Westworld Spring 2019

ISSUE 12, Mar 2019
WestWorld
Staff Newspaper of West College Scotland
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In this edition...
COLLEGE NEWS
Minister’s visit – page 2
Choose your Career Days
– page 4
Graduation is moving -
page 6
Microsoft showcase
status – page 6
GET INVOLVED
Easter egg collection –
page 2
College on Instagram –
page 5
Spring clean competition
- page 5
WELL DONE
Gold star for nursery –
page 3
Swap shop – page 6
STAFF
ACHIEVEMENTS
Vikki Gemmel; novelist –
page 3
Gary on BBC Pointless
– page 5
Time to talk - page 5
Sandra retiring –
page 7
Don is cooking – page 7
CONTACT US
westworld@wcs.ac.uk
Spring puzzle!
Go wild and turn to the back page
The College hosted
three Choose Your
Career Days, earlier
this term.
Turn to page 4 for more.....

02 WESTWORLD
COLLEGE NEWS
MINISTER IMPRESSED BY COLLEGE STAFF
Our joint Mental Health Wellbeing Strategy was signed
by Principal Liz Connolly and Student President, Nicole
Percival
The Minister signs the flag to support LGBT Awareness, organised by Student
Association Vice President Marek Gorecki
Staff used a recent visit by the
minister for Further Education,
Higher Education and Science,
to show him the work they do
across a range of specialisms.
Richard Lochhead MSP visited a
number of different classes and
heard presentations from staff from
all three campuses.
Mr Lochhead, who was born and
educated in Renfrewshire, spent
the morning at the Paisley campus,
following an invitation from the
College.
Principal Liz Connolly said,
The Minister was
impressed by what he
saw and by the clear
commitment of our
staff. Throughout the
visit, there was a real
sense of energy and
excellence. Thank you
to everyone
involved.
The Minister with Interior Design lecturer Lola
Paterson, some of her students and industry partners
from IKEA and Neat Living
Richard Lochhead visits the Roofing Workshop where
he hears from Head of Construction Tommy Campbell,
about the work of 1st and 2nd year apprentices.

MARCH 2019 03
STAFF ACHIEVEMENTS
REBEL YELL! NOVELIST
VIKKI’S TIPS ON WRITING
Published author Vikki Gemmell visited
our Clydebank campus in November to talk
rebellion!
No, she wasn’t advocating building barricades on
Queens Quay. Instead, she was picking-up on the
theme of this year’s Book Week Scotland, which is
“Rebel”.
Vikki, who was brought up in Inverclyde and
Renfrewshire, is the author of the highly regarded
debut novel, Follow Me. Clydebank campus Senior
Librarian, Joy McLean, invited Vikki to the College to
mark Book Week Scotland.
As well as giving a reading from her novel, Vikki
told staff and students that many of the books she
reads and writes feature rebels as main characters.
“Vikki gave a really interesting talk about the power
of books and imagination”, said Joy. “She answered
questions about how she writes and also about the
process of getting a book published.”
Book Week Scotland is an annual event run by the
Scottish Book Trust to encourage people to send in
their own stories and poetry. This year, each WCS
campus library gave away free copies of “Rebel”, a
collection of stories about rebellion, submitted through
the campaign.
If you would like to know more about the Scottish Book
Trust and its work, go to
http://www.scottishbooktrust.com/
Novelist Vikki Gemmell at our Clydebank
campus, where she offered tips on writing.
WELL DONE
Top of the Class for
our Paisley Nursery!
Big Gold Star from
care inspectors
Nursery staff at our Paisley campus were
delighted to receive a Five-Star rating
following a surprise visit from the national
nursery watchdog.
As well as being fantastic recognition of the
professional standards of the nursery team, it
is also great news for parents to know just how
good the quality of care their toddlers receive is.
The unannounced inspection by the Care
Inspectorate took place last November when 18
children were present. Inspectors said the children
were “happy and secure in their environment”,
while the staff were “caring, nurturing and
responsive to the individual needs of children”.
The report went on to say: “Management and
staff had created a welcoming and friendly ethos
in the nursery, where children appeared happy,
settled and relaxed.”
Instagram
Follow us
You can now like, comment and follow our
stories on Instagram! The College launched
its Instagram page @westcollegescotland
before Christmas and we already have nearly
a thousand followers! This is a great way to
engage with both existing, potential and former
students, and to showcase all the fantastic
activities going on every day at West College
Scotland.
Help us spread the word by encouraging
your staff and students to follow our
page and tag us in any content by using
#westcollegescotland or tagging the College
page in your post @westcollegescotland.
For more details or to have something featured
on Instagram, contact the Marketing Team!
nursery@wcs.ac.uk
CONTACT US
Iain Forster-Smith, Director of Student Services
and Communities, paid tribute to the team, “We
are absolutely delighted with this outcome.
It is a testament to the team’s hard work and
dedication to ensuring a quality care and learning
environment is provided to the youngsters in our
care.”
To read the full Care Inspectorate Report for West
College Scotland – Paisley Nursery visit
www.careinspectorate.com/index.php/
inspection-reports
CONTACT US
marketing@wcs.ac.uk

04 WESTWORLD
Acting &
Technical
Theatre
Dance
Health &
Social Care,
Nursing
CHOOSE YOUR
CAREER DAYS 2019
Thanks to the many staff
involved in planning,
organising and delivering
three all-day Choose Your
Career Days.
The events took place over a
fortnight, starting in the Lagoon
Centre in Paisley, then Clydebank
Town Hall before concluding, in
early February, with an event at
the Town Hall in Greenock.
All three events featured a wide
range of curriculum activities in
order to show young people, their
parents and teachers, what West
College Scotland has to offer, this
included physics experiments to
fitness classes!
Attendees tasted the culinary
delights of our Professional
Cookery department, were
pampered by our Hairdressing,
Beauty & Makeup Artistry teams
and enjoyed being entertained by
the talented musicians, dancers
and DJ’s from Creative Industries.
Well done to all staff and students
who contributed to making these
events such a success!

MARCH 2019 05
STAFF ACHIEVEMENT
COLLEGE QUIZZER MAKES TV DEBUT
Forget the divisions over Brexit!
The big question is, are you a fan
of Pointless on BBC1 or The Chase
on ITV?
For the uninitiated, both these tremendously
popular quiz games are broadcast on weekdays
in the same 5pm slot.
But if you are a quizzer and happened to
switch on to a recent edition of Pointless,
you might have recognised a familiar face.
It was really good
fun, I was obviously really
nervous but the staff
at the BBC make it a lot
easier for the contestants
and the hosts Alexander
Armstrong and Richard
Osman had great banter
whilst filming.
That’s because our colleague Gary Murray, an
Executive with the DYW West team and a WCS
Sports Lecturer, appeared as a contestant on
the show.
Filming took place back in March 2018,
although it wasn’t transmitted until nearly a
year later in January 2019. Gary recalls:
DYW Programme Executive and Sports Lecturer Gary Murray makes his point on the BBC
“It was a great laugh and a good couple of nights
all expenses paid in London! Getting my make-up
done for the first time was quite an experience.”
Pointless is unlike most other quiz games, in that
the aim is for contestants to score as few points
as possible by diving deep into their general
knowledge to come up with the answers noone
else can think of! Five teams of two people
battle it out to reach the final, where they have
the opportunity to win a jackpot worth several
thousand pounds.
Gary’s partner on the show was his good friend,
Scott. The pair got off to a flying start: in his
first episode they won through from five pairs of
contestants and actually reached the final.
They didn’t manage to win the jackpot but
were able to return for the next episode.
Unfortunately, though, this time they were
knocked out in the first round.
So looking back on it, nearly a year later,
what does Gary make of his national TV
debut?
“It was really good fun, I was obviously very
nervous but the staff at the BBC make it a
lot easier for the contestants and the hosts
Alexander Armstrong and Richard Osman
had great banter whilst filming.”
If you missed Gary first time round, you can
catch up on the episodes on the BBC iPlayer!
STAFF ACHIEVEMENT
TIME TO TALK
Staff and students support Time to Talk Day
– a national initiative aimed at encouraging
people to talk about their mental health.
College staff across our campuses marked national
Time to Talk Day by giving up their free time to
organise information stands and take part in a Wow
Walk.
Time to Talk Day is a national event which took
place last month. This year’s initiative was all
about challenging the stigma of mental health by
encouraging people to speak about it in a relaxed
and supportive environment, perhaps over a cup
of tea with friends. The College’s contribution
was organised by Kirsty MacEwan, the Student
Wellbeing Advisor, who was assisted by Clydebank
librarian Joy McLean, as well as the Students’
Association.
Clydebank, Greenock and Paisley all had information
stands in prominent areas on campus, giving out
hot drinks and good advice to those who felt they
needed it.
Some red-cheeked Clydebank staff, fresh from their WOW Walk!
Afterwards, Kirsty told WestWorld:
“It struck me just how important it is to talk about
these important issues. But I was also taken by
how much we all have in common! We all worry, feel
anxious or stressed, but by chatting about it, we gain
greater understanding of each other and our own
mental health.”
Some members of Clydebank and Greenock staff also
gave up their lunchtime to join students in a
WoW walk round the campus areas. This was a
chance to leave work and study for an hour or
so, take the air and enjoy a chat with colleagues
and students.
A big thank you goes to Kirsty, Joy and our
Students’ Association team for supporting such
a good cause and for ensuring that Time to Talk
day was a success at West College Scotland..

06 WESTWORLD
COLLEGE NEWS
Graduation is
moving!
COLLEGE AWARDED
PRESTIGIOUS MICROSOFT
SHOWCASE COLLEGE STATUS
We’re delighted to announce that West College Scotland has
been recognised as a Microsoft Showcase College - we are
the first and only provider in Scotland to be provided this
accolade.
Chris Rothwell, Director of Education at Microsoft UK, Joe Harkins
and Iain Shand WCS; Clare Riley, FE and HE engagement manager
for Microsoft in the UK
The highlight of the College year is moving from
winter to autumn.
All five of our graduation ceremonies will take place in September for the
first time. An impressive 700 students graduated at our five ceremonies
last year but the College believes we can boost this number further by
bringing the ceremonies forward.
The change follows feedback from former students who said they
felt they missed out because they had started a job work or were at
university.
Fiona McLaren, the Marketing Executive who organises all five events,
told WestWorld:
“It is clear that for the vast majority of graduates and their families, the
ceremonies are truly memorable occasions. But for some people the gap
between leaving us in June and graduating in November was just too
long; they had started a new job or moved on to further study and could
not find the time to attend. For a few others, quite simply, the length of
time had weakened their ties to us.”
Fiona is hoping lighter nights and better weather will further enhance
the day for students and their families.
“We are confident we will be able to deliver the usual high-quality
ceremonies”, she says. “We have spoken to CQLs, curriculum admins and
colleagues in MIS and they are all really up for it.”
Due to the refurbishment of Paisley Town Hall, the gowning and
photography for the Paisley ceremony will make a temporary move to
the Methodist Hall, which is located across the road from the Abbey.
The ceremonies are confirmed for:
Clydebank, Thursday 12 September;
Paisley, Thursday 19 September;
Greenock, Wednesday 25 September.
As a ‘Microsoft Showcase College’, the College will benefit from
the IT giant’s support in the personalised learning of students. This
includes the use of one-to-one devices and Office 365 Education,
Microsoft Teams, OneNote, Skype, Minecraft and more.
Microsoft will also share ideas to enhance staff development,
student employability and innovation, and provide the College with
opportunities to host Microsoft-branded educational events.
The status is awarded to Colleges that demonstrate “a commitment
to education transformation and empowering educators and
students to innovate and exercise a growth mindset”.
This new global education programme is an extension of Microsoft’s
global network of institutions that use technology to improve
teaching and learning.
Curriculum & Quality Leader Joe Harkins said,
“It is great that the College has been accepted as a showcase
college and it is an exciting initiative that will bring great benefits.
Iain Shand and I attended the Welcome Event at Microsoft HQ in
London and from the outset we have made good contacts and
witnessed some great practice from other schools and colleges.
Furthermore, staff from Microsoft have since travelled up to meet
us in the college and have made recommendations about how best
to utilise Microsoft products in the organisation. Finally, as part
of the ongoing process I am attending a 3 day Training Bootcamp
at Microsoft HQ soon that will help us to further understand the
capabilities of Microsoft products in the organisation and how we
can get the best value from the products we have.”
ww.pamassist.co.uk
Confidential Support
for all of life’s ups and downs
Family matters Debt Counselling
Benefits and tax credits Relationships
0800 882 4102
Please look out for more communications from the Marketing team.

MARCH 2019 07
STAFF ACHIEVEMENTS
Sandra
Retirement
STAFF ACHIEVEMENTS
GREENOCK LECTURER IS COOKING ON GAS!
WestWorld can reveal a Hospitality
Lecturer at our Greenock campus has
joined celebrity chefs like Nick Nairn,
Bruce Sangster and Tony Singh in being
officially recognised as a Master Chef of
Great Britain.
Sandra Whitelaw (left) being wished
a happy retirement by friend and
colleague, Business lecturer, Kim
STAFF BroganACHIEVEMENTS
In 1986 Ronald Reagan was
President of the USA, the Berlin
Wall still stood and Scotland
qualified for the World Cup in
Italy!
Amazingly, it was also the year
Clydebank Campus Cleaning
Supervisor Sandra Whitelaw joined
the College. But an era came to an
end on Friday 8th February when
Sandra hung up her duster and
emptied the vacuum for the last
time, before heading off for her wellearned
retirement.
I’ll miss
the people - but
absolutely won’t
miss getting up at
5am to come to
work!
Sandra told WestWorld, “I’ve really
enjoyed working at the College and
have very happy memories, from the
early years up at Kilbowie Road, as
well as at Queens Quay. I’ll miss the
people - but absolutely won’t miss
getting up at 5am to come to work!”
Alex Deas, Estates Manager at the
Clydebank Campus thanked Sandra
for her superb work ethic:
“Sandra will be sorely missed by
the Estates Team and her many
colleagues”.
Thank you, Sandra! We wish you a
long and happy retirement.
Don McGovern has been inducted into the
exclusive culinary club which has only 170
full members across the UK. It is fantastic
recognition for Don, as membership is offered
only to professional chefs who are considered
to be amongst the leaders in their chosen
area; hotels, restaurants, education, catering or
research.
Don spoke to WestWorld after making it into this
elite culinary club. “I’m delighted, not so much to
win the award but to gain such recognition for
what I’d achieved in my career.”
So, how do you become a MasterChef? Don told
us how it worked:
“It’s not as easy as just applying! You have to
have worked at a certain calibre of hotel or
restaurant and be recommended by one of your
peers. In my case, the Master Chefs of Great
Britain approached me after I was nominated by
a fellow professional.
“They asked me if I wanted to get involved and
took a look at my CV. They saw the calibre of
chefs I had worked with and all them are chefs I
trained under. So, having that kind of background
and that kind of pedigree puts you in a strong
position to get into a guild like Master Chef’s of
Great Britain.”
Don, who has been in education for nearly 20
years, says “I’ve always encourage students to
go to competitions, coach them, help them, bring
them into the industry and get them involved”.
And the icing on the cake for Don is that he
SWAP SHOP
Thank you to all the staff and students
from Clydebank campus who contributed to
the fantastic Swap Shop event in aid of the
British Heart Foundation!
The event, which took place on 11th March, saw
several swaps from shoes to soft furnishings!
Staff were asked to pay £2 for any item of their
Don McGovern (right) with Shaune V Hall,
Secretary of the Master Chef of Great Britain
organisation
becomes the first chef in Inverclyde ever to
receive this prestigious accolade!
Shaune V. Hall, Membership Secretary for
the MCGB commented, “Chef McGovern’s
appointment as Full Member of The Master
Chefs of Great Britain was an honour and
pleasure; a fitting reward in recognition for a
lifetime of his culinary dedication, commitment
and professionalism. Don’s experience will
benefit the MCGB and support our initiatives,
especially with regards to the development,
mentoring and training of the young chefs of the
future.”
Outside of work, business and his chosen
vocation, Don is actively involved with numerous
charity organisations, fundraising, a keen
sportsman and volunteer fire fighter for his local
community.
And a final word, on behalf of the Executive
Committee of The Master Chefs of Great Britain,
“we look forward to working with Chef McGovern
in promoting everything culinary in catering,
locally and across Scotland; supporting the
industry and mentoring the Chefs of the Future.”
choice. All monies raised will go to the Simon
Homeless Community in Glasgow who will use
the money to enhance the fleet of bikes they
use to reach those in need in and around the city.
All remaining items will be donated to the British
Heart Foundation in Clydebank.
In addition to the SwapShop, the team managed
managed to raise enough money to buy some
personal care items and food to support the
charity.
The initiative was also circulated and praised by
the Environmental Association for Universities
and Colleges. Well done to Marcelle McLaughlin
& the Sustainability team for organising and
thanks to all who contributed!

08 WESTWORLD
OH NO! Someone has left the windows open again and a flock of pigeons have let all their springtime pals into the College. Help us locate and round up all
the creatures for a chance to win a £20 Braehead voucher. Below is the list of the animals you need to find. Tell us how many of each is in the picture and
send your answers to westworld@wcs.ac.uk
Otters have made the urban
West their home, thanks to
cleaner water which means
there’s more prey for them to
catch.
Hedgehogs aren’t as common
as they used to be. Build a
cosy hedgehog home, and
encourage them to rest,
hibernate and raise their
hoglets in your garden.
Looking more like a tropical
bird than something you
might see in the city,
kingfishers are surprisingly
at home near cities.
Peregrines , the world’s
fastest birds are now thriving
in and around Greater
Glasgow, nesting on tower
blocks and other structures.
Swifts spend only a short
time with us each year.
Fix a wooden swift box to the
outside of your home to give
them somewhere to nest
House sparrows used to
be common birds here,
hopping around our streets
and gardens. But it’s much
harder to see them now.
There are 17 species of
bats which live in the UK,
but common pipistrelles are
the ones you’re most likely
to see.
There are 24 species of
bumblebee in the UK, but
the ones you’re most likely
to see in this area are the
common carder, garden and
white-tailed.
Okay so there is no
shortage of pigeons here
in the west of Scotland but
you can count the ones in
the picture anyway!
We are very lucky in all three campuses to live very near areas of
total wilderness but there is a surprising wealth of wildlife in our
urban areas too.
The animals here can all be seen in and around Greater Glasgow
and the West at this time of year.
Most of these are species which he RSPB have identified as being
under threat in these areas and which they are working to help
protect for the future.
If you would like to know more or find out how you can help visit:
https://www.rspb.org.uk/get-involved/activities/