19 November 2012 - SCOLA Principal speaks at Guildford College

SCOLA’s Principal, Saboohi Famili, gave a presentation to the Board of Governors at Guildford College today. She shared with the Board some of the activities that have been undertaken by SCOLA and also events that are currently being planned. Baroness Sharp, one of the Governors, had this to say: “Thank you very much for coming and talking to us. It was very useful indeed for the group to see the range of activities which you are involved in and to sense the degree to which you have been able to enthuse people by your ‘can-do’ mentality. “

19 October 2012 - Review of the College

This week saw the start of Phase 2 of the Review of the College. This phase will focus on the Corporate Services functions. All managers involved in Corporate Services functions will be fully involved in the process of research and fact finding and the outcome of their efforts will inform the final proposal in early January. Our approach to this review is that our internal staff will act as main instruments and drivers to inform the changes to come. This will be done through a business process re-engineering exercise and will be in the form of an appreciative enquiry on each of the seven Support Service areas and their sub sections. Twenty-three Corporate Services staff attended the first day of a three day training programme on Wednesday. The feedback received so far has been very positive and there is a great sense of purpose and dedication amongst colleagues to engage fully in the process. To ensure the process will have a high level of objectivity and remains on track we have engaged with two management consultants, Dr Mary Golden and Howard Shepherdson from Experia Solutions. They both have considerable experience of undertaking such reviews at a high level in a range of organisations. Dr Golden has a distinguished record with the Audit Commission and Howard Shepherdson is Ofsted trained and has significant experience of organisational improvement. Both have reviewed services in local government, the NHS, higher education colleges and schools and have experience of outsourcing and also bringing services back in house. The three day training programme intends to train colleagues in process mapping, business process re-engineering and research methodology. Participants will also be equipped with supporting skills such as skills of appreciative enquiry, peer review and the giving and receiving of feedback which is necessary for conducting our Corporate Services review. Over the next eight weeks colleagues will embark on this review and I am sure you will engage in the process regardless of the role they have in the College. The outcome of the review will no doubt have a direct impact on the life of the College as a whole and their input is most value. Saboohi Famili Principal

03 October 2012 - Community Learning in Society

SCOLA's Principal, Saboohi Famili, is addressing an audience of educators and government representatives on the role of Community Learning in Society. She will be speaking to those present on how the College encourages adults to enrol at SCOLA; What support services are available specifically for adult students; The advantages of returning to studies later in life: How colleges can help students maximise their potential; Providing apprenticeship programmes for adults so that they can prepare for future employment; Helping students fund their journey through education; What FE colleges like SCOLA can do to encourage adult learning. Delegates will be given the opportunity to ask questions. The opening key note address was conducted by Prof Danny Saunders entitled New Challenges & New Chances: Moving forwards with Community Learning.

5 September 2012 - Tom Brake made Deputy Leader of the House of Commons

Congratulations to Tom Brake who, as part of David Cameron’s reshuffle, the MP for Carshalton and Wallington has been made a member of the government. MP Tom Brake was made the deputy leader of the House of Commons yesterday and said: “It is a great honour to have been appointed deputy leader of the House of Commons, in the mother of all Parliaments. “I will strive to do the job to the best of my ability, whilst ensuring that constituents' concerns - such as the need to maintain vital services at St Helier Hospital - are given the priority they deserve.” SCOLA wishes him all the best in his new role.

16 August 2012 - BBC Worldwide announces six finalists for its first Labs initiative

BBC Worldwide today revealed six UK based digital media start-ups to take part in the first Labs programme. More than 75 companies applied for this new scheme. The BBC Worldwide Labs programme seeks to work with the most dynamic emerging digital media companies in the UK. The finalists are MiniMonos, wireWAX, Foodity, Krowd 9, Flooved and KO-SU. These companies impressed members of the Board and Labs mentors during the month long deliberation process that included an in-person pitch session. The finalists are a mix of strategically aligned companies in areas ranging from education, cloud delivery, games, mobile, kids and video. The start-ups will be offered workspace within BBC Worldwide’s west-London based offices beginning September 10th for a six month period. They will also have the opportunity to work alongside specialists from across BBC Worldwide who can offer sound business advice in areas such as: technology, content, marketing, sales and distribution, advertising, PR, HR, legal among others. The team behind Labs has also devised a bespoke programme of inspiring talks and networking events including an inauguration event for Labs start-ups to present to the community of mentors a session on Asset Creation and Funding at the Google Campus and a Social Media Event is planned for London Internet Week in November to name a few. Whilst BBC Worldwide is not seeking to inject money into the selected companies, it is hoped that commercial deals and partnerships will transpire, thus helping to catapult the start-ups to their next level of success. This looks to be an exciting programme and we look forward to following the development of the programme.

7 July 2012 - Jubilee Summer Concert

The SCOLA Choir, together with the Singing for Pleasure group and the Tollingbourne Accordion Orchestra, presented their summer concert at St. Paul’s Church, Northey Avenue, Cheam on 7th July at 7.30pm. The event was a great success and enjoyed by those that attended! Well done!

3 July 2012 – Orchard Hill College Award Ceremony

SCOLA’s Principal, Saboohi Famili, attended the Orchard Hill College, Wallington, award ceremony at the Old Town Hall on Tuesday, 3rd July. She said that it was a privilege to be present at the ceremony and to be able to share in the students’ achievements. This is one of the highlights on the Principal’s calendar. It is always a pleasure for her to be part of this exuberant celebration of achievements on the part of the hard working students and their dedicated tutors and support workers. Caroline Allen OBE, Principal of Orchard Hill College, presented the prizes, together with Peter Simpson (Executive Head of Education, Learning & Intervention - London Borough of Sutton), Neil Roberts (Head of Area Relationship Team – Skills Funding Agency) and Orchard Hill College’s Chair of Governors, Mavis Peart.

Congratulations to Caroline Allen and her excellent team for yet another year of successful achievements for their learners.