Tracey McRobert, Work Related Learning Facilitator at The Business School,
Canterbury Christ Church University @ University Centre Folkestone has sent us the following information.

University Centre Folkestone will introduce a unique study opportunity
this autumn. The successful Work Related Learning Degree, with a focus
on Business and Management, will be presented during an open day – 4-7pm
Tuesday September 7th 2010.

For Employed and Self-Employed People

This degree is aimed at anyone employed or self-employed looking to lay
the foundations for a career in business and management, or professional
managers seeking to update their skills and knowledge. This undergraduate degree does not require traditional A-level or equivalent entry qualifications.

A brief conversation with our academic staff will determine your eligibility.

Learn While Working

Because it is a part-time degree, you will be able to learn whilst working and also have the chance to immediately apply the skills learned in your workplace. Furthermore, you will be able to study in stages for either a Certificate in Higher Education, a Diploma in Higher Education or a BA/BSc Degree.

Tim Dee, Director of the programme states “The Work Related Business and Management Degree is a great opportunity that Canterbury Christ Church University is offering for people who need or want a business qualification but can’t stop working. It is user friendly, locally-based with hours to suit working people. You learn relevant
things, can practice them at work and relate them to your working life.”

Financial Flexibility

I am pleased to share with you, the financial flexibility that the Work Related Business and Management Degree can offer you. Modules can be paid for individually, offering complete flexibility to suit your business or personal budget. 25 Work Related Business and Management Degree places have been allocated to the University Centre Folkestone, with a late September start.

I am keen to hear from you to reserve you a place if you are interested.

You are welcome to attend our summer open event taking place next Tuesday 7 September 2010, 4pm – 7pm.

For more information about this programme please visit the website.

And for other courses at University Centre Folkestone please visit here.

Tracey McRobert
Work Related Learning Facilitator
The Business School
Canterbury Christ Church University @ University Centre Folkestone
Mobile: 07872421281
Email: tracey.mcrobert@canterbury.ac.uk

A team of four “Gurkha Girls”, all wives of soldiers currently serving in Afghanistan are putting their stamina and fitness to the test to take part in the Trailwalker 2010. This is a 100km run/walk across the arduous terrain of the South Downs to be completed within 30 hours on the 17/18th July. The money they raise will be split equally between the Gurkha Welfare Trust and Oxfam, who organise the event.

40km in One Weekend!

Training has started and they completed easily 40km last weekend and when their feet began to hurt, they appreciated the need to train hard, but felt no room for moaning with the realisation that their husbands’ tasks in Afghanistan include at least that distance daily while carrying all their heavy kit and body armour in serious heat.

100km in under 21 Hours and 27 Minutes!

This I have no doubt will motivate this team to the bitter end and will certainly be an enormous achievement if we can raise significant funds to support both charities, which we firmly believe will make all of those within the Gurkha community enormously proud and if running or walking 100km in 30 hours were not already challenging enough, the “Gurkha Girls” are hoping to beat last year’s fastest women’s team time of 21 hours and 27 minutes.

The Gurkha Welfare Trust

The Gurkha Welfare Trust works to provide necessities such as water and sanitation facilities, schools, medical assistance and financial help to Gurkha communities. The Trust also gives educational grants and provides vocational training to the children of the Gurkha regiment. A welfare pension and medical treatment is also provided to around 10,000 Gurkha ex-servicemen and widows living in Nepal who face destitution.

Can You Support the Charity?

We would be delighted if you are able to support the “Gurkha Girls” in their challenge. The website for donations http://www.virginmoneygiving.com/team/gurkhagirls alternatively donations can be sent to (cheques made payable to Mrs. Cathy Strickland) The Gurkha Girls Trailwalker 2010, c/o Engineer House, West Road, Folkestone Kent CT20 3HH (cheques made payable to Mrs. Cathy Strickland)

We were told about this event and wanted to share the information with you as it can have an impact on local businesses.

Canterbury Christ Church University would like to invite you to a public debate with local politicians and journalists/editors on ‘Crisis in Local Democracy? The media, politics and public opinion in Kent’.

The event will explore a number of questions/issues including:

* How effective are the local media in informing the public,
holding politicians to account, and providing a forum for public debate?
* How have technological developments changed how we consume news and communicate at a regional and local level?
* How has the economic recession impacted on local news
provisions?
* What is the future of public service media at local and regional
level?
* How can media and politicians adapt to change in a way that
enhances rather than decreases accountability?
* How can we engage the public more effectively with democratic
discussion in the digital age?
* In short, how can we work together to reinvigorate local
democracy?

Location: Canterbury, Kent

The event will be held in Powell Building, North Holmes Road, Canterbury Christ Church University, Canterbury at 6:30pm on 27 May 2010.

Refreshments provided. The debate is co-organised by the Departments of Media and Applied Social Sciences and is part of the ‘Making Politics Matter’ initiative at Canterbury Christ Church University, which aims to engage the population of Kent more effectively with political debate.

If you have any questions regarding the event, please do not hesitate to contact one of the organisers:

Dr David Bates
Email: david.bates@canterbury.ac.uk

Dr Agnes Gulyas
Email: agnes.gulyas@canterbury.ac.uk

For one day only, on Thursday 1 July at the Hythe Imperial Hotel, Hythe, Kent, the acclaimed “Laughter Guru” Dr. Madran Kataria will deliver a lesson in his brand of yoga that focuses on laughter as the best medicine for well being. Tickets for the session are just £25.00 and the session starts at 4.30pm with refreshments.

Aerobic Workout through Laughter

Dr. Kataria discovered that by linking the mind-body-soul together in an integrated manner, the end result is that the inner spirit of laughter is realised, leading to hearty, aerobic belly laughter with all the attendant benefits.

Natural Euphoria

Participants are encouraged to laugh at human failings and random misfortunes, accept real-life imbalances for what they are and recognise the true value of laughter as a reward for all to enjoy. Moreover, since the brain cannot distinguish self-induced laughter from the laughter from external stimuli. What to some may seem like a silly and artificial beginning almost always leads into a natural euphoric state of hearty laughter.

Laughter Yoga Movement

Dr. Kataria – a medical physician – has seen his laughter yoga movement spread like wildfire to over 40 countries with more than 5000 laughter clubs founded. His movement is entirely non-political, non-religious, non-racial, non-threatening and non-competitive. There is no right or wrong way in which to laugh and laughter yoga brings forth this joy without any strings.

Travelling extensively to promote laughter, Dr. Kataria is a sought-after speaker at conferences and is also a popular face in the media. He continues to provoke and spread laughter in the world. More details of his activities are found on his website www.laughteryoga.co.uk

Tickets are available from Yolanda Houston on 01797 364366 or 07718 347616 (mobile) or by e-mail to yolanda@headexec.com.

Cameron Mackintosh is delighted to announce the exciting new 25th anniversary production of the World’s Longest Running Musical, Les Misérables. This major international tour began in December 2009 and arrives in Edinburgh in April 2010 for 4 weeks only.

Heading a magnificent new cast is Broadway and West End star John Owen Jones, hailed by the New York Post as the best Jean Valjean since Colm Wilkinson, and West End stars Earl Carpenter as Javert and Gareth Gates as Marius.

The legendary score includes the songs, ‘I Dreamed a Dream’, ‘On My Own’, ‘Stars’, ‘Bring Him Home’, ‘Do You Hear the People Sing’, ‘One Day More’, ‘Empty Chairs at Empty Tables’, ‘Master of the House’ while the new sets feature spectacular designs inspired by the paintings of Victor Hugo.

This is a strictly limited season so don’t miss your chance to experience this unforgettable show. DREAM THE DREAM.

How to see the Show and Support a Local Charity

We are pleased to support the evening performance of Les Misérables in aid of The Aspinall Foundation, a Registered Charity – No. 326567, which in conjunction with Howletts & Port Lympne Wild Animal Parks, are devoted to saving rare and endangered animals and returning them to protected areas in the wild including The Scottish Wild Cat. By selecting the Aspinall Charity Ticket you not only receive a free programme and interval drink but are making a £25 donation to this charity. (More on the Charity below).

Subject to availability.

To book tickets:

click here or call 0871 789 1004 and quote “Aspinall Foundation”.

Tourism and educational organisations in Kent and northern France which have teamed up to promote rural areas on both sides of the Channel are shortly to announce a programme for Shepway school groups who wish to visit a unique natural environment centre near Boulogne.

In an area of forests and dunes west of the town, the purpose-designed Arena centre is one of the most important learning centres of its kind in France and receives scores of thousands of visitors every year.

Plans for visits by school groups from Shepway were agreed at a recent meeting between the six partners in the Transmanche Green Network scheme – four in Kent, two in France.

The Boulogne Shepway Canterbury Co-operation Organisation (BOSCO+) co-ordinates the project, -which is part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund to promote ‘green’ tourism and to help conservation management on the Romney Marsh, at Reculver, near Herne Bay, and in the Boulogne region.

To enable students to understand the evolution of the landscape and to experience the environmental diversity of Arena, the programme will include escorted walks on forest and countryside trails as well as use of bilingual self guided tools and a visit to an inter-active exhibition area.

Lynn Dockar, of BOSCO+, said the meeting of partners had been ‘most productive’ in taking forward ideas and plans formulated when the Transmanche Green Network project was launched at venues on the Romney Marsh in January.

“We plan an early start for the school visits programme which will continue into next year. It is designed for primary school children between 7-10 years old and we look forward to a good take-up right across the district.

“Similar arrangements will enable French school groups to visit and learn about the Romney Marsh and Reculver centres. Trans-frontier media promotion, eco-fairs and other events are also planned to raise public awareness of the three areas which will share the benefits of the TGN project, worth some £650,000 (€772, 864)”.

Partners in the scheme are Kent Wildlife Trust, Shepway District Council, Discover Folkestone, Hythe & Romney Marsh, Canterbury City Council, Communaute d’agglomeration du Boulonnais and BOSCO+.

For more information:

Chris Kirkham – 01303 258594 or cckirkham@gmail.com
Lynn Dockar – 00 336 82 45 23 66 or lynn.dockar@shepway.gov.uk

Come & Quiz the Conservative, Lib Dem and UKIP candidates.

Breakfast ‘Question Time’

FREE to members and guests
Thursday 15 April
Burlington Hotel
Folkestone
CT20 2HR

Michael Howard is standing down at the next election. He will be a hard act to follow. The FSB and the Channel Chamber are joining together to arrange a meeting with his potential successor.

Three prospective parliamentary candidates for the Folkestone and Hythe constituency – Conservative, Liberal Democrat and UKIP – have agreed to attend a ‘Question Time’ with an audience from the local business community. Come and hear how they propose to support business and economic growth if elected as MP.

Candidates
Damian Collins (Conservative)
Lynne Beaumant (Liberal Democrat)
Frank McKenna (UKIP)

7.00am Registration & light breakfast
7.30am Prompt Start
9.30am Finish

This event is FREE to FSB and Channel Chamber members and
guests, so bring a colleague!

Book now as places are limited: online NOW at: -
www.fsb.org.uk/Shepway15April

OR: -
email: office.kent@fsb.org.uk
tel: 01622 688134
fax: 01622 761126 or
post: FSB Kent Region, Allington Library,
Castle Road, Maidstone ME16 0PU
A display table will be provided for Business Literature

Calling all budding artists!

Have you ever dreamt of seeing your artwork prominently displayed for all to see? Well, thanks to Port Lympne Wild Animal Park, that dream can become a reality! The Wild Animal Park, situated near Ashford in Kent, will hold a wildlife art exhibition over the 2010 Easter Break (2nd April-11th April). All budding artists are invited to enter for this fantastic opportunity; it doesn’t matter whether you do stunning sculptures or perfect pictures, all mediums will be considered.

The art exhibition week will commence with a preview evening on Thursday 1st April opened by Vic Reeves—a keen artist himself. Held in the Marquee at Port Lympne, the preview evening will be an excellent opportunity to view the dazzling exhibition pieces that have been submitted. The preview evening is free, but by invitation only. Entry to the exhibition is free to all paying visitors to the Park. A donation from all sales will go towards The Aspinall Foundation to aid their vital conservation work both at home in Kent at Howletts & Port Lympne Wild Animal Parks and abroad.

Vic Sharrat, award-winning wildlife photographer, Chairman of The Wildlife Art Society International and organiser of the art exhibition at Port Lympne said:

“I have been happily associated with Port Lympne for over 10 years. This event will be a completely open exhibition and we are inviting wildlife artists countrywide to submit work for hanging, not only in the standard mediums of paints, but also sculpture and photography. Both the selection and hanging team look forward to viewing the varied work, and, more importantly, raising a lot of money for animal welfare through THE ASPINALL FOUNDATION”

Should you wish to participate in the exhibition or attend the preview evening with Vic Reeves please contact Vic Sharrat on vic@vicsharratwildlifeimages.com.

The deadline for submission is the 11th March 2010. Good luck!

Website: www.totallywild.net

Some helpful advice regarding choosing a Secondary School for your child by Joe Sullivan, Chairman of Governors at Dover College Independent school.

This is an anxious time of year for many parents as they get the results of the Secondary School places allocation, announced Monday 1st March. Having Grammar schools, means that Kent offers a wider choice for parents than most parts of the country but that choice also causes a dilemma for many. True, the grammars achieve great academics results, but a group of children who can pass the Kent Test should be expected to do well wherever they are educated.

Options if your child doesn’t get allocated a place at their chosen school

Parents whose child, having passed the Kent Test, is not allocated a place in a Grammar school or has been offered a place in a school not easily accessible to them should consider the options of independent education. It is not always as unaffordable as is generally believed.

Kent is lucky also to have a number of well known Public schools – the term Public School, Private School and Independent School being used to describe the same schools. The grammars are reported to do better in examination achievement than the Independent sector. This will not be true of the top flight of public schools in the county. It must be remembered however that much of the Independent sector is not as selective as the Grammars and includes a large percentage of international pupils for whom English is not their first language. The results must also be compared with the performance of the rest of the State schools. The Sunday Times reported that the number of pupils gaining at least one grade C at GCSE is 47% for Comprehensive, 86% for Independent and 95% at Grammar. This high figure for Grammars reflects the successes achieved nationally and is not necessarily mirrored here in Kent. In 2008 and 2009, Dover College which creates a broader base of opportunity academically for young people, achieved results that exceeded many of the local Grammar schools. The advent of the Academies and of schools with specialism, add to the wide choice available to parents. No one school will suit all children so how does one choose?

The move from primary to secondary school is a very important step in a child’s development.

Moving from the protective environment of primary into the growing-up world of secondary, is a big culture change. The experiences, opportunities, motivation and friendships at the chosen school over the subsequent years, will have a substantial, perhaps formative impact on the child’s life.

The Kent Test, while being an efficient way of selecting the more able pupils, is not a perfect system.

It can be very damaging for a child to be told at this young age that they are not bright. Children develop at differing paces. Success or failure at 11+ may be affected also by the standard of teaching in primary school. If a child is bright they deserve the best opportunity to go to university so results are very important. The child who fails the Kent Test at eleven may well exceed the ability of many who did pass at eleven, a few years later. If the less able child is placed in the right environment they will exceed predictions of achievement based on tests at this age. A question therefore to ask of any school is of the ‘value-added’ to such children at GCSEs and A Levels. But surely we have the right to expect good educational opportunity from any school.

Many parents today know that success in life comes from being confident, personable and sociable as much as from good A level results.

There are many starting out in business whose prospects will be limited because they lack the confidence necessary for selling and networking, an essential skill to any business, and the ability to speak in public. There are very many lawyers, accountants and other professionals who suffer the same limitations. The pursuit of exam results alone does not lead to a well rounded person.

Choosing a school for one’s child will normally have been a long slow subconscious process, one of understanding the child’s strengths and weaknesses. It will also stem from a parent’s experience in their own school days. The choice of school will evolve from having observed the local schools as represented by their pupils and how they behave in public. What is the uniform like? How it is worn, will be a guide to the control the Head has over discipline. Casually observing how the pupils behave and present themselves will give an indication of the influences likely to affect your child. This experience may also indicate the type of friendships your child may develop.

But a new parent arriving in the district would have no such experiences. Where should they start?

Word of mouth is always helpful.

Watch out for Open Days. A walk about a school will give a feel for how life will be for your child over the next seven years.

All schools have websites. It is here that a school sells itself. Here one will find out about the facilities in the school. Here also one will learn where the school places educational emphasis. What opportunities does the school offer for your child? Choir, orchestra, drama, public speaking or a wide variety of sport may offer opportunity for your child regardless of ability. But many schools now
seem to emphasise or major in these subjects rather than pushing pupils to achieve GCSEs in maths, English and the sciences.

Another good starting point is to read the latest inspection reports. These can be found on the OFSTED website for State schools and ISI for Independent schools. These are very helpful authoritative guides to all aspects of a school.

Truancy rates are very important. Truancy is a complicated problem. Not all, but many of the causes are to be found at school. Bullying, lack of discipline and poor teaching are but some. Almost 200,000 children in England missed one in five or more of their classes last year. Such a level of disruption in the classroom creates an impossible environment for a teacher to follow a curriculum and for the conscientious pupil to learn or be taught. A culture of high truancy will be associated with many other social problems. For example; low academic achievement is known to have a direct link with teenage pregnancy.

League Tables can be very informative. But on occasions, very misleading. Many independent schools take a number of international pupils. Such pupils often spend their first year learning English and sit GCSE a year late, adversely affecting reported results.

The academic outcomes of a school whilst being very important tell little of the whole school experience.

A bright pupil intending to go to university will need good grades but over the coming years when university places are being restricted, pupils will have to shine at interview. For example, university Medicine department interviewers will be far more interested in the applicant who plays football, gardens and likes astronomy than the one who arrives with an anatomy book under one arm and a copy of the Lancet in the other hand.

Choosing a school is about understanding a child’s needs, both educationally and pastorally. If a child needs to excel academically, a suitable school where pupils are pushed must be found. But having chosen a school which the child will attend through the 6th form, parents should be confident that they can support his/her development in every possible way.

To use the example of a university medical applicant again, he/she will benefit from training and experience in: Team building; Team work; Leadership; Confidence; taking responsibility; Public speaking; Work ethic

The school chosen therefore should help discover latent talent in a child and nurture it.

It should broaden the individuals knowledge in many areas. It should be able to accommodate many levels of ability and in a safe environment in which a child can be taught how to study and manage their time.

All parents know that every child is different in academic ability, personality and talents. A school should cater for the whole family. The bright child, the shy child and the sporty child should be enabled to grow in confidence and friendship together.

Secondary school prepares many children for university but it prepares all children for life. It should build confidence and help a child to explore widely so that talents and areas of interest can be discovered and fostered. Perhaps above all a young person should be able to develop lasting supportive friendships and happy memories.

The Independent sector offers opportunities not so easily found otherwise.

The scope for and the extent of extracurricular activities is far greater in a school with boarders than in day schools. An International school like Dover College blends over 30 nationalities with a high number of British boarders and local day pupils. It is co-educational, giving pupils the opportunity to experience a taste of life beyond school days. It is not a big school.

All the pupils, parents and even visitors, remark on the feeling of community. This is another consideration for parents concerned for their child’s preparation for leaving home for university; giving a young person enough independence and freedom within the safety net of a boarding school. Getting a good education should be assumed. A good school should be measured on all the other aspects of development. Independent schools offer a variety of boarding options; from overnight stays to weekly or for a term. Many local pupils become boarders for the 6th form as it is more conducive to study and offers such a wide range of opportunity.

Dover College is the least expensive of the local independent sector. It offers education from Pre-reception to sixth form with excellent results at A levels.

www.dovercollege.org.uk

Take a fresh look at your business for 2010

Following the recent launch of our Faculty of Business and Management, Canterbury Christ Church University offers a FREE breakfast workshop on Tuesday 19th January at Hall Place Enterprise Centre, Canterbury, to all business owners who want to gain a competitive edge and boost their business in 2010.

What does your brand say about your business?

Your customers make their decisions based on a complex range of factors, many of them emotional. The impressions they form based on what they see, feel and hear about your company can make a real difference to the value they place on what you do, and to your success. Your brand is not about having a clever logo or spending lots of money – it is about being clear, consistent and professional in everything you do. Come along to our brand clinic to learn from branding experts and through peer review what your brand says about your business and how you can make it work more strongly for you.

Led by Sharon Wilding from Purple Edge, and presenter for the Chartered Institute of Marketing, and Joanna Wood, marketing consultant and lecturer in the Faculty of Business and Management, our workshop will help you to understand how to:
• identify your brand values
• harness the power of design
• apply your brand consistently
• create your action plan for maximising the power of your brand

Join us from 7.45am to 10.30am (breakfast provided), on Tuesday 19th January 2010 at Hall Place Enterprise Centre, Harbledown, Canterbury CT2 9AG.

Places are limited so please book early.

To book a place email business.services@canterbury.ac.uk or call Fontemaria Totaro on 01227 782666.

www.canterbury.ac.uk/business-services