Kurvil cooks the policy makers' books

Congratulations to Kurvil Alleyne, an NVQ Level 3 Pastry student who has been selected as a member of the National Learner Panel for 2007/08.

Kurvil went through a rigorous selection process and will be joining 17 other successful applicants from across England to work alongside Government ministers and other key Further Education policymakers over the course of the year.

The National Learner Panel (NLP) is a high profile group whose role is to influence and steer the direction of DIUS (Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills) post-16 policy by ensuring that the learner perspective is included in the policy-making process.

Kurvil's membership of this Panel is something that the College is extremely proud of and we wish him all the best over the coming year.

A Common place

(press the > arrow button above to play the video, and turn your speakers up!)

A load of students spend their 'down time' trying to find places to hang. The Cafeteria's an answer. The majestic front steps of the college are an answer. Even corridors and the reception area will do.

But, the real place to hang is the Student Common Room. It's part of the Lowery Building, next to engineering on the ground floor. And, guess what? Yep, those folk in the Creative Media Resources department have made a video about it. This walks you round what's in the common room so's you can then just turn up and hang there looking like you've been to the place hundreds of times!

Another brick in the wall

In the first of this term's trips, it was the turn of the BTEC National Certificate Public Services Uniformed Year 2 to go to the wall. The Berlin Wall.

Not only was the wall a focal point, but we were able look around the whole of Berlin itself.

We checked out Checkpoint Charlie, which, although now purely a tourist attraction, used to be the famous crossing point between East and West Berlin during the Cold War.

The Public Services teaching team joined us 11 students as we researched more into the history of World War Two and looked at how a modern unified Germany was building its tourist and leisure industry.

Fashion, turn to the left, Fashion, turn to the right

(press the > arrow above to play the video, and turn your speakers up)

A highlight of the college year is the Annual Fashion Show. Some say 2007 was the best yet. The college's Creative Media Resources department were there with three professional cameras capturing the event, relaying it onto the big screen, and recording everything. They hope to bring a full video out soon.

Meanwhile, here's a quickfire collection of shots from the days on the catwalk for you to enjoy.

Introducing Student Services

(press the > arrow above to play the video, and turn your speakers up!)

If you're not sure what's what and who's who, the college's Creative Media Resources department have been putting together videos where different departments introduce themselves.

Here's a very useful one for starters, from the Student Services department, the first point of contact for all student information and guidance.

A warm welcome

The Blog polled a number of potential new students a few days ago during the first Enrolment week.

Remember - Enrolment continues this week, even though it's also Induction Week and a few courses have already started. (So, it's not too late to sign-up and join us!)

Anyway, we spoke to Akli who will be joining us as part of the ESOL New Start course. We wanted to know how he rated the Enrolment experience.

"Very good, Very quick," he told your Blog.

You can see him working with Adrian from Student Services in the Mallinson to prepare his ID card.

The Mallinson restaurant is only used during Enrolment week to help ease congestion for the large number of potential students coming into the college. From this week, everything will revert to being managed from within Student Services (right next to Reception).

Back in the main Student Services office we found Sopia signing up for an International Business course. She commented that her experience had been "Very Good." She also told us, "I've found everybody so helpful and the students handbook very informative."

Let's hope they have the best of success on their courses and enjoy their time here at the college.

How was Enrolment for you? We'd love to read your comments. Just click on the 'comments' link below and let us know...

Roll-up Roll-up and Enrol

Welcome back to the official student blog of Waltham Forest College. We are here blogging again for the new Academic Year of 2007 to 2008.

Although the college's Enrolment officially commenced on Saturday, staff have had the pleasure of meeting potential new students for a while, as they started coming in during the middle of last week.

Compared to previous years, the college has altered the layout with Course Tutors and information being dealt with in the hall, and then funding and other registration issues being dealt with in both the main Student Services office and also the Mallinson restaurant.

For newbies the college can seem a bit confusing, especially as the prestigious and historic steps in the front bring people into the Main Reception area on the second floor, not the ground floor! When you want to leave you have to remember to head for the second floor.

However, finding a room is quite easy with following tips from old timers:-

Firstly, rooms are numbered with three digits, like, for example, room 123. The first digit, in this case the '1', indicates the floor you need to be on, the first floor (It's '0' for the ground floor).

Then, it helps to know that rooms are numbered in such a way that if you walk down a corridor, as you pass the rooms on your left, they will always be going up in number. The rooms on your right will always be going down in number. Confused? No, honestly, it does make sense once you've sussed it. Just keep walking down the corridor counting the room numbers steadily going up (to your left) or going down (to your right) until you get to the room number you want.


Anyway, hopefully not too many potential students will be lost forever in the maze, and we can look forward to seeing them as fellow students from next week.

A prize evening for all

Wednesday evening saw a packed Mallinson Restaurant as the School of Service Industries put on the Hospitality and Tourism Prize Giving Evening.

Everything was organised very professionally, with 'meeting and greeting' in the reception area, and friends and relatives of those attending being shown the way to the Mallinson.

The event started with the presentations, and ended with canapes.

Here's the 'rolecall': (if we miss anybody out, apologies, let us know)

NVQ Catering Full Time - Chef of the Year 1

MARTIN DONNELLY

NVQ Catering Full Time - Chef of the Year 2

EURELL WATT

NVQ Part Time Catering Students' Award

ABIR HAMMOUD

Smithfield Student of the Year

CHRIS PHIPPS

Smithfield Most Improved Student

CHRIS HUSSEY

The Restaurant Association Merit Awards for Organisational Skills in Food Service & Food Preparation

LEON WILLIAMS & EURELL WATT

Ready, Steady Cook! Competition winners

MARTIN DONNELLY & MICHAEL POOLEY;

JACQUELINE CANE & JESSICA

KELLY;

LEON WILLIAMS & NATASHA HUCKFIELD-HOUGHTON

The OCN Pathway Awards Catering and T.H.L.

JACQUELINE CANE, HECTOR RODRIGUEZ & ACLIMA RUSMAULLY

Travel & Tourism Awards -BTEC 1st Dip.

DAVE ONAWELO

BTEC National T &T Yr 1

SANDRA ASAMOAH

BTEC National T & T Yr 2

SHERBANO JOOMUNNVQ

Best Work-based Student of the Year

MONICA CHARLES

BTEC National Public Services Students of the Year

Year 1 -

STEPHEN DARLOW

Year 2 -

NASEER ABBAS

BTEC 1st Diploma in Sport -

KULATEN SAID

BTEC National, Sports Development & Fitness Students of the Year

LISIMBA WELCH & THEOPHANIS GEORGIOU

HND Special Award for Peer Support -

MELEK OZDEMIR (pictured with her basket of fruit)

HND - Best Work Experience Student

GINA NDOMBE

HND - BEST GRADES - 2006

ANDREZA GONCALVES (pictured with her certificate)

Andreza told us, "I just wanted to let you know that I have applied to the Hilton Elevator General Manager programme and I've made it through all four stages! I was one of 6 chosen out of 3500 applicants! I will be starting in September with a 9 month placement in the UK and thereafter, a 9 month placement abroad. I am so excited."

Emergency in the corridor

Shock news reached the blog this week about an epidemic that we think was covered up! Or maybe the college is sitting on the news for now!

(We bring you the unembroidered truth as only a blog can.)

During the Easter holiday what looks like a triage centre had to be set up on the first floor of the main building.

The outbreak was so widespread that stretchers and treatment beds spilled out into the corridor to hold the poor patients in a depressingly familiar Accident and Emergency line waiting for treatment.

As far as the eye could see, waiting for a bit of loving care and attention, their used and abused legs in the air, there was an entire flock of very unwell chairs.

For some, the wheel had finally come off, for others the bottoms of students and staff had been just too much to bear.

It was a sight so shocking that these secretly taken pictures were smuggled out of the college and into the hands of your blog.

No official mention has been made anywhere of the condition of the chairs today, but the corridors were empty when all returned to normal after the Easter break.

If you have any information as to how the chairs might be today, then please let us know by adding your 'comment' below.

I say chaps, this really is Cricket

It's time for another healthy story here on your blog. This time it's cricket. Here you can see some of our players in the nets getting a good practice in.

But, the WFC Cricket team are still looking for players!!!!

Howzat?

Well, if you're interested in cricket and learning how not to get your leg before wicket, why not make your way down to the Peter May Sports Centre in Wadham Road. We're there on Wednesday evenings between 6pm and 7pm. It only costs £2 per session, just make sure you bring a white top, trainers and your ID badge. All other equipment is provided.

Here's a picture of the team that needs you! Come join us?