Winners announced for Angus schools’ comic strip competition
Winners announced for Angus schools’ comic strip competition
Three P5 Angus school pupils have won a competition after being challenged to create their own comic strip based on safety, health or health and safety. The competition was the idea of MVV Environment Baldovie and sponsored by them.
The Winners:
- 1st place; Alexandru Marian, P5, Age 10, Ladyloan Primary School
- 2nd place; Nieve Crichton, P5, Age 10, Ladyloan Primary School
- 3rd place; Vandana Kumar, P5, Age 9, Grange Primary School
will each receive a magazine subscription and a MVV Environment Baldovie goody bag with Ladyloan Primary School winning a cash prize for the school of £1,000 for first place and £500 for second place and Grange Primary School £250 for third place.
Paul Carey, Managing Director, MVV Environment Baldovie said: “We are very pleased to have sponsored this competition. It follows on from our involvement in the LOcHER project with RoSPA and we are very pleased with the quality and quantity of applications received. The competition has inspired the pupils to look at the world of health and safety which all the shortlisted entries interpreted through real life situations experienced by the pupils.”
Kelly McIntosh, Director for Education from Angus Council said: “I’d like to thank all the children who took the time to take part in the competition – the entries were brilliant! With more than 180 entries from across primaries 5-7, Alexandru, Nieve and Vandana’s comic strips were great. It has been wonderful to be working with MVV, DYWD&A and DC Thomson to bring this fantastic competition to our primary schools in Angus. It is yet another great example of excellent partnership working to support the curriculum and develop the skills of the future young work force of Angus. It also showcases to other local employers how they can get involved in both our primary and secondary schools.”
Blair Thomson, head judge at DC Thomson’s said: “Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of the MVV Comic Strip Competition. As the person responsible for H & S at DC Thomson’s for a number of years, I am very much aware of the importance of the subject. The submissions are all excellent, making it difficult to choose winners!”
MVV held the competition in partnership with Angus Council, DC Thomson’s and Developing Young Workforce Dundee and Angus to give pupils the chance to learn more about health and safety and develop their skills for the future.
Young Person’s Guarantee – future-proofing the workforce
Young Person’s Guarantee – future-proofing the workforce
Could you help provide opportunities for young people across Dundee and Angus? As part of Scotland’s response to COVID-19 economic recovery, Young Person’s Guarantee was launched in November 2020. It aims to give all young people, aged 16-24 in Scotland, the chance to succeed through the opportunity of a job, apprenticeship, education, training or volunteering.
For employers, it offers help to develop a future pipeline of skills and experience, with young people at the heart of the workforce. Young people bring organisations a wealth of talent, creativity, and enthusiasm, critical now and for future success.
Employers of all sizes and across all sectors can get involved with Young Person’s Guarantee in up to 5 ways:
Prepare young people for the world of work
Invest in a skilled workforce through apprenticeships, training and upskilling opportunities
Create jobs and opportunities suitable for 16-24 year olds
Ensure a work environment which supports all young people and provides fair work
The Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) team in Dundee and Angus can advise businesses on how they can get involved. Hilary Roberts, who leads the team said, “We are delighted to be helping businesses to sign up to the Young Person’s Guarantee. Everyone can get involved whether that be inspiring young people still at school about a future career in your industry, offering work experience or taking on an apprentice. Meeting one of the team for a chat gives you the opportunity to work out what is best for your business, and we can help you go through the whole process.”
Alison Henderson, CEO of Dundee & Angus Chamber of Commerce and Interim Chair of DYW Dundee & Angus added, “At DACC we are great supporters of giving opportunities to young people. We have recently recruited new members of staff through Kickstart, and for the second year running our Foundation Apprentice has been offered a permanent post in the team. It is not only very satisfying watching a young person reach their potential, but it’s also good for us as an organisation to have the insights and different focus that young people can bring to the team. I can’t recommend it highly enough.”
Whether you currently provide opportunities for young people, or you’d like to start getting involved, there are options available, and the DYW team can provide more information and support. Contact the team by emailing contact@dywtaycities.co.uk and they will be happy to meet with you.
Arbroath collaboration leads the way in eco charge
Arbroath collaboration leads the way in eco charge
Multi-national company Veolia has teamed up with Arbroath High School to develop the next generation of leaders.
The waste management company aims to resource the world and constantly analyses what the planet will look like in 2050. Veolia’s team is passionate about educating young people on the circular economy.
Current S2 pupils will be 42-years-old in 2050, an age which sees many professionals step into their first leadership role.
Veolia operates a ‘Future Leaders’ programme which challenges pupils to develop their leadership skills, work as a team and communicate effectively.
“We live in a world of finite resources and Veolia is determined to play its part in ensuring there is positive change by 2050.
“The S2 pupils at Arbroath High are future leaders and we are determined to provide opportunities to them which will see them become effective leaders.”
Veolia’s Community and Engagement Coordinator Matthew Pastellas
The waste management company approached Skills Development Scotland (SDS) as it was keen to engage with local young people.
SDS introduced Veolia to the Dundee and Angus Developing the Young Workforce team and has worked with them throughout the highly successful project.
“Veolia offered an amazing opportunity for school pupils to be involved in their Future Leadership Residential and their Circular Economy Workshop.”
June Gallagher, SDS Relationship Account Executive
“I was delighted to be able to support them in making the right connections and introductions to get this project off the ground. It was great to hear how the project progressed, the feedback from pupils and of course, some of the related awards Veolia won, demonstrating best practice of school industry engagement.
“Hopefully, this story will hopefully inspire other employers to engage and stimulate future leaders within their sector.”
Veolia delivered a series of engagement days to Arbroath High School pupils. These proved so successful the company worked with the school to develop an application process for those interested young people, which further helped to equip second year pupils with vital skills for the future.
The successful pupils took part in a workshop with a circular economy start-up business, which includes a jewellery maker, and attended a two-night residential trip which focused on developing leadership and teambuilding skills.
These programmes received great feedback from everyone involved and Veolia has offered funding for a second trip when Covid-19 restrictions are eased.
DYW Dundee & Angus Appoints School Co-ordinators
DYW Dundee & Angus Appoints School Co-ordinators
Developing the Young Workforce Dundee & Angus has recently appointed a Co-ordinator in every secondary school across the area, to help drive forward work-based learning and industry engagement with pupils, preparing them for the world of work.
As part of the Young Person’s Guarantee, the Scottish Government has funded these posts, reaffirming its commitment to the DYW agenda within schools. This additional resource will be extremely valuable in re-establishing industry partnerships that may have suffered due to Covid restrictions, and in building up new partnerships to inspire young people as to the career choices available to them, and to develop their skills to make them a valuable addition to the workforce.
In Dundee & Angus, most of these Co-ordinators are existing members of staff, who have been given dedicated time to spend on developing work based learning opportunities in their school. Hilary Roberts, DYW Dundee & Angus Manager said, “The focus on DYW has always been providing experiences for young people to bring them real life examples of what working life will be like, and showcasing the career paths available locally. We rely on local businesses to help us with this, partnering with schools to help with activity such as career fairs, classroom projects, CV & interview skills, site visits and work placements. During lockdown, although we quickly shifted to delivering virtual and online activity, some partnerships have been put on hold, and we now need to re-establish these partnerships and develop new ones. These new co-ordinators will give us the resource to do this, and to really embed the ethos of DYW into every school.”
The School Co-ordinators are:
Baldragon Academy – Claire Collin
Braeview Academy – Paul Harper
Craigie High School – Katie Turner
Grove Academy – Murray Redford
Harris Academy – Peter Flood
Kingspark – Caron Yeoman
Morgan Academy – Stewart Haddow
Rockwell Offsite Education Centre – Sarah Clark
St John’s RC High School – Keith McArtney
St Paul’s RC Academy – Anna McFarlane
Arbroath Academy – Andrew McArtney
Arbroath High School, Brechin High School, Forfar Academy and Webster’s High School – Annemarie Smith
Carnoustie High School – Carolyn Joss
Monifieth High School and Montrose Academy – Russell Brown
Panbride – Rozie Arnott