Edinburgh's Telford College

Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) in West Granton, Edinburgh

Edinburgh's Telford College was a further education college in Edinburgh, Scotland. In October 2012 the college merged with Jewel & Esk College and Stevenson College to form a new entity called Edinburgh College. The Telford College campus, in the Granton area of north Edinburgh, now forms one of the four main sites of the new college and is called Edinburgh College (Granton Campus).

Edinburgh's Telford College was named after Thomas Telford, the great Scottish civil engineer, and was established in 1968 at Crewe Toll. On 15 September 2006, Telford College's purpose-built main campus in Granton was formally opened by the First Minister of Scotland, the Rt. Hon. Jack McConnell. The "Construction Centre of Excellence" at the Forthside Building on West Shore Road opened on 29 October 2007. The College also hosted the Jisc Regional Support Centre Scotland North & East.[1]

Principals

Past Principals of the college include:

Courses

Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) offers 1,000 Courses including areas from Business and I.T to Sports and Fitness and Performing Arts. Please see external links for more information. Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) provides learning through technology such as "Virtual learning" utilising the internet access for assignments. The courses are diverse in all kinds of fields with many routes of progression such as Introductory courses to HN courses offering students higher levels of understanding and practical work that will enable them to find employment after graduation or continue further by entering into degree courses at year 2 or 3 at partnered Universities. As of Spring 2009, Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) was to be the only College in Scotland offering Dental Technology Training which seems to be an increasing industry within the Healthcare sector. Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) offers course flexibility in which students can learn at their own pace from Full-time, Part-time, Open Learning, Work Based, Block Release, Day Release, Evenings and Weekends and On-Line (Virtual Learning). Most courses offer variations between two or three study choice options.

Course Areas

Engineering

Jamie Bell, SVQ Level 2 (Technical Pathways) Performing Engineering Operations at Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) won the award of Best in Engineering and was congratulated with a glass trophy and a £250 cash prize.

Food and Hospitality

A new partnership between Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) and entrepreneur and celebrity chef Tommy Miah will offer International students a unique opportunity to learn the tricks of the hospitality trade in both Bangladesh and Edinburgh. Tommy Miah, owner of the award-winning Raj Restaurant and founder and promoter of the International Indian Chef of the Year competition which is held annually at Edinburgh College (Granton Campus), will promote the partnership in Bangladesh and help recruit applicants.

Performing arts

River City star Jenny Ryan (a former student of Edinburgh College (Granton Campus)) conducted an acting workshop for the students in sharing their experiences of the acting industry with the students and gave them advice on acting for camera, auditioning and contacting casting directors. Karen Gillan, a former acting student at the college, is best known for her portrayal of Amy Pond in the BBC science fiction series Doctor Who.[3] Keith Jack, runner-up in BBC talent show Any Dream Will Do, was a student in the Performing Arts Department at Edinburgh College (Granton Campus).

WorldSkills Competition

Four students from Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) are preparing to showcase their skills on the national stage after achieving success at the Scottish heats of the WorldSkills UK competitions.[4]

Facilities and Services

There are many facilities and services on offer to the students, staff and general community to take advantage of;

The Apprentice

A restaurant operated by Edinburgh College students and staff. It provides a platform for them to showcase their professional skills. The restaurant is open to all students and staff as well as the public.

STUDIO

A place where students are able to practice their skills in hairdressing. As part of promoting and encouraging the students at Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) to be inventive, an event was made to show just how talented and creative the students can be. The event was a take on the X-Factor television series concept except that it was for Hair design and innovation. HAIR FACTOR VIDEO. In the Video, it documents the contestant's preparation and the winning result as well as some guest interviews.

SPA

Edinburgh College (Granton Campus) also has its own SPA centre offering skilled practitioners in Beauty services for pedicures, facials, airbrush tanning, waxing to body massage, aromatherapy and leading on to more advanced treatments such as facial lifting, micro-dermabrasion and presso-therapy. Additional facilities include a jacuzzi and a sauna.

Waterfront Nursery

Waterfront nursery offers childcare services for Edinburgh College (Granton Campus students, staff and the public.

JobZone Plus

It is an on-campus facility where students can gain free expert employment advice, access to job opportunities, confidential one-to-one support and help in finding jobs for people who want to work. Jobzone Plus also help with writing CV's, filling in application forms and prepares the candidate for interviews and talks to the employer on their behalf. They also provide Student Services in areas such as Finance, Counselling, Child care, Accommodation, Careers Guidance and Learning Support.[5]

Local economy

Construction of a £70 million project north of West Granton Road in the Edinburgh Waterfront development brought the existing four campuses on to a single site in North Edinburgh. The new development was designed by HOK Architects and Buro Happold.

Other information

The HUB

the Hub in Edinburgh College (Granton Campus)

It is the main social area within the college campus, mainly for the students as well as staff. It can seat up to 300 people and is used for events that the college promotes or for event hire by external companies.

International Learning
Since 1990's (estimate) there has been International students commencing their enrolment at the college. Joint partnerships have been formed with International educational institutes in India and China to develop a learning bridge for students overseas to gain International credited and recognised qualifications. In addition, Telford has also won an award for ‘Outstanding International Achievement in Scotland’s Colleges’ from the Scottish Council for Development and Industry Award. In relation to the commandment from the Association of College’s Beacon Awards for ‘International Student Support’.

Merging process
On 21 November after a Board meeting, Edinburgh’s Telford College announced their decision to start merger talks with the other two Edinburgh colleges: Jewel and Esk Valley College and Stevenson College. This decision came after a consultation process with staff and students. The establishment of a new College for the Edinburgh City Region will take place from 1 July 2012 and would be operational from October 2012.[6]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.ac.uk/
  2. ↑ "The end of an era for Edinburgh College (Granton Campus)". Retrieved 2009-09-12.
  3. ↑ Calum Macleod (2010-03-26). "Who's that girl?". Retrieved 2010-04-03.
  4. ↑ Telford Website/News
  5. ↑ Help I need a Part-time, Temporary or Vacation Job
  6. ↑ "Edinburgh colleges in merger talks". BBC News. 22 November 2011.

External links

Coordinates: 55°58′38″N 3°14′44″W / 55.9773170°N 3.2455556°W