge aims to inspire people to dance and to create prominent public performances that reach new audiences and raise the profile of dance in the public consciousness. This case study explains how 2014 guest choreographer Scottish Ballet’s inclusive approach encouraged creative responses from participants for the first time.

On Friday 16 May, more than 67,000 people in 24 countries danced in schools, town squares, sports centres and playgrounds as part of The Big Dance Pledge.

The Pledge aims to inspire new groups to dance, existing groups to try different styles and for everyone to create prominent public performances that reach new audiences and raise the profile of dance in the public consciousness.

Scottish Ballet’s 2014 Pledge Dance

Each year, a different company or choreographer is invited to create a dance for the Big Dance Pledge that is shared with participants through online teaching films. In the year Glasgow hosts the Commonwealth Games, it was Scottish Ballet’s turn to create a new piece of choreography. Films were released in January; groups learned the piece, some also created responses to it, and then everyone performed it on 16 May 2014.

This was the fifth Big Dance Pledge and 2014 saw the highest levels of Scottish engagement – in particular more public performance events than ever before. The approach taken by Scottish Ballet was inclusive and allowed participants to respond creatively to the choreography for the first time.

Who were the delivery partners?

In Scotland, teachers were trained by Scottish Ballet and YDance, who also delivered workshops for teachers in areas without dance development provision. Other delivery partners included Big Dance, Get Scotland Dancing, Get Scotland Dancing Hubs (x6) and Dance Development Officers. The British Council distributed information internationally.

How were participants encouraged to develop their creativity?

  • The dance contained a wide variety of dance styles requiring participants to be open-minded and try new things outwith their comfort zones.
  • Groups were encouraged to create a choreographic response in their own style and to post a video online.

Through taking part, leaders and dancers became…..

  • Motivated and ambitious for change for the better, including in their own capabilities
  • Confident in the validity of their own viewpoint
  • Able to apply a creative process to other situations
  • Able to lead and work well with others, where appropriate

What impact did the Big Dance Pledge have?

  • Feedback gathered by Get Scotland Dancing shows that many participants were new to dance and felt encouraged to continue with further dance activity.
  • In future years the approach to creating the choreography and film resources will be informed by the successful developments of 2014.
  • Project leaders have learned that more inclusive video resources and a more co-ordinated effort from dance hubs and development officers increases participation.

Further reading

http://www.artsprofessional.co.uk/magazine/274/article/big-numbers

Films

http://www.bigdance.org.uk/big-dance-pledge/

Images:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/xc4up62qaqxg5dc/AAB2-b1ZQy-27H4chqaPCsk3a

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/g8ej0xd2mdob2sj/AADlECnmEiXuRYFCfftKl4oNa

Community Learning and Development, Expressive Arts, Outdoor Learning, Primary, Secondary, Social Studies

Above Scotland

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Above Scotland took an aerial photography exhibition as the starting point for an ambitious creative journey, empowering schools to make a difference to their local environment of such ambition that it could be photographed from the air.

Large scale aerial photographs taken of the areas around participating schools inspired thinking about the participants’ place in the world and served as a stimulus for their very own creative process. This developed the learners’ creativity skills and culminated in a pupil-designed intervention that meant something to them in relation to the landscape and their community.

Created and led by Architecture and Design Scotland’s dedicated Education team, it was the project’s exciting new partnerships between schools, DO Architecture, and RCAHMS that made the ambitious plans possible.

Taking a larger perspective

Learners from Inveraray, Inverness and Harris gained an understanding of their environment in terms of how it affects theirs and others lives. They considered the impact of the built environment and landscape on communities and translated their thoughts and opinions into a creative output, working with others to communicate a message about the place. It was vital to the project that the intervention took place on the site concerned, building a close relationship with place and fostering a deep understanding of the landscape.

Above Scotland used material from an exhibition at The Lighthouse, Glasgow, as a teaching resource to initiate a creative process. The project facilitated learning about the built environment and landscape, alongside the development of creativity skills. The project also gave the exhibition a legacy beyond its time at The Lighthouse and humanised the exhibition, making it more accessible.

“Proud to have been involved in this super exhibition, as Headteacher of the two schools involved on the Harris content. It was a true Curriculum for Excellence experience for the children who took part.” Headteacher

“It was good because we learnt stuff but in a funner way than just sitting in class.” Workshop participant

“The best bit was we got to decide what we wanted to do rather than being told what to do.” Teacher

Changing the landscape

The experience broke with traditional learning by centering upon the creative process with no end results in mind. Participants were trusted to create the material for themselves and encouraged to develop their creativity skills by being curious about their place, posing questions and using their existing knowledge to collect ideas. They specifically looked for patterns and anomalies in the landscape that drew their attention.

Participants had to reflect critically on the effectiveness and impact of their ideas, testing and refining them in practice before being carried out on site.

Due to the nature of the project certain elements were weather dependent and participants had to adapt and problem solve right to the end of the process. All of this developed the participants’ creativity skills in a clear and purposeful way.

The project was recognized as being innovative, and shortlisted as a finalist for Creativity in Schools, at the 2012 Creative Scotland Awards. It also led to one teacher gaining Professional Recognition for Creativity by the General Teaching Council of Scotland.

Careers and Pathways, Creative Scotland, Expressive Arts, Secondary, Technologies

iCreate – a Youth Music Initiative Project

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iCreate engaged 173 young people, aged 12-17 years, from 11 secondary schools in Glasgow and Inverclyde in 300 hours of music technology workshops after school.

The project aimed to improve access to high quality education in the creative use of music technology for young people in Scotland and to increase skills in music production applicable to all creative arts. The fund had three intended outcomes:

  • Young people engage in learning activities that develop music making skills or music-centred skills including sound engineering and record production
  • Young people build their confidence, self-esteem and develop positive behaviours
  • Young people progress onto further learning and/or personal development opportunities (not restricted to music).

Project partners

Software Training Scotland delivered the training in partnership with 11 secondary school music departments and the Opportunities for All Co-ordinator, Inverclyde Council who identified those participants who would benefit most. Guest speakers from the creative industries raised awareness of progression routes and career options in the industry. Several participants were referred on to the Scottish Music Centre’s Music Plus mentoring programme and West College Scotland provided a venue for the More Choices More Chances group from Inverclyde.

Innovative approaches

A number of innovative approaches were used to meet project outcomes effectively:

  • Partnerships with music industry professionals have provided progression routes for participants
  • The project is mobile and provides high quality equipment for use by young people in venues which are accessible and local to them
  • Participants completed a skills profile to reflect on the skills they gained
  • Social media was used to connect young people and staff

Development of creativity skills

This project not only encouraged learners to develop their creativity skills, but also allowed trainees to develop their skills in supporting young people to explore their own creativity.

The project supported development of the following creativity skills in participants:

Constructively inquisitive:

Young people quickly became interested and found they could learn from the work and processes of other individuals/groups within project. They found listening to other groups/schools work intriguing.
Open-minded:

They listened to and learned from the artistic ideas of others.
Able to harness imagination:

They were required to have a vision of how recordings would develop.
Able to identify and solve problems:

Technical problems and artistic challenges were met and solved on a regular basis.

In addition, participants became:

  • Motivated and ambitious for change for the better, including in their own capabilities: young people developed the desire to improve skills in order to continually improve the output of their projects and sought to produce a higher standard.
  • Confident in the validity of their own viewpoint: producing work of a high standard and making a positive contribution built confidence in their own opinions particularly when followed by positive feedback from staff and peers.
  • Able to apply a creative process to other situations: the activity built technical creativity able to be applied across all creative arts and beyond.
  • Able to lead and work well with others, where appropriate: the project was highly collaborative with the lead role changing regularly depending on the current task.

Benefits for young people

72% of participants completed questionnaires at the end of this project, evidencing the following impacts:

  • 173 young people gained new skills in music technology and creativity
  • 4% have already gone on to further education in sound production
  • 89% reported an increase in their confidence and self esteem
  • 95% completed a recording / mixdown
  • 74% completed a skills profile
  • 3 trainees developed skills and experience of delivering creative activity to young people
  • 80% attendance rate
  • 96% said they felt their planning and decision-making skills had improved
  • 96% said their ability and confidence to work in a group improved
  • 100% said they thought the skills would be useful to them in the future
  • 2 tutors benefitted from professional development in Equality and Diversity in the Workplace Training and Special Educational Needs training

In addition, participants were encouraged to reflect on the skills they had developed. 72% have increased awareness of progression routes suitable to their needs.

Benefits for teachers

9 of the 11 teachers completed a report, which evidenced the following impacts:

  • Improved confidence in music performance, music technology and social skills
  • Improved behaviour and focus
  • Increased sound production skills

What we learned

As a result of this project, an informal partnership has developed with the Scottish Music Centre’s Music Plus mentoring programme, with young people being referred on to further develop industry skills and awareness.

The production of a body of work coming from a variety of schools, groups and areas had an inspirational effect on young people, with them able to compare and learn from others and showcase/be proud of their own work.

Other schools/groups that weren’t part of project in 2013 are proactively asking to be part of it.

Software Training Scotland are now working on a potential partnership with Inverclyde Trust for a music recording project for ex-offenders, as a result of this project.

Website: http://www.softwaretrainingscotland.co.uk/icreate_in_action.html

Sound recordings and photos: www.soundcloud/softwaretrainingscotland

Community Learning and Development, Creative Scotland, Expressive Arts

Arts and Justice Conference – the story so far

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In March 2014 Creative Scotland, in partnership with the Scottish Prisons Service, ran a conference in HMP Barlinnie to look at work completed to date as part of the Arts and Criminal Justice Action Plan.

The conference showcased some of the excellent work being carried out by artists, arts organisations and learning providers in the prisons, stimulating discussion around the future of arts and justice in Scotland.

The work showcased at the conference has impacted upon communities affected by crime in Scotland as well as prisoners. The conference itself drew delegates from a broad range of professionals working within the areas of justice, health or the arts.

A challenging choice of venue

Hosting the conference in HMP Barlinnie allowed prisoners who have taken part in the arts programme to contribute to and share in the conference, and groups of prisoners performed theatre and music during the course of the day.

The conference showcased work by the Scottish Prison Service, learning providers, nine community based arts organisations and three arts organisations working in prisons as well as a number of individual artists.

Developing the role of creative learning

Throughout the work of the Arts and Criminal Justice Action Plan participants have been encouraged to think creatively and reflect closely during the process of creating work. The conference helped delegates to consolidate this learning and reflect deeply on the processes involved, raising awareness of the power and potential of the arts to change lives, and the importance of partnership working.

For further details contact Emma Turnbull at Creative Scotland: Emma.Turnbull@creativescotland.com

CPD, Education Scotland

Creative Administrative Support

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Early in 2014, as part of an initiative to make Education Scotland a more creative organization, two Creative Conversations brought together the various administration teams from across Education Scotland to explore and define what creativity meant in their work – increasing confidence and empowering staff to be more creative in their work and lives.

“Forget definitions and waiting for lessons others develop – you have great ideas of what a creative lesson, a creative learning environment, and creative administrative support might look like… begin now and change the world, re-centering it in Scotland. ” – Eric Booth

Creative Conversations

The conversations were led by Education Scotland’s Development Officers for Creativity – Stephen Bullock and Julia Fenby with administration teams travelling from Clydebank, Glasgow, Livingston, Edinburgh, Dundee and Inverness.

Working with administration teams was a fresh, focused approach that tackled a specifically identified need and reinforced the creativity vision – that everyone can be creative, and that it needs to happen more often in more places.

Developing creativity skills

By exploring and defining creativity as a concept, staff were able to overcome the linguistic barrier, increase understanding and then develop confidence in their own creativity skills. Research tells us that often the simple confidence to say “I am a creative person” is enough to instil a step change in behaviour. The conversation focused on using creativity in a work setting but often explored other contexts, encouraging staff to apply creativity skills to other situations – including mention of research into the importance of creativity in long-lasting family relationships.

We learnt that administration staff often work within very formal systems. This has two effects – staff are forced to be extremely creative in making things work within a rigid system, whilst also being frustrated at a lack of freedom at times to be more creative. The importance of involving administration staff at the beginning of change and planning was identified as of importance in empowering staff and avoiding systems that are more obstacle than enabler.

For further detail please contact Stephen Bullock: stephen.bullock@educationscotland.gov.uk or Julia Fenby: Julia.fenby@educationscotland.gov.uk

Careers and Pathways, Colleges, Creative Learning Networks, Education Scotland, Secondary

Supporting Your Ambition – Employability and Creativity

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Supporting Your Ambition was a one-day conference, bringing together a wide range of partners to support and advise young people on careers, further education and training in the land based industries and creative sector. Parallel activities allowed pupil support staff, Head Teachers and other relevant officers to update and inform their practice.

The event, which took place in March 2014, aimed to give young people aged 15-25 years up to date advice and information on career and further education/training choices, and to provide a platform for them to have their say about future services and events designed to support them in making career decisions.

The event was developed by D&G Education Services through the Creative Learning Network (CLN) in partnership with the Employability and Skills Service in response to focus group feedback gathered in last year’s CLN programme.

Delivery partners brought together for the event were: LANTRA, Chamber of Arts, Community Learning and Development, Skills Development Scotland, University of Glasgow and West of Scotland, Dumfries College, Holywood Trust, SQA, Princes Trust & Inspiring Entrepreneurs, Barony College, DWP, Young Scot/Creative Scotland/Creative and Cultural Skills, Modern Apprentices co-ordinator DGC and Local Employers such as the Aston Hotel Dumfries.

Maximising potential through partnership

Through joint planning, the partners were able to create an event which was innovative in scope and scale and which capitalised on existing strategic partnerships. For the Employability Service, land based industries was an area of focus, and the CLN has close links with arts partners through its partnership with the Chamber of Arts.

By sharing their time and resources and creating realistic and joint expectations, whilst putting faith into a new partnership, they were able to create a multi-faceted event and develop new ways of working to support employability.

Developing creativity skills in young people

Participants were encouraged to be open-minded about the offer of the day, and to reflect on their own needs, skills and talents. They were engaged in continuous dialogue with a wide range of professionals in order to understand better what their next steps might be – either further/higher education, training or employment. Participants were also asked to share their ambitions for young people in Dumfries and Galloway and identify barriers affecting their decision making process; they confidently shared their views throughout the day.

The enthusiasm of speakers and facilitators created a real buzz which had a knock on effect for young people and other participants in terms of their own motivation and ambition for change.

“Dumfries and Galloway Council is leading on ensuring that our education and skills provision links directly to the workforce needs of our local employers.  Events such as this which bring together employers, young people and their career supporters help us to make sure that our young people are well prepared to become our region’s workforce for the future.  Similarly young people become aware of the opportunities available here in Dumfries and Galloway and begin to understand what skills and attitudes employers’ value in their employees.”

Lynne Burgess, Employability and Skills Service

“We truly wanted to get to the crux of what young people were thinking about their future careers and to listen and talk to them about some of the difficulties they encounter when making such big decisions. The feedback from the day gives us a clear picture of this and will help us move forward in how we practically support young people in Dumfries and Galloway.”

Lesley Sloan, Curriculum and School Improvement Team


What difference has the event made?

Further joint planning and information sharing is already taking place between Education and Employability Services and CLD who learned that young people really need their support and understanding of the pressures they feel trying to make their way in the world.

A hugely positive outcome of this project has been the strong partnership and close bond created by departments coming together who are all working for the good of the young people.

Although it is too early to say whether the event will have a direct impact on young people taking up further/higher education places, the organising partners hope that the event will attract more modern apprenticeship opportunities to the region through the MA Co-ordinator for Young Scot/Creative Scotland/Creative & Cultural Skills as well as increased numbers of young people taking up local job/training opportunities.

Next steps

Building on the partnership this year, the Employability and Education Services will continue to work together to plan for a similar event for 2015. Based on the feedback from this year, they are working towards a mini Scottish Learning Festival style event with a wider range of employers, partners, training and further education providers to support and advise young people. Together, they will create a bank of ‘good’ employers with a series of short film clips that will support young people in their decision-making. They will also create some promotional material based on people from the region who have ‘made it ’ to inspire young people to be ambitious and think beyond their original expectations. Follow up meetings are being arranged with the DG Modern Apprentice Co-ordinator and the Creative Scotland MA Co-ordindator to examine a] opportunities that have been taken up and b] opportunities to be explored with creative partners.

The Employability Service is also working on developing a regional employability award.