TheBrightonEffect

The Community IssueActively addressing community needs Our student volunteers

Together we stand Partner college alliances

Deciphering diabetes Sharing research advances

Issue 26 | July 2009

Can you help us solve theformula?It is as simple as it looks – the answer is 2! However, what is special about this formula is that we need the input of our alumni and friends to make it add up.

For every £2 you donate to the University of Brighton we can claim a further £1 from the government through the matched funding scheme being run until August 2011. At no extra cost to our supporters!

A very good deal and one we hope many of our alumni and friends will want us to benefit from by making contributions.

And it doesn’t stop there – the matched funding of £1 for every £2 is on top of the Gift Aid the university can claim on donations as an exempt charity. This means that a donation of £100 can be effectively almost doubled in value to £190, once Gift Aid and matched funding are claimed.

We only have until August 2011 to make the most of this opportunity and so would ask all our alumni and friends to think about helping us solve the formula.

For more information on this scheme, or to make a donation, please contact Andrew Scanlan, Development Manager on +44 (0)1273 643591 or email development@brighton.ac.uk.

Here for you!The Brighton Effect is the magazine for our alumni (former students) and friends.

If you studied at the University of Brighton, Brighton Polytechnic (or its predecessors to include Brighton College of Art, Technology, Chelsea School or the Brighton Teacher Training College), Brighton and Sussex Medical School, University Centre Hastings (UCH) or one of our many partner colleges (including City College Brighton and Hove, Hastings College, Northbrook College, Plumpton College, Sussex Downs College, International College of Oriental Medicine, London School of Osteopathy, Ecole de Management de Normandie (France), Angell Business School, Freiburg (Germany), Canadian Institute of International Studies (India) and Mauritius Institute of Education), you are automatically a member of the Brighton Graduate Association.

To find out more about the services we provide, please visit www.brighton.ac.uk/alumni or email us at alumni@brighton.ac.uk.

The word ‘community’ means many things to many people and it is this variety of definitions which form the theme for this issue of The Brighton Effect.

All aspects of community are important to the University of Brighton and we take our role in the various communities in which we participate seriously. As our alumni and friends, we thought you would be interested to read about our impact upon the community – both on a local basis and internationally, through research or entrepreneurship and also in raising the aspirations of the students of tomorrow whilst encouraging those of today to help others. I hope you enjoy this issue of your magazine and please do provide feedback on the content or ideas for themes we should feature in the future.

I would also like to inform you that in future there will only be one issue per annum of this publication. The reason for the move is not only environmental, but also to broaden the offering we provide for our alumni and friends. We are therefore diverting the money saved into enhancing our activities – for example, investing in expanding the provision of careers advice for alumni so that no matter when you graduated, you can access this support. In addition, we will improve our email communications and web presence since these methods will provide updates and news throughout the year.

In forthcoming issues we will present an end of year review featuring content summarising the successes and developments of the previous academic year. We will continue to select a broad theme for each issue and will still include profiles of interesting alumni and friends as well as input from current students.We hope you welcome the move to reduce our carbon footprint and would urge you to get in touch with your email address so that you do not miss out on our communications.

I look forward to writing my welcome again this time next year and to sharing with you the achievements of the academic year 2009–2010!

This edition of the magazine is focused around the university and the community, with features on Active Student, the university’s award winning volunteering scheme; our local partner colleges, at which some of you may have studied; the latest research on studentification; our widening participation activities and on how we are linking our advanced research in diabetes with the local community.

We also have our usual round up of university, research and alumni news, plus information on how you can support your university and ways the Brighton Graduate Association can help you with your career and professional development.

The BGA is committed to supporting the environment. Your magazine is printed on recycled paper and we use a carbon-neutral printer during the printing process. If you’d prefer to receive an electronic copy of the magazine please let us know.

If you have any comments on any of the articles or have contributions for future issues, email us at graduate@brighton.ac.uk or call us on +44 (0)1273 64 2600. We always love to hear from you.

We hope you enjoy your magazine.

With best wishes from your development and alumni team,

Sam, Faye, Andrew, Alison, Val and Allan.

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welcome

Contents01 Welcome

02 University news

04 Research news

06 Alumni news

08 Darren Snow Local lad making good

10 Actively addressing community needs Our student volunteers

12 A smash with Bangers and Mash

13 Supporting Brighton Making a difference

14 Together we stand Partner college alliances

16 Guaei Casilisi Taiwan’s aborigines find a new voice

18 Brighton as we remember it School of Education graduates reminisce

20 Have your say Your letters

22 Deciphering diabetes Sharing our research advances

24 Class notes Where are you now?

30 A day in the life Students’ Union presidents then and now

32 Everybody needs good neighbours Research in profile

34 Widening the path ...to higher education

36 Designs for life Students’ work profiled

38 Entrepreneurship in action beepurple in profile

39 Building your future About the BGA

40 Getting together Events and reunions

Welcome to the July 2009 edition of your alumni magazine and especially to our new BGA members.

Dear alumni and friends

The Brighton Effect is published by the Development and Alumni office, FREEPOST SEA8437, University of Brighton BN2 4ZZ. Tel: +44 (0)1273 642600 alumni@brighton.ac.uk www.brighton.ac.uk/bga

The views expressed in the magazine are those of the contributors and do not necessarily represent those of the University of Brighton.

Editor: Faye Brown Designer: Mark ToynbeeContributors: Emma Blundell, Professor Adrian Bone, Faye Brown, Dave Cole, Sarah Cullen, Sam Davies, Phil Gilks, Claire Griffiths, Solveig Grover, Beth Thomas-Hancock, Lorraine Harrison, Roger Homan, Peps Mccrea, Jacqui Oldham and Andrew ScanlanPrinter: Pureprint Group, a CarbonNeutral® company registered to environmental standards ISO 14001 Cover image: Andrew Weekes

The next issue of The Brighton Effect will be published in July 2010

To enquire about receiving this magazine in other formats, please contact us on +44 (0)1273 642600 or email alumni@brighton.ac.uk.

Professor Julian CramptonVice-Chancellor

© University of Brighton 2009. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without the prior consent of the publishers.

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university news

Boxing clever

Senior lecturer, Rob Steen’s biography of the controversial boxer Sonny Liston, Sonny Liston – His Life, Strife and the Phantom Punch, has formed the basis of the forthcoming movie of the boxer’s life. The film, The Phantom Punch, is due out in cinemas this winter.

Rob is an author and journalist by trade and has worked on the desks of many national newspaper titles in England and Australia, including the Guardian, the Independent, the Financial Times, the Melbourne Age, the Sunday Telegraph and Sunday Times, where he was deputy sports editor.

Corporate Games

Staff and students from across the university competed in Europe’s biggest corporate sporting event this June, as the UK Corporate Games 2009 came to Brighton for the first time. With 24 sports events, including badminton, netball, rounders and ten pin bowling, the event was an opportunity for staff and students to represent the university and get active. Entrants pitted their skills against some of the biggest companies in the UK including Tesco, Vodafone, Shell, Nationwide and Siemens, and won gold medals in the beach volley ball, women’s 750m open water swim and men’s 1,500m open water swim.

The university has received a Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) grant of £500k to support the improvement of vital digital media facilities.

The grants will be supplemented by university funds and invested in digital media and computer games facilities.

Effective communication

The university is undertaking a project to investigate the way it is perceived both within and outside the university with a view to improving the way it articulates itself and its mission. This project comes as a result of the consultation surrounding the university’s corporate plan, where many people identified the need to communicate the university’s strengths more clearly. Interviews have been held with various groups within the university, as well as external groups such as prospective students, alumni, local government and business partners. To get involved email positioning@brighton.ac.uk.

Investing in digital media

Activity buddies

Our students have teamed up with older people in Eastbourne to help them exercise and be creative. The project, which began in January, includes students of physiotherapy, occupational health and podiatry and is aimed at bringing generations together. Older people are given the opportunity to take part in tai chi, croquet and physiotherapy classes, along with developing fitness plans devised by the students. Occupational therapy students help their older partners be creative and share skills like pottery and cooking, while podiatry students show them how to look after their feet.

News in brief

The new state-of-the-art equipment includes suites for digital media, computer games and editing as well as a usability lab. This will provide students with a modern environment in which to develop their skills.

The specialist facilities will also enable us to deliver bespoke courses to companies and offer

them the opportunity to develop their products. The university has a close relationship with the local digital media and games industries and is dedicated to supporting the development of the industry. Interacting with the digital media industry helps to inform the curriculum, along with developing the student placement scheme and supporting local SMEs.

A lecture room was transformed into the House of Lords for the second annual inter-university mooting competition between Brighton and Sussex in February.

Brighton students were victorious at the moot, which offered law students the opportunity to practise their oral and written skills in front of a real judge by arguing both sides of a fictitious criminal law case in a simulated court room setting. The mooting issue focused on the application of the defence of provocation in a domestic violence murder scenario.

Sponsored by Howlett Clarke solicitors, the moot was judged by His Honour Judge Anthony Niblett, alongside Jeremy Gold QC (of Westgate Chambers, Lewes) and

Winning defence

James King-Smith (of One Crown Office Row Chambers, Brighton).

The winning Brighton students, Emma Barlow and Matilda Cram, are both third year undergraduates studying Law with Business LLB(Hons). Matilda said: “You get a great insight into the application of the law, both with the research required and the advocacy involved.”

Tomorrow’s doctors Children with the potential to become the doctors of tomorrow will visit Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS) this summer to see what is involved in studying for a career in medicine.

The children are attending a residential summer school organised by BrightMed, the medical school’s outreach programme which aims to increase young peoples’ awareness of studying medicine and inspire

pupils to think about a medical career. BrightMed aspires to increase diversity within the medical profession, thus allowing medicine to better reflect the patient population.

Working with young people from age 13 onwards, BrightMed gives pupils, who perhaps have no family background of higher education, the chance to picture themselves as medical students and take part in lectures, seminars and group work. Current students lead activities and act as mentors, while BSMS staff will lead sessions exploring their areas of expertise. Our budding doctors will learn about the NHS, visit several hospital departments, interview a breathing, speaking, blinking simulated patient and handle human organs in the dissection room.

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university news

Recognising support

The Student Services department have been reaccredited under the matrix Standard – a unique quality framework for the effective delivery of information, advice and guidance on learning and work. The department was originally accredited three years ago and it was noted in the reaccreditation process that the department, ‘has come a long way’ since then. The department was assessed across the main services of welfare, disability and dyslexia support, careers and counselling. These included measuring student and staff awareness of the services, access to information and service delivery.

Pfizer backs student

Simon Helyar, a medical student studying for an intercalated Pharmacological Sciences BSc(Hons), has received an award from Pfizer, the world’s largest research-based pharmaceutical company, for the best performance on his course. Since 2003, Pfizer and BSMS have formed a strong academic-industrial partnership to provide a teaching programme in pharmaceutical medicine.

Recently, Pfizer have contributed to the intercalated Pharmacological Sciences degree by running a module in drug discovery, focusing on the broader discipline of pharmaceutical medicine.

Lifting London in 2012

Olympic weightlifter and civil engineering student, Halil Zorba, has brought home a silver and bronze medal from the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships 2008 held in Cyprus in December. Halil has already broken into the world’s top 100 in his weight division. Halil, who holds a university elite sports scholarship, achieved a new personal best at the Cypriot championships. Just a week later he also competed at the London Open Championships, where he won his class and gained the title of Best Lifter Overall. Halil now has his sights set on glory at London 2012.

Charitable students

Undergraduate event management students have been applying the knowledge they have gained from the taught element of their courses to the delivery of live events. Holding a fundraising event in aid of the Chestnut Tree House, a local children’s hospice, the students raised approximately £3,000 for the charity. Other activities to date have taken their fundraising total to over £5,000 with the hosting of events ranging from a contemporary art auction, a rock night and comedy quiz night, with other fundraisers forthcoming to include a football tournament and charity clothing fashion show.

in child health, Jill Durrant and Alison Taylor (deputy sister from the Royal Alexandra Hospital, Brighton) demonstrated a range of essential nursing skills. These included

A new robotic baby that breathes, burps and can be X-rayed is now being used by student nurses.

The £30,000 computer-controlled mannequin, SIM Baby, was the centrepiece at a recent exhibition encouraging schoolchildren to think about studying at university.

The mannequin is programmed to simulate a range of medical conditions, many of which require the students to take immediate action to resolve. Senior lecturer

Robotic baby helps prepare trainee nurses

News in brief

Bursting onto our sceneThe university is to have its own student radio station. Burst Radio had its soft launch in April and will be officially launched this autumn from the university’s state-of-the-art radio studio on its Hastings campus (University Centre Hastings).

As an internet-based radio station, it can be listened to anywhere in the world and has already had listeners in Canada and the Middle East. The radio station will be student run, with support and advice from the Radio Production foundation degree course tutors who both work part-time for the BBC. The Students’ Union is also interested in getting involved.

Poetry partnership

The School of Education has begun a search to find young poets from across Sussex to contribute to an anthology of children’s verse.

Marking the beginning of the school’s centenary year, Poetry from the Partnership will be launched in October 2009 to coincide with National Book Week. The book will be a collection of poems written by pupils from the university’s partnership schools. These are the schools with which the university currently place their trainees teachers. Any child up to the age of 16 who is attending a partnership school can enter a poem on any topic and in any form. Helping to judge the entries will be former children’s laureate Michael Rosen, one of the best-known figures in the children’s book world renowned for his work as a poet, performer, broadcaster and scriptwriter. For more information visit www.brighton.ac.uk/education/poetry.

Station manager, Kaye Parkinson, who is in her second year of a Broadcast Media foundation degree, says “Burst is run by the students, for the students. It’s a great way to learn and enhance new skills aside from our usual studies.

“Burst has a great network of people all with different skills and talents and all wanting to get their voices heard and communicate with the rest of the university. We cover information and events of student interest both on and off campus. Above all, Burst is an entertaining and upbeat way for students, staff and alumni to keep up to date with university life.”

taking blood pressure, pulse and measuring body temperature.

Commenting on SIM Baby, Alison, who is currently studying for a Postgraduate Certificate in Health and Social Care Education at the School of Nursing and Midwifery said: “She is great for the teaching of emergency care of children in a safe and non-threatening environment. SIM Baby is really useful for making the stimulated nursing situation a bit more real for the students.”

Listen to Burst by visiting www.burstradio.co.uk.

The university has now been recognised as one of the sector’s ‘rising research stars’, by the Times Higher Education, moving 21 places up the league tables, and in addition was ranked as the leading modern university in terms of its research quality by Research Fortnight.

The university’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Julian Crampton, said: “These results prove what we have known for a long time, that the University of Brighton is now a serious research institution.”

Find out more on the 2008 RAE visit www.rae.ac.uk.

The university has been awarded a 28 per cent increase in funding for its research work from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). This is against a sector rise of 8 per cent.

The grant allocation of £7.5 million follows a national review of all UK universities research – the Research Assessment Exercise 2008 (RAE) – which concluded that 79 per cent of the University of Brighton’s research output is of international standing.

The result moves the university up to 49th place in terms of its research funding from the government and positions Brighton alongside other universities such as Keele, Aston and the University of the Arts London.

A rising star in research

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research news

Grant from Marie Curie

Dr Maura Sheehan from Brighton Business School has been awarded a Marie Curie International Reintegration Grant to research the management of global human resources in UK multinational corporations. The research will use economics and management theory to examine how UK-owned companies have made the decision to invest in Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. Partly due to the relatively closed political and economic systems that existed until the late 1980s, these regions are under-researched in the areas of internationalisation, globalisation, and human resource management

Voicing microbiology

The American Society for Microbiology (ASM), the oldest and largest science membership organisation in the world, has appointed Dr Huw Taylor from the School of Environment and Technology as the country liaison contact for the United Kingdom.

Huw joins a network of 20 international ambassadors and 23 country liaisons throughout the world. They represent over 43,000 members, identifying and prioritising actions that will advance microbiology in the UK.

Transatlantic research

Research and development in higher education and training in the field of health promotion is set to advance following a successful bid by the university’s International Health Development Research Centre (IHDRC).

The results mean that Brighton joins the Trans-Atlantic Exchange Partnership, a three-year project which connects students and academics from Brighton, Germany and Canada who specialise in health promotion. So far 10 Brighton students have been supported on research internships and exchange programmes in Canada.

News in brief

Obesity discoveryScientists have discovered that children with the obesity gene FTO are more likely to select fattening foods. The combined research team from the universities of Brighton, Dundee, St Andrews and Glasgow Caledonian, presented their results in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The team found that carriers of the gene did not have significantly different metabolic rates or measures of physical activity as compared to those who did not have the gene mutation. In addition, there was no evidence that people carrying the obesity gene

had any differences in satiety. The gene was however linked to carriers eating on average an extra 100 calories at a single meal and this was because the individuals with the FTO gene selected more fattening foods.

Dr Peter Watt, from the Chelsea School said: “These findings reinforce the view that increases in obesity, measured in many populations across the world, may be attributable to the widespread availability of inexpensive, fatty foods which would be more attractive to the large proportion of the population who carry this genetic variant.”

Putting down roots in BrightonAcross Brighton and Hove, roof-top gardens, window-boxes and parkland vegetable patches will start taking root thanks to a £500,000 grant from the Big Lottery Fund.

The four-year project, called Harvest Brighton and Hove, promotes local food growing initiatives, and is led by the Brighton and Hove Food Partnership and Food Matters, with partners including the university, Brighton and Hove Allotment Federation and Brighton and Hove City Council.

Researchers, Andre Viljoen and Katrin Bohn from the School of Architecture and Design will develop an urban agriculture map for Brighton & Hove, making recommendations about how the city can accommodate growing sites. The project will promote food growing in allotments, gardens, parks and in vacant land around public buildings and on housing estates. It will explore how urban food production can help reduce the carbon footprint of the city, tackle obesity and contribute to a more sustainable food system.

Bouncing back

Professor Angie Hart, the academic director of the Community University Partnership Programme at the university, gave her inaugural lecture on resilience therapy at the University of Brighton on 21 May to a full lecture theatre. The event proved so popular that another lecture was organised on 2 June and saw over 50 alumni attend. Angie has co-authored the publication, Helping children with complex needs bounce back – resilient therapy for parents and professionals. This is a tried-and-tested handbook for parents exploring Resilient Therapy™, an innovative way of strengthening children with complex needs.

Understanding allergies and asthma

Blowing weather forecasters away

Why has eczema tripled in the last 30 years? Why do cats and dogs have very different effects on babies with allergies? How can the risk of childhood asthma be reduced? These were the questions explored at a recent public lecture by Brighton and Sussex Medical School lecturer Professor Somnath Mukhopadhyay.

Professor Mukhopadhyay is chair of paediatrics for Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS) and the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital and researches the causes of asthma and allergy in children and adolescents as well as the implications for treatment.

He and his colleagues have discovered a gene change that increases the risk of eczema and asthma. Present in about 10 per cent of the population, the gene makes a newborn baby three times as likely to develop eczema by the age of one.

He hopes that future large-scale studies could reduce reliance on steroids and help develop focused, efficient and individualised interventions.

If you would like to attend a future public lecture visit www.brighton.ac.uk/events for details or email alumni@brighton.ac.uk.

Weather forecasters could find themselves pushed out of a job by artificial intelligence (AI) systems writing human-quality weather forecast texts that are in fact preferred by expert forecast readers.

Computer scientists at the university have pitted experienced human weather forecasters against computer programmes in a series of experiments designed

to test whether expert forecast users prefer human-authored forecast texts or computer-generated ones.

The scientists found that despite the generators acquiring all decision-making abilities automatically, their weather forecast texts were considered as more appropriate and of higher language quality than forecasts written by experienced meteorologists.

The team developed statistical natural language generation (NLG) systems which convert output data from weather simulators into readable human language.

The scientists found that the statistical systems performed on a par with the traditional hand-crafted system, despite taking a fraction of the time to develop.

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research news

Research in Hastings

Research activity at University Centre Hastings (UCH) is now supported by the university’s new Coastal Regeneration Research Centre supported by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE).

Working with local communities, staff at the Hastings-based research centre will identify research that is important to local people and generate new evidence to inform the coastal regeneration process in the town. The helpdesk offers advice to local community groups and organisations in need of research support. For more info visit www.uch.ac.uk/research.

Elite sports research

What makes elite sportsmen and women excel in their decision making? That’s the issue currently being explored by senior lecturers from the Chelsea School, Nick Smeeton and Bill Filby, who are working with professional and semi-professional sports teams to research their anticipation and decision-making skills.

The research focuses on investigating key differences between expert decision makers and their less skilled counterparts and the development of training programmes design to improve anticipation and decision-making skills.

Football and corruption

Corruption in FIFA was the topic of discussion when Alan Tomlinson, Professor of Leisure Studies at the Chelsea School, gave the closing plenary at the Third annual Political Studies Association Sport and Politics Study Group conference. The conference was attended by 120 people, including academics and policymakers, and was co-organised by Paul Gilchrist, a research fellow at Chelsea School. Professor Tomlinson is renowned for his challenging research around FIFA. He co-authored In FIFA and the Contest for World Football – the first full-length study of FIFA and its role in framing and controlling world football.

Laureate in Brighton

Nobel Prize Laureate, Professor Sir Harry Kroto, gave a lecture at the university, entitled Science, Society and Sustainability on 29 May.

The aim of the lecture was to highlight ways to appeal to the younger generation to focus on sustainability to safeguard our survival into the next century.

Sir Harry won the Nobel Prize for chemistry in 1996 with two US colleagues for discovering the C60 Buckminsterfullerene (commonly known as the Bucky Ball), a new form of carbon, which has since become a fundamental element of nanotechnology.

News in brief

Informing parliament Two Brighton researchers from the School of Environment and Technology have fought off national competition from over 600 university researchers to present their research at the House of Commons. This follows a national scientific competition organised by the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee.

Vassilios Bugas presented to MPs his research on methods to recycle glass as a solution to the ever-increasing amount of waste glass in UK. The traditional practice of transporting glass far distances for crushing in large granulators is challenged by Vassilios, who instead, suggests establishing a network of small-scale granulator workshops. This would have many ecological, commercial, social and educational benefits.

Dr James Ebdon presented MPs with his discovery of a bacterium in sewage treatment works in Sussex which could save countless lives around the world. The researcher has developed a test that can accurately identify the presence of human faeces in water supplies. Costing only a few pounds, this can be used in the field and gives results in a day which could be an invaluable tool for public health.

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alumni news

Representing pharmacy

A graduate of the MPharm Pharmacy course, Katie Walters, recently presented at the British Pharmaceutical Conference, where she was commended for her presentation. To present at this annual conference in Manchester, which attracts PhD and lecturer speakers nationwide, is particularly noteworthy for Katie, who is in the early stages of her career following her graduation in 2008. The presentation, entitled Synthesis of Schiff base conjugates of 5-aminosalicylic acid to provide enhanced free radical scavenging activity, was based on work from her final year project at the university.

Capturing imaginations

Two Brighton illustration alumni and now award-winning children’s authors, Mini Grey and Polly Dunbar, recently visited the university to give a talk about their books and work.

Both Mini and Polly were included in The Big Picture’s 10 Best New Illustrators. Mini’s books have captured childrens’ and teachers’ imaginations with a string of awards starting in 2004 with The Pea and the Princess, Biscuit Bear and The Dish and the Spoon in 2007. Polly Dunbar is also an awarding winning author and illustrator and is part-founder of Long Nose Puppets, a touring puppeteer theatre company.

Top teacher Stuart Steeles (Primary Education 3–7 BA(Hons) with QTS, 2006) has been nominated for the SSAT Award for Outstanding New Teacher of the Year. After being nominated, he was observed in the classroom by judges to get through to the final. Stuart, who studied as a mature student and has two children, said, “I am deeply flattered to be nominated by the parents of children who attend my school”. Stuart attended a prestigious ceremony at Canterbury Cathedral in June at which he was awarded a distinction for his role at Patcham Infant School. Information about the awards can be found at www.teachingawards.com.

To the max

The design talents of recent fashion graduate Catherine Gerrard (2008) have been praised by international fashion label, MaxMara.

She received the third prize in the first ever MaxMara Womenswear Design Prize, which was launched in conjunction with the British Fashion Council’s Colleges Council open day in April.

Catherine beat off competition from 188 other entrants from 22 colleges around the country to win a £1,000 prize and a five-month, fully paid internship at the MaxMara headquarters in Reggio Emilia. The university also received £2,000.

News in brief

A social network website for runners and joggers in the UK launched by Business Administration BA(Hons) 1999 graduate and entrepreneur Tony Piedade, is picking up speed. JoggingBuddy.co.uk, which is aimed at getting runners and joggers to find a running partner in their local area, is already experiencing a huge surge in sign ups to the website with over 40 new members joining each day. The website was launched in September 2008 and is now rapidly becoming one of the leading fitness websites in the UK. The website, which is free, allows members to create a profile, upload pictures, plan their running routes and search for other members with similar fitness levels and goals to train with.

Tony said: “The website is intended to bring enjoyment and fun back into social jogging and the more serious runner can also find people on the website that are training for particular events. The added benefit of the site is one of security and safety. During winter months when it’s dark early, women may be apprehensive about running on their own and the site will allow them to seek out, meet and run with women in their area.”

Picking up the pace

Sustainable design Designer Caroline Saul, who graduated last summer from the Faculty of Arts and Architecture, has exhibited a series of sculptures made from recycled plastic milk bottles at the Talente international design fair in Munich in March.

Talente is an esteemed showcase of emerging world-class design talent from around the globe and attracts industry professionals and design enthusiasts from all over the world. It has been held annually since 1980 as part of the International Trade Fair for the Skilled Trades.

Caroline applies her training in traditional craft techniques to issues currently affecting society. With her forward thinking approach to recycling, she reworks plastic into delicate lace like sculptural forms. “I am delighted to have been selected for an exhibition of this calibre,” said Caroline. “I feel it is very important to highlight sustainability issues within craft and design.

www.carolinesaul.co.uk.

Photographer awarded

Nicky Walsh, Photography MA 2002 graduate, has been awarded the prestigious Jerwood Photography Award, which is open to artists who have graduated from visual art degree courses in the UK.

Nicky’s series of photographs called Untitled, was selected as a winner from over 600 submissions by a panel of experts which included the director of the Jerwood Charitable Foundation, the editor of Portfolio Magazine and the curator of photographs at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Using a limited palette, Nicky aims to depict the most subtle differences in opacity and tone of everyday objects. She uses an

anonymous office with expanses of pale greys and greens which are broken occasionally by the hard black edge of a table or the metallic gleam of binder clips. Nicky’s disciplined, minimalist approach gives a new view of ordinary objects and images are reduced to pale, indistinct colours and simple elemental compositions.

Director of the Jerwood Charitable Foundation, Roanne Dods said: “Every year we are thrilled by the quality of work that shines through from artists at such early points in their careers. The exhibition is evidence of the unique revelation that photography can bring to the world of ideas, human understanding and to the arts.”www.nickywalsh.co.uk.

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alumni news

Illustrating talent Graduating this summer, Illustration BA(Hons) student, Kyle Bean has fought off national competition to win a commission from the BBC. Kyle pitched to create a viral animation for the BBC website, Bare Facts, a dedicated source of sex education information for parents and their children. Kyle’s portfolio also includes illustrations for The New York Times and car makers Ford, who commissioned Kyle to produce a set of cardboard sculptures with Fine Art Sculpture BA(Hons) 2005 graduate David Wilson which featured in a nationwide campaign including television and billboards to promote the new Ford Fiesta.

Sustainable tourism Two graduates now working in Burundi, East Africa have invited their former lecturer, Dr Marina Novelli from the School of Service Management, to spend two weeks studying the tourism development in the country. The International Tourism Management BA 2008 and International Travel Management BA 2005 graduates, Justine Kizwera and Carmen Nibigira, who work in the service and tour-operating sectors, worked with Dr Novelli for two weeks assessing the existing and prospective tourist sites and ways in which to build a sustainable tourism value chain, which would benefit the wider community.

Designing For Life

The Apprentice has come to the world of product design in a new BBC2 series, Design For Life, featuring 3D Design graduate Michael Cloke. Famed designer, Philippe Starck, invited applications for places on a school of design he is setting up in Paris.

Hundreds of would-be British designers applied and were whittled down to the best 12, including Michael. Design For Life follows the fortunes of the 12 who must battle it out to impress Starck. At the end of the series, one lucky British designer will be rewarded with a placement at his design agency.

Graduate awarded MBE

Double Paralympic gold medal cyclist and Social Work BA(Hons) 2007 graduate, David Stone, has been awarded an MBE for services to disabled sport. David was named best disabled athlete in the Yorkshire Sport Awards in late 2008 after taking gold in the mixed individual road race and individual time trial at the Beijing Paralympics. David, who has Cerebral palsy, took part in the Sydney Paralympics in 2000 and has since then steadily built up to gold medal winning status. He has been coached by university senior lecturer Dr Gary Brickley, an accredited member of staff for Great Britain’s Paralympic cycling team, since 1999.

News in brief

Furthermore, their age is no longer seen as a constraining factor to travel. Until now, little research has been conducted into this area, despite the fact that grandparents now represent over 20 per cent of the UK population and the over 50s possess some 80 per cent of the nation’s wealth.

Award-winning research from Masters in Tourism Management graduate, Franka Steinkopf, has helped a Sussex travel business to understand their customers better. The recent graduate from Frankfurt was commissioned to undertake the research for her dissertation by Grand Breaks, a company which specialises in short UK breaks exclusively for grandparents and grandchildren. Franka’s dissertation research explored how today’s grandparents like to spend leisure time with their grandchildren and revealed that grandparents perceive themselves to be a lot younger in their lifestyles than people of their age in previous generations.

A break with tradition

A new fight against bacteria

New types of antibiotics have allowed us to keep one step ahead of resistant bacteria, but as the number of new drugs being developed has fallen steadily, scientists have turned to another approach which uses naturally occurring viruses known as phages that infect bacteria.

MPham Pharmacy 2008 graduate, Niamh Kilbride, researched during her final year how these phages can

be used as a coating on medical devices such as those used in hospital to guard against infection. Niamh has now won an award for the Best Project in Microbiology from world-leading microbiology brand, Oxoid.

Niamh investigated several different methods for the immobilisation of a phage, with the view to developing a coating that would be effective against bacteria. She concluded

that not only was it possible to create a phage coating, but that the development of a suitable phage coating could potentially reduce and even prevent the growth of bacteria.

This could hold the key for preventions of infections such as hospital-acquired infections associated with indwelling medical devices, such as catheters.

Graduation success Among those who graduated at February’s winter ceremony was Water and Environmental Management masters student Janak Pathak, who is now working for an international environmental service company.

Though now living and working in the UK, Janak is originally from Nepal. He was brought up in an international children’s organisation called the SOS Children’s Village from the age of five. Founded in 1968, the village was established to help the plight of children on the streets of Kathmandu, Nepal. Janak has come along way since then. From Nepal, to Brighton and now to North Wales for his new post, Janak works as a water management consultant at the company AMEC Earth and Environment UK Ltd. Interested in flood management, his dissertation examined technology to monitor and predict incidents of pollution in the river Ouse, East Sussex.

Looking back on his time at Brighton, Janak says: “A highlight of the course was the cooperation and support from the university’s staff who have encouraged and helped me to overcome the difficulties during my stay in Brighton.”

This is an important market in the current economic climate as more women are having to return to work and the responsibility of childcare is falling to kinship carers, such as grandparents.

Such was the success of her dissertation that Franka has received the Dean’s Prize from the Faculty of Management and Information Sciences in recognition of attaining her masters degree with distinction, coupled with her outstanding performance demonstrated in her research and dissertation. Now back home in Germany, Franka has successfully secured a trainee position in the service sector.

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It was 1999 when a young man from an estate in Brighton was fatally stabbed. The estate, Whitehawk, was one of England’s most deprived communities and at the time experiencing serious social ills. A group of parents living on the estate, including Darren Snow and his wife Lorraine, decided something must be done to offer opportunities and a safe haven for the young people of Whitehawk.

The parents approached Brighton & Hove City Council and asked to start up a youth centre from a set of portakabins previously used as sports changing rooms on the estate. Distant from housing and next to disused football pitches, the location was perfect.

The council officials were positive and so Crew Club was established, set up from scratch in a run down, prefabricated hut with a leaky roof and just one dartboard. The three month trial came and went and within a year more than 200 young people had benefited from the work undertaken by the club in providing an exciting and safe place

for young people to get together, socialise and take part in a variety of activities from music projects to sport tournaments. But it was still being run on a voluntary basis and relying on the time and goodwill of local parents.

All that changed though in 2001 when Brighton graduate Darren and his wife became the club’s first full-time paid workers. From then onwards, the club’s progress was rapid. In 2002, Crew Club became a registered charity and secured funding from the East Brighton New Deal for Communities (formerly EB4U) for its future three-year plan.

At the heart of the plan was a new centre, having long outgrown their temporary premises. 2007 proved to be a milestone year for both the Crew Club and the Snows. With the success and growth of the project came a new £1m centre, which was opened that year by the Duke of Edinburgh. Darren and his wife were also awarded MBEs from the Queen for their services to youth in Brighton.

Some ten years later the Snows are still successfully running Crew Club. The club now has over 500 members, ranging in age from 11 to 22 years old and provides everything from IT facilities and sexual and mental health advice, to sports projects and a music studio which is soon set to become a social enterprise to generate income. Crime figures have dropped by 45 per cent in the area and can be seen as one clear indicator of the club’s success. Darren adds: “This is not to say that we contributed to all of that, but if young people are doing something positive then it makes sense that they’re not doing something negative… Also, the policing structure is good in the area and we’ve got good relations with them. They know what we’re about and because we live here our relationship with the young people is different to if we just came here to work.”

When Darren Snow, Youth and Community DipHE 2005, was awarded an MBE from the Queen for his services to young people in Brighton, few would have believed that he had started his pioneering project just ten years earlier from the inside of a portakabin.

Local lad

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(1) Music studio. (2) Crew club members in the ICT suite.(3) Official opening of the new premises by Prince Philip.(4) Darren and wife Lorraine receiving their MBEs.(5) Darren Snow, MBE.

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Over the years the work of Crew Club has changed says Darren, and along with providing afterschool activities and successful projects such as the Kickz Programme (run with Brighton and Hove Albion football club), time is also dedicated to helping young people get back into employment or training.

Another such project was with the university’s Faculty of Arts and Architecture, which saw teenagers from Crew Club trying their hands at fashion design. During the six-week course the teenagers looked at various elements of design, from recycled fashion and fashion design, to illustration, basic pattern cutting and sewing techniques.

Darren says the feedback from the teenagers, many of whom would not have imagined themselves going to university, has been incredibly positive, adding: “For me, the key to young people’s futures is education, whether that is staying in mainstream, going on to further education or being educated to get a job. So it’s not just academic education, it’s about the whole process.”

Hearing from one Crew Club member, Scott Wheatland, who is now a trainee youth worker himself, the benefits are clear. “When I joined the Crew Club I had no idea I would end up working here. The club has changed my outlook on life. I’m enjoying the programme and would like to go to university to become a qualified youth worker.”In fact, Darren’s own return to education at the University of Brighton has been quite an inspiration for the young people of Whitehawk.

Brighton born and bred, Darren left school having never sat an exam. But his choice to study for a diploma in Youth and Community wasn’t without some initial reservations, says Darren: “The reason why I decided to study at the university was because we had been running the Crew Club for a few years and people were saying, ‘alright, you’re doing all of this work and it’s working, but are you qualified?’

“My initial reaction was, ‘It’s the work that is important not a qualification’ but then the adult part of my brain kicked in and I thought why not get qualified? This is something that we want to take seriously and it’s not just about have you got a piece of paper or not. It’s about the process you go through to become qualified.”

Since completing his studies, Darren continues to work with the university by supporting a

placement student from Chelsea School, which has helped considerably with getting the new facilities and associated projects off the ground.

The support of student volunteers and Whitehawk’s community continues to be vital to the success of the project, especially as Darren juggles the role of managing the club and staff alongside the demands of securing funding. It’s the club’s biggest challenge says Darren, especially as their three major funding sources come to an end in 2010. So what keeps this busy husband and wife team going? “I think its just seeing that young people can achieve more than they think they can.”

If you’re interested in finding out more about the work of the Crew Club or wish to make a donation to support their activities, please email development@brighton.ac.uk.

“... if young people are doing something positive then it makes sense that they’re not doing something negative.”

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Volunteering has never been higher on the government’s agenda. The government has set out its vision that, ‘volunteering becomes part of the DNA of our society’, and the university’s student volunteering scheme, Active Student, is keen to apply this to its work with the local community.

Active Student was set up six years ago and seeks to engage and assist students in undertaking rewarding, safe and supported volunteering opportunities in the local community. The service is open to students from all years and disciplines and provides volunteering opportunities in all areas of the university’s local community – Brighton, Eastbourne and Hastings.

Since 2003, Active Student has placed around 1500 students in volunteering opportunities and has also supported nearly 200 students in securing placements in the voluntary sector.

Active Student is based within our Careers Centre as part of the university’s Student Services

department and is funded by the university with investment from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). The service works with the community, the voluntary, statutory and not-for-profit sectors and also community interest companies, but specifically not with any profit-making organisations.

The majority of students engage in volunteering so they can gain relevant experience (which can be highlighted on their CV) and also as a way to feel part of their local community. Now more than ever, Active Student is seeing many final year students wanting to gain voluntary work experience so they can show skills and experience to their future employers.

Active Student has won several national volunteering awards, including being acknowledged as the exceptional winner in the Outstanding Project Award category at the Higher Education Active Community Fund Volunteering Awards in 2007.

Beth Thomas-Hancock, student volunteering Manager, says, “Employability is high on the agenda for many students today – they see volunteering as a means to gain valuable experience in their chosen field, a way in which they can stand out from the crowd in the job market or an opportunity to test out a potential career.”

The volunteering our students undertake not only must be beneficial to the student themselves, but also to the organisation they are volunteering with. Not-for-profit groups use student volunteers so that they can continue to run services or to allow for new services to be delivered. Some organisations specifically try and recruit student volunteers because of the skills and knowledge base they know the students have.

Over 500 volunteering opportunities are now available to students via the Active Student database. These volunteering opportunities have to be rewarding – there has to be a personal development element to each volunteering role. The range of voluntary activities which students can get involved with is vast – anything from designing a website for a charity to befriending a teenager with a disability.

All the placements recommended to students must also be safe too – a member of the team visits each placement before a student volunteer takes up their role to make sure that the organisation has insurance which covers the activities the student will be involved in and that appropriate risk assessments have been carried out.

As well as being rewarded and safe, each of our student volunteers also needs to be supported – there should always be a supervisor at the organisation that is responsible for looking after the student.

ACTIVELY ADDRESSING COMMUNITY NEEDS

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In addition, all Active Student volunteers are supported by an Active Student worker, who keeps in touch to check how things are going and is a point of contact for the student to feedback their volunteering experiences.

Active Student provides a brokerage service, advertising hundreds of volunteering opportunities to the student body and helping them select volunteering roles which suit them. The service also works with lecturers and community groups to create volunteering opportunities which are linked to a course and fill a community need but are extra-curricular in nature. In addition, Beth and her team at Active Student source community-based placements where students gain academic credit for writing up their volunteering experience. Students are in the driving seat and decide where and when they would like to volunteer. Volunteering opportunities can be either a regular and ongoing opportunity, a fixed project with a start and end date or a one-off activity that lasts one or two days.

It is important to Beth and the Active Student team that any student who would like to volunteer has the opportunity to do so. In practice, this means being aware of factors that can limit a student’s ability to get involved. This can include financial reasons, health issues or due to a criminal record. In response to this, they have a policy that no student should be out of pocket to do their volunteering – either the organisation or Active Student will pay travel expenses and a meal allowance for students who volunteer for a full day. For those students who have additional support needs or who face barriers to volunteering, they provide a tailored support package.

Active Student would love to hear from any alumni or friends who are interested in getting involved in their work – for example, by offering a volunteer placement in their organisation. It is also possible to make financial donations in support of student volunteering at the university – any amount can make a difference and will help current students broaden their horizons and increase their employability for the future.

If you are interested in getting involved or making a financial contribution, please contact the Development and Alumni Office by emailing development@brighton.ac.uk.

One of the volunteering opportunities that Active Student provides is Active Pharmacy. We take a closer look at this practical and valuable initiative.

Active Pharmacy is a volunteering project where 27 second year pharmacy students volunteer alongside older people in the community to inform them about their medications and how to take them correctly whilst at the same time promoting the role of community pharmacists.

Both the students and the older people they assist are volunteers in this project. The students meet up with older people twice. At the first meeting, the student seeks information about the medications being taken and any illnesses the older person has and records the questions their ‘patients’ want answers to.

The next session takes place two weeks later when the student provides the information their ‘patient’ had requested. The students also show their partners a range of compliancy aides which are devices designed to make taking medication easier.

There is a two-week gap between the sessions so students can research the issues that they have been asked to find out. They also write a report which is checked by Mike Ellis-Martin, Senior lecturer in pharmacy and also the technical adviser for the project.

Mike comments, “Active Pharmacy gives students the chance to put into practice the information they are learning. It increases their confidence, it’s fun and at the same time promotes learning between people in the community and the students.”

It’s not only the students that are benefiting – feedback from the patients has been complimentary too. Yvonne Marlow, voluntary services manager for the NHS Trust, praises the service saying, “Student volunteers add great value to what the trust can achieve with paid staff alone. The university students are popular with ward and department managers and they have good skills in talking to our patients, making their hospital experience better.”

James Dattani, one of the pharmacy students involved continues, “Active Student gives you the chance to help others through volunteering opportunities and gives you the chance to learn new things. The Active Pharmacy project has been very enjoyable and hopefully will continue to grow so that more students can benefit in the same way I have.”

As a result of the volunteering and leadership that James has demonstrated with Active Pharmacy, he was recommended to receive an invite to the High Sheriff’s Garden Party and attended the event on 26 June.

Active Pharmacy(1) Students volunteers helping out a local allotment. (2) An Active Pharmacy partnership.

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Just over 20 of our current students got the chance to perform on the stage of the Brighton Dome and we asked a member of one of the dance groups, Liam Cobley, a second year Physical Education QTS BA(Hons) student to share the experience with the readers of The Brighton Effect. (Unfortunately, Liam was unable to take part on the day of the performance itself due to an injury sustained just a few days earlier!)

“Our choreographers for the duration were Lali and Jenny, two dancers from Hofesh’s group and Bruno (also a dancer with the company) who took on the role of rehearsal director for this performance.

“We started learning the material during the Easter holidays and practising for five hours every day for two weeks was pretty intensive – although, in fairness, we did get the weekends off!

Being part of this dance project has been overwhelming. It is great as a trainee PE teacher to learn different types of dance from various choreographers and being taught by someone as big as Hofesh Shechter has been an unbelievable experience.

“The preparation for the performance consisted of both highs and lows, especially as the choreographers refused to let us move on until we had perfected the moves and the timing. Since none of the members of either group were used to this type of dance, at times everyone got a bit frustrated. However, the moment we got it, we all knew our hard work was worth it.

“Having spoken to the other dancers, their personal perception of dancing on the Brighton Dome’s main stage was an incredible experience. As said above, everyone felt the experience more than made up for all the hard work and time commitment we put in.

A smash with Bangers and Mash

“Although the performance was for one night only, we have gone on to use Hofesh’s ideas to make a dance of our own. The main objective of groups such as Kick Start and Fidget is to promote dance in young people’s education and not simply to seek opportunities to perform on big stages in front of audiences.

“So having experienced a different style of contemporary dance other than the form we are used to is a huge advantage for all of us and one we can now take with us into schools.

“I speak on behalf of all the Kick Start and Fidget members when I would like to put forward my thanks to Fiona Smith and Lucy Pocknell, two of our lecturers at Chelsea School, for helping us to take advantage of a once in a lifetime opportunity like this.”

To find out more about these groups and their community work visit www.brighton.ac.uk/chelsea or email development@brighton.ac.uk.

As part of this year’s Brighton Festival, two of our student dance groups (Kick Start and Fidget) from the Chelsea School (situated in Eastbourne) were invited to participate in a specially commissioned dance performance choreographed by Hofesh Shechter called Bangers & Mash.

(1–3) The two dance companies rehearsing their routines prior to the performance at the Brighton Festival.

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Making a differenceDuring the spring, students from the Chelsea School and the School of Education got on the phones to speak to graduates from their school about the Alumni and Friends Fund and to ask for modest regular donations. This was the first time we have used current students to help in our fundraising efforts.

9.5 per cent of graduates spoken to agreed to donate and 90 per cent of graduates were happy to be called again in the future.

The two telephone campaigns were undertaken in order to secure donations to support a number of initiatives in each of the two schools which will offer our students opportunities that they would not otherwise have. This includes providing small grants and bursaries to attend academic conferences or to travel or pay other expenses that may arise from conducting research for their dissertation.

Each school also wants to be able to support some other projects specific to their own activities. The Chelsea School, for example, hopes to be able to provide funding for two dance companies, Fidget and Kick-Start, who go into local schools promoting dance within a PE setting. In the School of Education, state-of-the-art equipment will be purchased that can be taken into its partner schools benefiting both the student teachers and the school pupils themselves.

Recruited and trained a team of 18 student callers.

The majority of the graduates called were very pleased to chat to the students and reminisce about their time studying in Brighton and Eastbourne. The student callers told graduates about some of the exciting developments in each school and talked about upcoming events and activities. The calls also gave us an opportunity to update

the details we hold on our alumni database so that we can continue to keep in regular contact.

We are extremely pleased with the results of these pilot appeals and plan to establish Alumni and Friends Funds at other schools over the coming year via similar telephone campaigns. We always contact graduates before we start making the telephone calls, so do look out for our letter notifying you that we plan to get in touch.

We spoke to 2,000 graduates and raised £8,500 in pledged support.

My time on the phone by Linsey Haggett

“I had the chance to get involved with the Alumni and Friends Fund during my first year here to help raise funds for community projects we’re involved in. It was a superb experience speaking to the graduates of Chelsea School; especially the older students who were here during the war since they had some fantastic stories to tell about their time here. It was lovely to hear what graduates have done since leaving Chelsea School and the careers and life experience they’ve gone on to achieve.

“There were also a lot of recent graduates who have chosen to travel around the world which made me extremely envious. In addition, I was also given advice from former students who studied my course, for example concerned which subjects to take (which I have to say I have already implemented) and future career ideas. I had a great time fundraising, and can’t wait to do it again next year!”

The Alumni and Friends Fund

The Peter James Scholarships

The University of Brighton is pleased to announce the creation of two scholarships in the School of Language, Literature and Communication celebrating the author and film producer Peter James.

Peter, who was born in Brighton and still lives locally, was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters by the university during this summer’s award ceremonies at the end of July.

To commemorate this achievement, Peter’s publishers, Pan Macmillan, very generously offered to fund two scholarship awards to augment the existing provision of university-funded awards to recognise academic excellence.

Each scholarship will be worth £1,000 and will be awarded to the best first year and best second year undergraduate students on the English Language and English Literature BA(Hons) degree.

Professor Raf Salkie, head of the school, offered this comment on the awards, “We are delighted to receive these generous scholarships. We have had several outstanding students on this course over the years and we expect to have many more, and it will be a pleasure to be able to reward them in this way.”

Thanks to the current matched-funding scheme offered by the government, the cost to Pan Macmillan to set up these two scholarships was only £1,350. When the match is applied (at £1 for every £2 donated), this brings the total value of the donation to the university to £2,025.

The staff at Pan MacMillan were initially unaware of this scheme but, once they were told how their donation would unlock additional funds from the government, they were impressed enough to make a higher donation than originally planned. We will announce the names of the students awarded the Peter James Scholarships in the next issue of The Brighton Effect.

If you are interested in funding a named scholarship worth £1,000 per annum, please email development@brighton.ac.uk.

The University of Brighton Ambassadors

The University of Brighton is lucky to be associated with a number of graduates and friends who are clearly proud of the university, respect our outlook and activities, share our values and are interested in the plans we have for the future.

In order to harness this interest, we have created the University of Brighton Ambassadors: a group of some of our most supportive advocates who will help shape and inspire the development of the university and play a part in its success. To become an Ambassador you will need to make a donation worth at least £1,000 each year. The combined annual gifts made by the Ambassadors will be allocated to a specific project, chosen by the Ambassadors themselves through an informal vote.

The University of Brighton Ambassadors has recently been formed and already has a number of members. If you would like more information about the Ambassadors or would like to join the group, please contact Andrew Scanlan, development manager, on +44 (0)1273 643591, or email a.d.scanlan@brighton.ac.uk.

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Although mostly undertaking their courses at other locations, the feelings of achievement and the hard work taken to get there are exactly the same as those experienced by the rest of our alumni community.

Take current student Michael Tierney, who was working in the children’s services department of a local authority. He had always dreamt of doing an arts degree, but had never had the opportunity. All that changed when he won a scholarship at the age of 34 to do a foundation course at Sussex Coast College in Hastings, one of the university’s five local partner colleges. Now, with an exhibition behind him, a whole new world has opened up. He is selling his work, studying for a full degree and plans to do a masters and move onto “a bigger stage”.

Michael is one of many students who have benefited from the University of Brighton’s partnerships with colleges and you may be interested to learn that half of the university’s courses are now taught in partnership with further education institutions around the region of Sussex.

The advantages of foundation degrees for people like Michael are clear. They offer two development opportunities for students – a stepping stone to a better job and a route into higher education.

Colleges offer two-year foundation degrees, many of which are closely linked to local industry with work placements often a part of the course, significantly broadening people’s job opportunities. Students can also top up their foundation degrees to a full three-year degree with further opportunity to progress to postgraduate study.

Brighton offers 58 foundation degrees through its partnerships with Sussex Downs College with campuses in Eastbourne and Lewes, Sussex Coast College Hastings, Plumpton College and City College Brighton and Hove. Courses range from animal science and motor vehicle technology to garden design, street arts performance and event management. Their closeness to local businesses means they are highly flexible and can respond to changing needs, whether in teaching or research.

Currently more than half of the students going on to study for a full degree at the university come from foundation courses. This is expected to grow as figures show that since 2001, when Brighton and several other universities launched their first foundation degrees, the courses have become one of the fastest growing areas of higher education. The university feels that providing this kind of access to higher education is extremely important, especially in the local and indeed wider community.

Professor Stuart Laing, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs, says: “As the development of foundation degrees gathers momentum, they are proving to be a very effective vehicle for widening access by attracting new types of students and developing a highly skilled workforce in key areas of the economy.”

Michael Tierney is convinced his foundation course was a good idea. “I definitely made the right decision to re-enter education at this stage in my life,” he says.

For more information on our partner colleges and the courses available, please visit www.brighton.ac.uk/aboutus/educationpartners.php.

Since the launch of foundation degrees in 2001, a growing number of our alumni have gained their Brighton degrees via study at one of our partner colleges. In fact, some 80 per cent of the university’s foundation degrees are now taught in partnership with further education colleges around the region including Eastbourne, Hastings, Lewes and Brighton & Hove.

we stand:Brighton’s alliances with its partner colleges

Together

(1) Michael Tierney at Hastings College. (2) Sports fitness facilities at Hastings College.(3) City College Brighton and Hove.(4) Sussex Downs College.(5) Plumpton Colleges award-winning wine centre.

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Overview of partnership colleges

City College Brighton and Hove

Nestling in the heart of Brighton, a stone’s throw from the North Laine shopping area, the college was set up over 100 years ago and offers a wide range of courses to a wide range of students. Its foundation degrees include food and culinary arts, tourism and fine art.

Hastings College

Soon to be known as Sussex Coast College, the college will have a new home from September in the Station Plaza next to Hastings station and will form a key part of local regeneration plans. Its foundation degrees vary from illustration and graphic communication to engineering and sport.

Sussex Downs College

The college has two sites, one in Eastbourne and the other in Lewes. Courses range from music production, sport and coaching development to digital media design and complementary healthcare.

Grape expectations: A spotlight on Plumpton CollegePlumpton College has been running courses about wine, and producing award-winning wines, for over 20 years. The Brighton Effect visited the college, set in the beautiful Sussex countryside, to find out more.

Walk into the Plumpton wine centre and you’ll see students working in the lab, a wine tasting lecture being given by the world’s foremost expert on Chilean wines, bottles of Plumpton wine being labelled ready for sale, and if you look out of the window you can see some of the vines. Huge metal vats dominate the winery, alongside traditional oak barrels where wine is gently maturing.

Chris Foss is the head of department. He has worked in the French wine industry in the Entre-Deux-Mers, St-Emilion and Sauternes and has visited most winemaking regions in the world. Chris has been at Plumpton since the beginning of the college’s journey into wine. Hailing from a French wine-making family, he found himself at Plumpton via a microbiology degree at Leeds, the family vineyard in Bordeaux and a PGCE from Wolverhampton. In 1988, local vine growers asked the college to put on some wine-related courses. Soon Chris was running the vineyard and winery, and teaching a range of part-time courses.

The big break came in 1996 when Plumpton started running full-time HND courses awarded by the university. Now they are running foundation degrees – Wine Business and Wine Production – and an honours degree, Viticulture and Oenology, the only wine degree taught in English in Europe. There are 100 full-time and 250 part-time students, and seven members of staff. Between them the staff have a huge amount of experience of making and selling wine in the UK

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and internationally. Two of them, Michael Currivan, assistant winemaker, and Peter Morgan, winemaker, are graduates of Plumpton and therefore of Brighton themselves.

Students benefit not only from the fabulous facilities and the experience and enthusiasm of the wine team but also from their proximity to London, the centre of the wine trade, and to the winemaking regions of France. Regular trips are organised and especially good links are being forged with winemakers in the Champagne region. They are learning new world techniques of wine production (mostly developed in New Zealand and Australia) but are able to contrast and compare these with old world methods by visiting European winemakers, thereby getting a very rounded and broad experience of the major wine markets in the world.

Recent years have seen huge changes to the wine department at Plumpton. A new winery, lab and classroom facilities are in place. Wine sales have reached £60,000 per year. They have achieved a lot and developed a resource that is difficult to match but there is still lots to do. Indeed breakthroughs are already being made on the research side, and one paper has already been published in the American Journal of Viticulture and Oenology. Research being explored includes sustainability programmes for the wine industry, the effects of climate change on English wine growers, and an examination of the aroma characteristics of the Bacchus grape (an aromatic white grape grown at Plumpton). Chris has his eyes set on Plumpton becoming a wine research centre of international reputation.

www.plumpton.ac.uk.

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Imagine starting your first day at university, only to be struck by one of the worst earthquakes in your country’s history. The Brighton Effect hears the story of one Brighton graduate’s road to recovery following an earthquake in his home country of Taiwan.

Taiwan’s aborigines find new voice

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Guaei Casilisi was attending the first day of a masters course at National Chi Nan University when the 1999 earthquake struck central Taiwan. Believed to be the strongest earthquake to have hit the island for a century, the disaster left 3,000 people dead, 10,000 injured and more than 100,000 people homeless after thousands of houses collapsed.

From that day, Guaei joined the survivors of the tragedy as they began the long road to rebuild their city and help the thousands left homeless. Putting his education on hold, he focused his attentions on leading a group of senior social work students to provide tutoring and counselling to aboriginal youths who were living in make shift houses.

He was also employed by the Puli Christian Hospital to supervise the delivery of home care and meals for older and disabled member of Taiwan’s aboriginal communities affected by the disaster.

It was during this time that Guaei realised his passion for not only helping the aboriginal people but also studying the social welfare and policy of the aboriginal tribes of Taiwan too. The welfare of Taiwan’s aboriginal communities was, and still is, close to Guaei’s heart as he too is from an indigenous tribe in Taiwan called the Paiwanese.

“The experience not only increased my understanding of aborigines problems and needs,” says Guaei, “but also justified my decision to devote myself to this profession of social policy.”

It was this devotion which led Guaei to the University of Brighton and became the subject of Guaei’s PhD, which explored the opinions and life experiences of older and disabled aboriginal people in the Paiwanese group. Guaei’s aim was to find out how they experience health care and social care services in different settings.

“My interest came about because not only am I Paiwanese, but my family and relatives face the same situations and problems,” explains Guaei. “Paiwanese older and disabled people are dependent groups within an already disadvantaged population. Their traditional model of care has come under threat, not only from Japanese and Chinese invaders, but also from modernisation, western religion and medicine and the movement of young people to the cities.”

He continues, “Traditional care has neither been adequately replaced by mainstream health and care services nor by those provided through the Council of Indigenous Peoples. Apart from improving the current system, one solution is to empower the Paiwanese through self-government to encourage them to participate in developing and managing suitable services for themselves.

About the PaiwaneseThe Paiwan arrived in Taiwan around 2,500–3,500 years ago. The title, Paiwan people, came from the sixteenth century Dutch who met the tribe for the first time in Paiwan village. Their territory, for quite some time, was located in southern Taiwan and they are now mainly concentrated in Pingtung County. Like other aborigines on the island, the Paiwan formed a tribal community by settling down and inhabiting a region.

Tribal locations are selected on the basis of proximity to a water source and traditional tribal communities are built on the slopes of two sides of a valley. At the end of 2005, the Paiwanese tribes were centred on Mount Tawu, scattered and radiating into Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Taitung Counties, with a population of 77,936. Today, they are the third largest population of aboriginal peoples.

“I’m the first aborigine to obtain a PhD in health and social policy in Taiwan and this has helped me to find a stable and respectful job at the University in Taiwan.”

“However, it is doubtful whether this is a practical and attainable policy in the Taiwanese situation. Taking all considerations into account, a lower-key, self-management approach might provide a better way of empowering aborigines and their health and social care status.”

Guaei began his studies at Brighton at 2004, first studying English at the university’s School of Language, Literature and Communications before embarking on his PhD. Along with adapting to the inevitable cultural changes and language barriers, Guaei also had to cope with leaving behind his wife and child. “Apart from the language, missing my wife and child was the biggest challenge for me. I also missed Taiwanese food – it’s very different, but as my parents said, everything is different except the blue sky!”

Yet whilst he may have been far from family, friends and the Paiwanese community he tells us that his time at Brighton helped to expand this research by helping him to think and look back at the Paiwanese as an outsider and a stranger to his people.

After four years of study here Guaei successfully completed his studies and became the first aborigine to obtain a PhD in health and social policy in Taiwan. And although his findings have not yet implemented social policy in Taiwan, Guaei hopes to continue his work and believes that some day in the future his research will make a difference to the lives of his people.

Now working as a part-time assistant professor in National Dong Hwa University, located in the east of Taiwan, Guaei credits his PhD as helping him to secure his current role, which will become permanent in August of this year. As for the future, Guaei plans to find a full-time job in Kaohsiung or Pingtung County, South Taiwan closer to his hometown.

Main Image: Typical Paiwanese village.(1) Guaei Casilisi at his graduation.

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Truly internationalThe Brighton Graduate Association has alumni in all corners of the globe from Beijing to Barcelona. If you are thinking of moving abroad or want to get in touch with a Brighton graduate in your country, please contact us and we’ll put you in touch. We have representatives in over 92 countries worldwide so chances are, there will be Brighton alumnus living near you.

We are currently looking for BGA representatives in each country so, if you would like to be the University of Brighton Ambassador for your country, do get in touch for more details – alumni@brighton.ac.uk. Our country representatives will be the first point of contact for reunions abroad and will manage in-country alumni groups either electronically or though regular face-to-face meetings with their fellow graduates.

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Roger Homan (1966)

Roger joined Brighton Training College in 1963. It was the first year that men had been able to enrol in the college, having previously been exclusive to women. Roger qualified as a teacher in 1966 and held various teaching posts before returning to Brighton as a tutor. Today he is Brighton’s Professor of Religious Studies.

“As may be expected, the arrival of men at the Brighton Municipal Ladies College was unsettling and they did not always behave. We were among the first men and were quarantined, in what was designated the Men’s Common Room.

“On one occasion we went pond dipping on Black Rock, a stretch of beach strewn with seaweed and mussels, now the Brighton Marina. It was a special treat for the women who were allowed to wear trousers only for pond dipping. One or two of the men brought along some peeled prawns and scattered them in the pools: I remember the tutor’s puzzlement as she thumbed through her volume of The Flora and Fauna of the Seashore and exclaimed upon seeing them ‘Oh no my dear, I don’t think that can be right’.”

“Although I managed to fall short of them in my first year, academic standards were not high back then. The emphasis was much more on appearances, morals and simulating the climate of the infant school, such as collecting autumn leaves for colour corners. In public, you could always identify the trainee teachers either from the blue college scarf striped with gold or by the great rolls of manilla card which we took with us into schools. We always travelled on the bus; only one student, Malcolm Colchester, had his own transport, and it was a bubble car.

“Tutors addressed students as Mr and Miss: social distance and boundaries were clearly delineated. But there was a high level of pastoral care, albeit exercised in ways that would not be appropriate these days. I was once stopped in the Old Steine by the principal’s wife and made to unbutton my shirt lest I should have walked along the seafront without the extra protection of a singlet. I recall that I was found guilty but no sanction was imposed beyond her own health warning.

In public, you could always identify the trainee teachers either from the blue college scarf striped with gold or by the great rolls of manilla card which we took with us into schools.

“In my second year, I was secretary of the Students’ Union and was drawn into some of the crises that beset co-education. One of the girls became pregnant, contrary to the prevailing wisdom that it was not possible unless one were married. The president and I were called in and asked to put it around that she had gone home with a serious migraine.

“Maybe on reflection, then, we were not quite ready for our royal charter and to validate our own degrees. But I look back at that time with a good deal of nostalgia and a sense of irony. At a time when all male students had to wear ties, I think I was the first who did not. Today at Falmer site ties are very unfashionable among male colleagues but I still like to wear mine.”

Lorraine Harrison (1979)

Lorraine graduated from the Brighton College of Education in 1979 with an honours degree in Geography and Education. Ten years later she returned to the university to become a lecturer in the primary department. Today she is the head of the School of Education.

“I applied to Brighton because it had an excellent reputation. At that time, applications were made in order of preference and candidates were informed that the college only offered places to those applicants who had selected Brighton as their first choice. One of my teachers felt that I had made an over-ambitious choice and that I should not envisage gaining a place at such a prestigious training college! I must confess that this made me even more determined to get there.

“Studying at Brighton exceeded my expectations. I had chosen to specialise in geography and was being prepared to teach pupils across the junior and secondary age. The specialist inputs equated to approximately half of my programme and I encountered a wide range of geography tutors; all with different passions and interests. They helped to shape my professional identity and instilled in me a love of learning and passion for my subject.

“Brighton College of Education and then Brighton Polytechnic had a strong sense of community and culture and this was strengthened through the design and content of the curriculum. For me, this was most apparent when studying education – we were expected to participate in sessions, present and justify our views and articulate our emerging philosophy of practice.

Brightonas we remember it...A municipal training college for ladies in the 1950s, a polytechnic in the 1980s and now one of the UK’s largest providers of education and training for student teachers and teachers in the country. The School of Education has been many things to many people in its 100-year history. To celebrate the school’s centenary The Brighton Effect looks back over its history and meets three of the school’s alumni.

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“It is difficult to describe a typical day because the curriculum was so varied – especially as the geography specialists were required to undertake lots of fieldwork. Memorable events included being billeted on a secondary placement during my second year; residential geography field trips to Allington Castle, Church Stretton and Start Point; teaching gymnastics to pupils in the gym; and watching drama productions that were produced in partnership with teachers and pupils from local schools.

“I have lots of fond memories about student life – many of these are associated with field trips. At Allington Castle, we were told that the drawbridge was fully operational and that it was not possible to gain entry after 10.30pm – needless to say, following a few drinks in a local pub, some of us experienced a very long, cold night!

“My tutors were full of character and many had unconventional teaching styles. One of my geography tutors showed slides of his daughter’s horse irrespective of the content of the session! He once demonstrated how inflation worked by flinging five pound notes from his wallet around the room!

“I gained my first teaching post in September 1979 and have continued to contribute to the profession ever since. I became a lecturer in the Primary Department of Brighton Polytechnic, in January 1990 and, since then I have been involved in teacher education and taken on numerous roles.”

Peps Mccrea (2003)

PGCE Mathematics 2003 graduate, Peps Mccrea joined the School of Education last September as a visiting lecturer – just seven years after joining the school as a student. He recalls his first entrance interview at the school.

“To return to where my teaching journey began was never the plan, but I’m glad that it’s worked out that way. I remember coming for my interview, leaving behind four years of an engineering degree to embark on a new career. My dad’s an engineer, my mum a maths teacher, and so after much frowning and head shaking, I was desperately hopeful that I would find something in that day to give me confidence in my new direction.

“And, of course I did. I found a profession that was hugely exciting and challenging and one where you’ve not just got one good reason to get up in the morning, but 30. I remember getting off the train at Falmer and making my way up to a tiny room piled high with books to talk teaching triangles with the legendary principal lecturer Carol Plater. In the afternoon after the interview, I had some time to spare before my return train and made an impromptu visit to the seafront. It was one of those sunny Brighton days where even the people working hard look like they’re on holiday. That settled it – I was coming here, teacher or not.

“Both Carol and also Richard Burnett guided me through the next year. Learning to teach is tough. But at the same time it’s delightfully good for your soul. You really get to see yourself for who you are. And so it’s important to have some good support along the way. That’s what they gave me, and that’s what I’m going to do for the students under my care. In fact, that’s what characterises the School of Education for me.

“I joined Falmer High School a few years ago as head of maths, four years after being there as a placement student. Once again, it wasn’t part of the plan. Whilst I was there, a great teacher, Nick Tate, retired, and that day I asked him to reflect on what he felt were the fundamental facets of a happy career. ‘Good colleagues and bad language’ was the reply. And that’s what characterises the School of Education for me, minus the bad language of course! The depth of social support and interest creates a sense that this place has a considerable role to play in the future of education – quite a responsibility some might say. I say bring it on.”

(1) Rogar Homan.(2) Students pond dipping at Black Rock, 1661.(3) Lorraine Harrison.(4) Peps Mccrea.

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Zyna BoyesTeaching degree, 1965

Have your sayWe’re always keen to hear from our alumni, so send us your photos or tell us about your university memories, recent news and achievements. You might also want to give us your thoughts on the magazine or BGA services.

I have been looking through my ‘stuff’ from years past to try to find a photo for you. Can you believe that I only have one!

Sadly, my big trunk of belongings that was shipped back at the end of my last college term never arrived at my home. It just disappeared into the ether and with it all my beloved art tools and all the college days photographs... except for one lone survivor! I will get a copy made and send it. It’s taken in the studio. I created a horse sculpture for my exhibition and I am working on this in the photograph.

Someone from those years must have some of those amazing group photographs that were taken of the whole college including staff. The photographer had a special camera which started the shot from one end of the assembled mass, and then slowly panned round until the whole group had been covered. Approximately three hundred people!

Karla WinterowdWood, Metal, Ceramics and Plastics BA(Hons), 1989

In July, I will celebrate the fifth year anniversary of my gallery. We also represent artist Alex Watts, 1989 graduate of the Wood, Metal, Ceramics and Plastics course (WMCP) at Brighton Polytechnic.

I came to Brighton in 1986 as an exchange student from Kansas University. Had such a great year at Brighton that I renegotiated to continue my studies at the polytechnic. Alex Watts was the first person I met in the WMCP course. We became fast friends. After college, I returned to the states and resettled in Santa Fe, New Mexico due its exciting arts community.

Alex came to visit me in Santa Fe and relocated here from Hove, England six years ago. She is a practicing studio artist and has been exhibiting her art here successfully and works with me at the gallery two days a week. Who would have known this friendship would have taken us this far?!

Of course a tradition began for one student to stand at one end of the group, and then run behind the group ready to appear triumphantly at the other end! I can still see the guy who did this one year – in my mind’s eye – but can’t for the life of me remember his name!

There are so many stories from those times, as in all college communities. The first year we were living in ‘hostels’...my first year I lived in the sea-front Regency residence, with a balcony, in Eastern Terrace. Wow, it was some hostel!

Considering this was supposed to be The Swinging Sixties, the days of the miniskirt may have hit London, but the dress code for the female students, when I arrived at Brighton Teaching College, was draconian! There to greet us, on the main student notice board, was a decree from Miss Geary, the principal. ‘To the Ladies of Brighton Training College...The wearing of slacks is NOT allowed, unless for a field trip, and then they must be dark, and of a suitable cut.’

(So rock-pooling for sea anemones down at Black Rock was the only time we were seen in pants!)

It all seems so long ago, but yet, only yesterday! I would love the opportunity to reclaim and relive just one of those days. The Brighton experience was life changing for me, as it was for all of us setting out on our teaching careers – our lives.

They were truly wonderful years, but I am not sure that I fully appreciated that then. Isn’t that what we all say ‘looking back’?

I am getting together a list of names of college friends with whom I have lost contact, which I would like to check out with you and I am very anxious to know if you have any plans for any special celebrations for the anniversary? If you do, I want to come over! Could you let me know, so that I can think about making arrangements in time?

Best wishes from an increasingly cold Winnipeg...15 below zero today!

We want to hear from you. For the next edition of The Brighton Effect, we are offering a £25 gift voucher from amazon.com for the star letter or photo sent in by you.

Congratulations to Zyna Boyes who won a £25 gift voucher for her letter published in this edition.

Win a £25 gift voucher!

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1998 Data Protection ActAll data is securely held in the university’s Alumni Database and will be treated confidentially and with sensitivity for the benefit of the University of Brighton and its members. Data may be used in our magazine, on our website (with your permission) and to send you relevant news, events and details of discounts and services. Data may also be used in fundraising programmes (which may include an element of direct marketing). Under the terms of the 1998 Data Protection Act you have the right to object to the use of your data for any of the above purposes. If you do not wish your data to be processed for any of the purposes listed, please let us know.

Write to usBrighton Graduate AssociationDevelopment and Alumni OfficeFREEPOST SEA8437, University of BrightonMithras House, Lewes Road, Brighton, BN2 4ZZ.+44 (0) 1273 642600alumni@brighton.ac.ukwww.brighton.ac.uk/bga

Kenneth Jit LimProduct Innovation and Development MSc, 2003

Time flies, it’s been five years since I left Brighton, and I’ve only just got round to actually sitting down and revisiting my memories of when I was at the university. I guess people are always like this...too busy to slow down and smell the roses.

I’m currently working as a design engineer for Lurgi, a German company which specialises in chemical processing. I guess my dreams did come true after graduating from Brighton as I design entire oil refineries now... my old lecturers would be proud! I could not seem to find them through the university website. I guess they are all retired by now...Dal Koshal, Matthew Phillip, Steve Plummer. I miss them all.

Hamish MielkleElectrical Engineering BEng, 1961

Thank you for sending me The Brighton Effect. It was interesting to read the article about the Chelsea School. I studied electrical engineering at Brighton in the years 1958 to 1961.

As far as I remember, lectures started at 8:30 am and ended at 5pm with no free periods. The rest of the day was occupied by homework and reading books that we could never afford in the library. We had neither the time nor the money for beer in pubs in the evening, though half a pint of mild and a pie was my staple lunch. It was cheaper than going to the canteen.

On Saturdays we could go home at midday. Only when I became a graduate apprentice later, did I enjoy a five-day week. I read with great pain and sympathy about students today who sometimes have a lecture at 9am!

We all arrived punctually for the lectures, sometimes in the main building in Richmond Terrace, but often in houses around the town.

There was a debate whether the bus fare or shoe leather was more economical. Only one third of those who started completed the course in three years.

Our attendance was checked at every lecture and I once committed the sin of missing a lecture as I had to organise something for the social committee.

During the short time at Brighton I was crammed with knowledge to become an electrical engineer. Only late in my graduate apprenticeship afterwards did I start to understand what I had learned.

My training at Brighton was wide and thorough – only aeronautical engineering was missing.

It was the time when the ‘real’ engineers dealt with heavy rotating machinery and transformers using thousands of ampères and their analysis was the major part of the second and third years. My military service had awakened an interest in radar so that I went on to specialise in electronics and telecommunications in my third year.

The main thing was with a three-year degree to learn to learn. I have always made a point of acquiring what the others knew in the various teams in which I have worked.

David Butler Physical Education international student, 1987

After leaving Chelsea College in 1987, I finished my Physical Education degree at the University of Massachusetts in 1989. As an international student at Chelsea, I gained tremendous insight and experiences to enhance my teaching skills and resume. I enjoyed a 12-year career in physical education serving in three

Massachusetts public school districts. In 1999, due to budget reductions, I moved on to open a charity to support children with AIDS through camping and recreational experiences.

The Safe Haven Project was founded in 1994, and I began to work full-time for the charity in

1999. We support hundreds of children with AIDS annually through camping experiences, outings, and recreation programs. I am grateful for my experiences at Chelsea College and remember my days in Eastbourne with great fondness. I enjoy visiting every few years, and look forward to returning again soon.

Paul MinersApplied Chemistry, 1968

I was in the first sandwich course in Applied Chemistry at the College of Technology 1964–1968. I was a mature student which helped me to combine study with ‘management and politics’.

I was the first Rag Chairman of the Federation of Brighton Students in 1965 and COT President twice. Firstly for 1966–1967 and then again for the first half of 1968. Running the union was a great learning curve that increased my entrepreneurial and management

skills and gave me the experience and expertise firstly to join Shell and later to create a petrochemicals group that celebrated 25 years this year. My wife and I have been out of the UK for 36 years and home is now Lutry, Switzerland. I eased into retirement two weeks ago. I was a home wine maker in my early teens and still have a bottle of 1961 Mead in my cellar. I am now an oenophile and gastronome and, indeed, a small Vigneron here in Lutry.

Do please pass my contact details to Chris Foss from Plumpton College, who I would be pleased to meet if he ever visits our discreet but excellent wine area, just voted a UNESCO Heritage Site.

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The team also recently won the interdisciplinary research category at the universitys Research Innovation awards held on 25 June.

Happiness helps control diabetesComplications in diabetes are often due to not being able to control the amount of glucose in the blood to normal or physiological levels. Studies show that when people manage to control their blood glucose levels tightly, they have a greatly reduced risk of complications. The incidence of depression is high in people with diabetes and this has been shown to impact on how well they control the condition.

The team at Brighton are undertaking a study in positive psychology to see if it has an impact on people’s depression and happiness and if this in turn affects how well they control their diabetes. Positive psychology differs from other forms of psychological intervention in that the focus is on being positive and happy.

It is much simpler to deliver and patients perform tasks that have been shown to provide benefit in other chronic medical conditions. In their research, the team will not only look at how happy the participants get but also determine if there is a measurable biochemical affect on their diabetes.

If you are interested in making a donation to advance diabetes research at Brighton, please email development@brighton.ac.uk for more information.

Professor Adrian Bone said: “There has been a lot of evidence about peaks of diabetes following outbreaks of viral infections, but this is the first research to directly direct link the presence of viruses to development of disease.”

Earlier laboratory studies have shown that viruses can bring on the development of diabetes but the importance of the recent work by Professor Bone and the team lies in the translation of these earlier experimental findings into meaningful observations in children and young people with diabetes.

The research has received global news coverage from The South China Post, The New Scientist, to Sky News and most recently the team has recently been contacted by the world’s largest human vaccine manufacturer, Sanofi Pasteur, to discuss the future development of the work.

So what is the next step for the team? “We have been inundated with offers for collaborative work which we are considering,” comments Professor Bone. “However our priority is to identify which enteroviruses are involved, how the beta cells are changed by infection and ultimately to develop an effective vaccine. All this will lead to findings which we hope will drastically reduce the number of people around the world who develop type 1 diabetes, and potentially type 2 diabetes as well.”

Together with colleagues from Peninsula Medical School (a joint medical school between the University’s of Exeter and Plymouth) and the Department of Pathology at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, the Diabetes Research Group (DRG) has found that a common family of viruses (enteroviruses) may be the trigger for the development of many cases of diabetes, particularly in children.

These viruses usually cause symptoms similar to the common cold, vomiting and diarrhoea. However, the research team has now provided clear evidence that they are also found frequently in the pancreas of people who develop diabetes.

The team looked for evidence of the enteroviruses in tissue samples routinely taken during autopsy in 72 children with diabetes and compared that with samples from 50 children without the condition.

Signs of enteroviruses were found in pancreatic tissue from 60 per cent of children with type 1 diabetes, but in hardly any children without the disease. In addition, 40 per cent of adults with type 2 diabetes were found to have signs of the infection in their insulin-producing cells. Although genetics is known to play a fairly substantial role in a person’s risk of developing diabetes, environmental factors must also be involved and the idea of a viral cause of diabetes has been considered for decades.

This new research suggests that enteroviral infection of the beta cells in children with a genetic disposition to type 1 diabetes may trigger a process whereby the body’s immune system identifies beta cells as ‘foreign’ and rejects them, as it would a transplanted organ.

Deciphering diabetes

A major breakthrough in the identification of what causes childhood diabetes would not have been possible without the collaboration between three UK universities and their academics, according to one of the chief researchers on the project, Professor Adrian Bone from the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences.

“What nobody else has done is put the viruses at the scene of the crime. It is extremely exciting. If we can narrow it down to a specific virus or small family of viruses, then we are in business when it comes to developing vaccines.”

(1) Professor Adrian Bone with colleagues Moira Harrison and Wendy Macfarlane.(2) A perfectly spherical 3D stem cell cluster generated using the novel cell culture system developed by the Brighton Diabetes Research Group.(3) Enteroviral infection of beta cells.(4) Professor Adrian Bone (centre) receiving a cheque for £1,100 for the Diabetes Research Group.

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The DRG regularly presents to local diabetes patient and carers groups across the south-east, including organisations in Brighton, Burgess Hill, Hayling Island and Sevenoaks. Some of these groups have recently made generous donations in excess of £5,000 to support the group’s research. Specific examples include the DRG being chosen as the Chairman’s nominated charity for funds raised by the Sevenoaks District Council in 2008/09 and also a large donation from the Burgess Hill and Haywards Heath Diabetes Support Group.

As an illustration of how the DRG works together with local clinicians, patient groups and national organisations, the team were asked by the Burgess Hill Diabetes UK group if they were aware of any children who would benefit from a holiday funded by Diabetes UK. Thanks to the team’s relationship with Dr. Shankar Kanumakula (the paediatric diabetologist at the Royal Sussex County Hospital) and his knowledge of diabetic children in the area, it was possible to ensure a deserving child had the chance to go on a holiday that allowed them to mix with other children with diabetes, give their families a break without worry and to have fun in a safe environment.

As well as this direct form of community involvement, Dr Moira Harrison also

Linking research with the community Type 1diabetes

in brief

Type 1 diabetes is a chronic (lifelong) disease that occurs when the body’s immune system attacks and destroys certain cells in the pancreas.

These cells are called beta cells and normally produce insulin which is a hormone that helps the body move the glucose contained in food throughout the body to be used by cells for energy.

But when these beta cells are destroyed, no insulin can be produced. Therefore the glucose stays in the blood instead where it can cause serious damage to all the organ systems of the body.

People with type 1 diabetes require multiple daily insulin injections for the rest of their lives to stabilise their glucose levels. The condition affects around 300,000 people in the UK, including 20,000 children under the age of 15.

There are a further estimated 440,000 cases of type 1 diabetes in children worldwide, with more than a fifth of these living in Europe.

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interacts with the public through her work with INPUT, the support group for insulin pump users, which travels the UK presenting road shows on insulin pumps and advice on their funding and use. In addition. she represents patient groups for Diabetes UK, NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) and the House of Commons.

Promoting public awareness of the exciting potential of stem cell research in diabetes is vitally important. Dr Wendy Macfarlane will present the State-of-The-Art lecture at the 2009 World Diabetes Congress in Toronto in October, which will be attended by patient groups and diabetes organisations from around the world. Closer to home, Dr Macfarlane recently travelled to Dublin to meet with parents groups from around Ireland, coordinated by the Irish Diabetes Federation. Professor Bone continues to work with the local branches of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (the world’s largest funder of research into diabetes awarding £200million per annum) at their family days to explain recent advances in research and treatment of Type 1 diabetes.

The DRG is proud of the effort it places on working on a community level and seeks to disseminate news of the team’s research amongst the groups it collaborates with as regularly as possible.

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Beck IanGraphic Design 1968I have worked as an illustrator, mainly of books for children. I now write fiction for a variety of ages.

Clubb DavidCivil Engineering BSc 1968I have had a fulfilling career largely in maritime engineering including 10 years overseas in Libya and Malta, nine years as a consultant and six years with a multilateral aid organisation. I have worked for the last 20 years as a port engineer for Portsmouth Commercial Port. Having retired from the port, I have set up an independent consultancy for the last 18 months. I have been married for 39 years and have one daughter.

Cowdrey RogerTeaching 1968I taught for five years then worked for IBM for 20 years. After this, I ran a business support agency for seven years and then went into international consultancy in Bugaria, Turkey, Macedonia, Lebanon and Romania. I spend the majority of the year outside of the UK.

Gardner ElaineTeaching Certificate (Secondary) 1968I taught mathematics at Hundred of Hoo School for 34 years as it went from secondary modern to comprehensive upper school to comprehensive 11–18. I was a pastoral head of year for 13 years and exams officer. I retired at 55 then went to teach at Sir Joseph Williamson’s Mathematical School (grammar) for five more years. I am now retired and am very involved with local history activities in Rochester.

Mounter JoanneCertificate in Education 1969I have taught in London and Worthing. I have two daughters and a son and two small grandsons. I am doing both supply teaching in Lincolnshire and private tuition in maths. I am enjoying the balance of part-time work and pursuing interests, in particular, researching my family history.

Say SusanPrimary Education 1969I taught in England before moving to South Africa in 1975. I taught at a private convent school there before opening a school of my own. In 1987, we moved to the USA. We have lived in North Carolina, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Georgia and I have followed various paths – becoming a realtor at one point, teaching and then following my passion in gardening to get certification as a master gardener. I now work as a docent at an arboretum and botanical garden.

Fitzjohn SusanCertificate in Education (Primary) 1966I initially taught in Hove, before moving to Sandwell and teaching in Dudley. I later moved and taught in a junior school in Essex. Eventually I moved back to Worcestershire where I enjoyed primary headship in two schools for twenty years. I retired from full-time employment in August 2007 but have continued to enjoy working with church schools as a diocesan consultant and SIAS Inspector.

McEwan ChrisArt and Design BA(Hons) 1966I received an MA at the Royal College of Art after graduating from Brighton. I have worked as a freelance illustrator ever since, including illustration for animation, advertising, packaging, editorial and children’s books in the UK, Europe and the USA. I was a part-time lecturer in illustration and design at University of Brighton for 17 years, then at Northbrook and currently at Kingston University.

Sewell RonApplied Physics 1966As a result of my studies at what was then Brighton College of Technology, I went on to spend 10 years learning more about gas physics with several companies. After that, using the knowledge gained, I was able to start a company designing and manufacturing advanced accessories for high tech welding applications.

1950sSears AnneCertificate in Education (Infant) 1957After about thirty years in infant teaching, I trained to teach dyslexic students and obtained the RSA Diploma for Teachers of Special Learning Difficulties/Dyslexia. I then joined my husband at the Medway Dyslexia Centre, Rochester. In due time we became involved in specialist teacher training, in addition to teaching pupils of all ages and conducting assessments.

Higgins Jean Certificate in Education (Junior) 1959I have been living in Canada since 1964. I graduated from Ottawa University with a degree in English Literature and as a specialist in special education. I am married with two daughters and three grandchildren. I have been operating my own business for the past 12 years and founded a private elementary school in 1966 for children 4–14. I love to hear from college friends.

Spear EvelynCertificate in Education 1959I have spent my working career teaching in the primary sector, both in the UK and abroad. I am married with three children and five grandchildren. I have lived in the West Country for the last 30 years.

1960sBoyes CluzynaCertificate in Education 1965After teaching for two years in the UK, I emigrated to Canada. I taught at a variety of age levels, including a multigraded country school experience. The latter years of my career were spent as a teaching principal (headmistress), which was wonderful! After an early retirement, I entered the artisan world as a jewellery maker and later as a photographer. I would love to hear from any of the people I trained with all those years ago!

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Jean Higgins Ron Sewell

We are always delighted to receive your news and updates for possible inclusion in the class notes section. We will include all the appropriate entries we have space for but reserve the right to review and edit the information you submit. The news featured here was gathered over the past few months and was accurate at the time we received it. We know this one of the most popular parts of the magazine so see if you recognise anyone from your time here.

Where are you now?

The Brighton E

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1980sArkle SarahLibrary and Information Studies BA(Hons) 1981Having chartered in public library services, I worked for 18 years in the Bedfordshire Schools Library Service before moving to the University of Bedfordshire.

Marsh JillLibrarianship and Modern Language 1981I spent nine years in London working in the library of the British Film Institute as an indexer. I then had a break from (paid!) employment, spending time at home with my two sons. For the last 10 years I have been working part-time back in my home town in a branch library. I hope to make a visit to Brighton sometime soon and revisit some favourite places.

Paskins GrantBusiness Studies BA(Hons) 1981I set up and directed a ski company which I sold to Air Europe. Ditto a recruitment company in 2004. Currently director of two companies – one recruitment and one internet company.

Pottow GlennBusiness Studies BA(Hons) 1983I have worked in banking and insurance in London and overseas. I retired in 1998. I have been chairman of a housing association for several years. I have four children, two boys and two girls. Been married 21 times, sorry been married for 21 years! Remain a Brighton fan, still have a season ticket.

Suen PeterPharmacy BSc(Hons) 1983In July 1983, I started my extremely busy and demanding pre-registration training at a small retail pharmacy chain with an air of pride and confidence. However, it did not take longer than two days for me to find out how little I knew. 25 years down the road, work in London, Australia and Hong Kong has enlightened me as to how we could pull the stagnant community pharmacy back on its feet and move forward to make our dream come true.

Nicholas DeborahApplied Language BA 1987, PGCE 1993To cut a rather long story short, I eventually found my way into primary school teaching and returned to Falmer to complete my PGCE. My degree studies were the best possible foundation to becoming a primary school teacher. How can you teach a child to read without having studied the processes everyone goes through in acquiring a language? I retain a strong fascination for language and hope to return to future study (perhaps in retirement!)

Flatman ClareThree-Dimensional Crafts BA(Hons) 1989I have owned two successful catering businesses. I have worked in pottery for five years and I am currently working for a New Zealand potter, Kevin Kilsby.

Johnson HowardCertificate in Education (Secondary) 1973After nine years as a secondary teacher, I set up the media company Fern Creative Media in 1980. Since that time, I have produced corporate and broadcast programmes for clients in the UK, Europe and the USA.

Obaid Sallami AliPharmacy 1973I served in the government office as deputy minister for public health for pharmacy affairs until 2000. I worked with the World Health Organisation as a temporary consultant in drug policies and related fields. I published papers on rational use of drugs, quantification of drug needs and a book on Treatment Guidelines for Community Pharmacists.

Dodds CarolynGraphic Design BA(Hons) 1974I have been a practising artist-printmaker all these years. I worked for a long time teaching/lecturing in fine arts in various institutions in Australia. Recently I won the Best in Show award at a large art exhibition organised by Rotary in Brisbane – not far from where I live – with a lino cut titled, They were never wrong... I’m also a volunteer fire-fighter and that brings quite a bit of excitement into my life. I visit the UK from time to time and will hope to have some contact with the university and alumni when next in England.

Peters ShirleyFine Art Printmaking BA(Hons) 1974On graduating, I started a teaching course but left and took up silversmithing part-time. I was invited to join a new 3D design course and eventually attended part-time for the full three years. I then opened my own gallery/workshop in silversmithing in Upper St James’s Street, Brighton. I have worked in silversmithing part-time from home and in various locations around the country and have now retired.

Leeming JudithMathematics and Education BEd 1976I taught in a variety of middle and primary schools in Warwickshire, Kent and Suffolk before moving to North Yorkshire with my husband and children. I taught in several small primaries in the Yorkshire Dales before becoming a deputy head at Hawes Primary in Wensleydale and then head teacher at Horton-in-Ribblesdale. Looking forward to retirement in the future as my husband retires this summer – travelling around the world is in my mind!

Hatch KathleenEducation with French BEd 1979I have taught French since graduating, mainly in the independent sector. Now I am director of studies at a prep school on the Essex/Suffolk border. We also owned and ran our own pub for 10 years. I have been married to Phil for 28 years, no children but one saluki/lurcher dog – marginally less trouble!

1970sBarrand RichardPhysical Education BEd 1971I taught PE in London with promotion through the pastoral system to vice principal in a comprehensive. I took early retirement in 2001 and ran a B&B in the Forest of Dean for five years. Now enjoying ourselves!

Betts SheilaArt and Design Diploma 1972I worked as a typographical layout artist at Boots head office in Nottingham. I moved to Cambridge in 1976 where I worked for a few years at a printing company gaining experience in all types of graphic design/artwork/illustration/printing methods. After my first child was born, I went freelance and worked from home for over 20 years, mainly on science journal illustration and educational books. By 2003, I wanted to get out into a workplace environment and moved into administration. I am now president’s PA and college secretary at Wolfson College, Cambridge.

Blake KayPhysical Education BA(Hons) 1972I taught up until late ‘90s. Then moved to Pembrokeshire for seven years having bought a leisure park which we brought up to a 5* rating. We sold it in 2005 and my husband and I moved back to Weston-super-Mare to be with family and friends.

Collard DavidCertificate in Education 1972I taught in Brighton and West Sussex. I moved into publishing and printing in ‘83 and had two companies until ‘91. I then joined the school inspectorate and am now working full-time for Tribal group, the Ofsted contractor inspecting in the south and the Midlands. Never thought my career would take the path it did and still have to pinch myself on occasions. Great life!

Hatton JuneCertificate in Education 1972I was married in 1973 and immigrated to South Africa. I started my own business with my husband in 1992 in housing development and completed a degree in Town and Regional Planning in 2002. I was registered as a professional construction project manager in 2003 and currently work as a project manager for housing construction for the platinum mines.

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Roger Cowdrey

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Lockett MarkDesign and Technology PGCE 1994I worked in the UK for two years as a design technology teacher. Married an Australian girl, moved to the Gold Coast in Queensland and have been teaching technology and robotics for 11 years in a private boys’ school on the Gold Coast.

Beauvoisin-Brown AntoniaApplied Language BA(Hons) 1995I worked for American Express in Brighton in the IT department. I spent a rewarding 10 years working my way up to operational leader before moving to the South of France with my family. I then set up my own company offering relocation and integration advice to expats and the local community as well as creating a bilingual international activity centre for families.

Haseltine SueArt and Design PGCE 1995I worked as a lecturer and course leader for five years at Filton College in Bristol on the A-level art and design course. Whilst there, in my last two years I also studied an HNC in Graphic Communication and subsequently left the college to take up a place on the certificate in Digital Arts at Sussex University. Since then, I have been working as a self-employed graphic designer, artist and tutor.

Humphrey AdamCivil Engineering MEng 1995I spent three years working in Surrey for a small practice where I learnt the basics of being a structural engineer. After missing the coast, I decided to move back to the seaside and started a new job for Hemsley Orrell Partnership, one of the largest privately owned consultancy firms in the area. I have recently been promoted to director and help manage the 40-strong firm alongside three other directors (all Brighton graduates!). We pride ourselves on our learning and training opportunities and are involved in many University of Brighton activities including the industrial advisory board, giving lectures, student awards and careers fairs.

Morgan DebraComputing and Information Systems BA(Hons) 1995I worked in a software house for seven years in a number of areas including helpdesk, programming, training, testing and implementation of telecoms systems. Then I moved onto local government childrens’ services where I collect, analyse and report on performance of services provided to the public.

Pallett DarrenPhysical Education with QTS BA(Hons)I travelled until 1998 and emigrated in 1999. Set up a business flying hot air balloons over the Hunter Valley Vineyards, Australia in 2000. I come back to the UK every year.

Woodman DavidAccounting and Finance BA(Hons) 1992I live with my partner in Bristol and have mainly been studying for legal qualifications, working and playing rugby and cricket when time and injuries allow. I qualified as a solicitor in 1997 and set up my own practice in 2002 specialising in criminal law. I am a proud member of BURRPS (Brighton University retired rugby players society) and have returned every other year since graduating for the ‘wings memorial’ reunion dinner.

Capadona RoneldaLater Primary BEd(Hons) 1993I emigrated to Tempe, USA, and began teaching at Goodman Elementary. I later received a Masters of Curriculum Instruction and Administrative Certificate from Northern Arizona University. It is my thirteenth year with the Chandler Unified School District. I have served as a sixth, seventh, and eighth grade teacher, and worked at numerous sites as an instructional specialist. I am currently the principal at Sanborn Elementary School.

Edwards David Secondary Physical Education With Dance BEd(Hons) 1993Since graduating, I have worked in the Middle East, Holland and found a wife in Canada! I came home and decided upon preparatory education and have now worked my way to headship. I am very lucky to be able to run a great little school and see my children grow up at the same time.

Newman AnitaElectronic Engineering BEng 1993I have been with Ericsson since I graduated. I have moved through a number of positions within the company and have had great opportunities to travel. I now head a team of solution managers, designing telecommunication networks and services. There are a few Brighton graduates at Ericsson so we get to catch up frequently. Outside of work my main hobby is music and I play for various local groups.

Cappelletti MarcelloEuropean Business with Technology BSc(Hons) 1994I started working for UDV (spirits company leader) in Italy in the manufacturing area. After three years I joined Del Monte as logistics and planning manager and after seven years I joined Italia Zuccheri Commerciale in 2007, the Italian leader in the sugar business. Everywhere I went they appreciated the experience in a foreign university.

Jones AndrewExercise Physiology PhD 1994After my PhD degree, I did post-doctoral research in Los Angeles before returning to the UK as a senior lecturer in exercise physiology at Manchester Metropolitan University (1997). I became reader (2001) and professor (2004) of Applied Physiology and then moved to Exeter University as a professor in 2005.

1990sCameron StewartMechanical Engineering BEng(Hons) 1990I joined British Gas as an engineering officer in the planning department where I stayed for a number of years. I then took a career break to teach business English in Italy and South America. Having returned to the UK, I am working as a sales engineer in Bath.

Shakespeare RosemaryInformation and Library Studies BA(Hons) 1990I worked in the computer field until seven years ago when I became a librarian, specialising first in systems and then becoming a cataloguer. I fell into management and can’t seem to get away from it. I work part-time in a job-share at the College of Law. I lived for 11 years in Australia, my Brighton degrees helped to qualify me for migration.

Ng Chan LeungMechanical Engineering BEng(Hons) 1991I worked in the field of building services in Hong Kong and was responsible in monitoring some building projects in the area of heat, ventilation and air conditioning. In 1993, I joined the Hong Kong Fire Services Department as a probationary station officer and am now a senior station officer in the Policy Division of the Licensing and Certification command. During these years it has been exciting and meaningful as the work ranges from fire fighting to fire prevention and policy making.

Price DeborahLater Primary Years PGCE 1991After training as a primary school teacher in later years, I have moved more into early years and worked as an Ofsted inspector, development worker, teaching 16–18 year olds and now working part-time at the university and part-time with my own training company. I am back in B block and some of the same people are still here!

Fairchild RuthCombined Sciences BSc(Hons) 1992Went on to do a PGCE at the University of Sussex. I became a science teacher in 1993 and been teaching ever since, including teaching in America for two years and am now head of science at a large secondary school. Just signed up to study for a masters of education. Husband and children doing well, daughter just about to graduate from Brighton!

Holland MichaelRegional and Local History MA 1992I recently published a book entitled Cholera and Conflict: 19th Century Cholera and its Social Consequences. It is based on a national research project into the 1832 and 1849 cholera pandemics. The research was funded by Thackray Medical Foundation and performed under the auspices of Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine.

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Lewis RichardMathematics for Management BSc(Hons) 2001Outside work it’s very simple really, I’m now married and a dad – which are both great. I’ve had a number of roles since graduating. I missed out on a graduate scheme at British Airways because of September 11. Since then I’ve been working my way up the ladder, firstly in Orange, then in a consultancy called ClarityBlue (which has now been bought by Experian). I’ve worked with most of the big banks and mobile phone companies, some big insurers and a main client was Sky. Most recently, I’ve joined a small new company called Model Citizens to help them grow; again our focus is on big banks, telcos and retailers.

Peel Fiona Business Studies BA(Hons) 2001I took a year out to travel to China, Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Bali, Australia, New Zealand, the Cook Islands, French Polynesia, America, Guatemala and then Mexico. I then moved to America in 2003 and started a position as a PR account executive with a public relations agency, in St. Louis, Missouri. I later accepted a position with Anheuser-Busch, Cos. (Budweiser) in 2005 as a communications specialist focusing on sports marketing and advertising PR for the company’s domestic US brands.

Tsoumanis PanagiotisMedia-Assisted Language Teaching/Learning MA 2001I have been working as a teacher of English in the sector of adult education. To be more specific, I work in a second chance school in Peristeri, Athens which is aimed at all those adults (aged 18–50) who did not have the chance to complete their basic education. It is really challenging as well as rewarding working and getting to know all those courageous people who try really hard to achieve their goal. Various experiencial and collaborative techniques are included in the teaching-learning process.

Stathi AngelikiInternational Business BA(Hons) 2002Schroders is the third asset management company I have worked for since graduation. Asset management is a great industry to work for and not very stressful hours like investment banking. I would definitely recommend this sector for future graduates. I am currently working at Schroders in London as a relationship manager responsible for the wholesale distribution of our funds to platforms of major financial institutions with a global presence.

Fash PaulaIllustration BA(Hons) 2002I used photography as my principle medium on the BA Illustration course and a year or so after graduating. I started as a freelance photographer. Initially working with local production company NTSH.co.uk, I quickly built on my knowledge and skills and started other freelance projects. I currently work with a multitude of clients and companies and really enjoy what I do.

2000sIshaaq HuwaidaInternational Business BA(Hons) 2000The degree helped me a lot in that it gave me a lot of exposure. The system taught me to think on my feet and be flexible in my environment, Perfect really because my first job took me to Paris to set up a Canadian pharmaceutical company in the UK. I’ve since worked in the education, media and travel industries. Had a brief spell in politics and currently wearing two hats – an analyst at a government think tank by day and a entrepreneur by night.

Morris DenisePrimary Education – Early Years with QTS BA(Hons) 2000I taught full-time until babies three and four arrived! I then taught part-time and undertook an MA in Education (of course!) I also completed specialist teaching qualifications enabling me to become an Associate Member of the British Dyslexia Association (AMBDA). I now run a dyslexia consultancy to teach and assess children and young people with dyslexia-type difficulties. My wonderful Irish Setter Bonnie keeps me sane and is soon to have a new friend!

Flanagan ChristopherFine Art MA 2001I continued to work as an artist and submitted work to various exhibitions and organisations. In 2007, I moved to Italy where I have a studio in a tower commanding a wonderful view of the Piemonte countryside. I continue to work and develop as an artist, keeping contact with fellow artists and friends through the internet.

Harris VictoriaPrimary Education – Later Years with QTS BA(Hons) 2001I worked at a mainstream primary school in Essex teaching year three for two years. I then went into special educational needs teaching children with autistic spectrum disorders, I gained a Postgrad Diploma in Childhood Autism Emotional and Behavioural Disorders and did some advisory work with local mainstream primary teaching students for three years. In September 2007, my partner and I rented out our flat and headed off on our travels! We spent a year in New Zealand on a working holiday and returned to the UK via Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia!

Kalsi JasvinderComputing and Information Systems BA(Hons) 2001I have now been married for just over two and a half years. I have worked in some big investment banks and am currently settled in my current position with good prospects in Canary Wharf, London. I have been mentoring 16–19 year old students into encouraging them to opt for a university degree as it is something that has given me a great boost in my career. I have been travelling as well and enjoyed trips to Kenya, Dubai, the Maldives and Australia.

Tuff CatherinePodiatry BSc(Hons) 1995I spent 10 exciting months treating the passengers and crew onboard the Queen Elizabeth 2 cruise ship whilst seeing the world. After coming back to land, I lived in York, Edinburgh and London all of which are great and fun cities. I mainly worked for the NHS but I also spent a couple of years as a lecturer with the University of East London. I live in Southampton now and have set up as a private podiatrist.

Jardine KatherineManagement and Public Policy BA(Hons) 1996I went on to study in London for a law degree part-time (as if one wasn’t enough!) and finally qualified as a solicitor in September 2005. I then joined my local borough council and happily stepped down a pace or two from the hectic legal world of the City!

Knight JennySocial and Public Policy MA 1996I have been invited to speak on my topic to leaders and managers from a range of organisations and have secured high profile national work related to leadership and management. I am currently planning to write a book about organisational culture/climate, based on my doctoral findings.

Parkyn LenPublic Administration HND 1997Been in special education since 1978 working with SLD/PMCLD learners in the post-16 and 19 sectors. I have gained three degrees and other professional qualifications over the last three decades. I have written nationally and internationally on some 90+ occasions. I am working on three books at the moment to keep me busy.

Barter LouiseGraphic Design BA(Hons) 1998I moved to London where I worked as a graphic designer for two years before relocating to Hampshire with my partner Alex, who I met while studying at Brighton. I continued to work in graphic design locally until 2003 when we had our first child, Kit. Alex and I got hitched in 2004.

Abdul Halim ShamsulArchitecture Diploma 1999I have been working in Kuala Lumpur since my return from the UK. I’ve kept in touch with other graduates here in Malaysia. There are a few of us here and we do meet up at the Brighton Malaysia chapter gathering. I’d like to try and locate my classmates as it has been quite a while since I’ve heard from them!

Jenny Knight Len Parkyn

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Brand SimonGeneral Management MBA 2005I am responsible for ongoing technical support for around half of the broadcast systems used by Red Bee Media. I manage a team of around 20 technical staff. The MBA I completed at Brighton is extremely helpful every single day. Many of the modules covered, such as change management and managing professionals, are directly relevant in my work.

Hutchins ClaireEnvironmental Sciences BSc(Hons) 2005I undertook an MSc with Imperial College London. For my MSc thesis, I was lucky enough to get a placement with CEH in Dorset where I realised that what I really want to do is work in research. After my MSc, I took a year out while I looked for the right PhD for me which I started at Leeds University.

Lasson StephanieTourism Management BA(Hons) 2005I have done an internship at the German Chamber of Commerce in Madrid, Spain in the member service/PR/events department.

McNaught DanielComputer Science BSc(Hons) 2005I started working with an IT Consultancy to small-and-medium businesses based in Shoreham-by-Sea. This was a helpful and challenging drop in the deep end of the IT consulting industry. Following this, I worked part-time for a business internet service provider based in Brighton. Shortly after starting here, I received an offer from a consultancy in Worthing who work with music technology and IT for education, and now provide solutions up and down the UK. I’m very happy with the job and have good prospects for the future.

Antoniou MariaProject Management for Construction (PT) MSc 2006I’m currently working for Mott MacDonald as a structural engineer in the buildings division. I have been involved in various projects challenging myself. I had the opportunity to work in Dubai for few months. An excellent experience!

Gibbs PaulGeography BSc(Hons) 2006After many applications and what felt like a lifetime of living at home (four months), I was offered a job working for Black and Veatch in Peterborough. Black and Veatch are environmental and engineering consultants and at present have offices based in over 14 different countries across the world. The job offers me endless potential to gain experience and work in a number of different locations.

Greve MichaelArchitectural Technology BSc(Hons) 2006I have been employed by a small architectural practice and we are fortunate to deal with various types of projects, ranging from mixed use developments, restaurants, recording studios and residential.

Amos AlisonAdult Nursing PDRN 2004I have completed a rotation programme involving surgical and medical nursing. I have been working on the emergency assessment ward which I am really enjoying. I have returned to university, completing my mentorship course at level 3 and am currently on the new Acute Cancer Care course at level 3. Once my degree pathway is finished, I would like to settle into a palliative care role.

Brooker ZeynepBiological Sciences BSc(Hons) 2004I took up a place on a postgraduate course in television journalism at City University London. While I had been in university, I had taken part in student radio and a student newspaper at Falmer and this was a big help with getting into the journalism course. I now work as a TV production manager and I feel that the experience I gained in studying a science subject boosted my numerical and computer skills so that I am able to cope with managing budgets. I had a great time at the University of Brighton.

Clifford-Banks TamsenBusiness Studies BA(Hons) 2004I moved to Australia and found a great position in marketing for the Faculty of Business and Informatics (FBI) at Central Queensland University. I now work in the Office of Development and Graduate Relations, as a community engagement officer, so I am responsible for outgoing sponsorship, and ensuring that the university is engaging in mutually beneficial interactions with the community and industry.

Hume RebeccaInformation and Media Studies BA(Hons) 2004I was the Vice-President Education and Equalities for the Students’ Union from 2004–2006. I took a job in Brighton working for migrant helpline as a support/integration worker with a group of Ethiopian refugees who came to Brighton under the UNCR/Home Office funded Gateway Protection Programme. I am also part of a group who has set up community IT projects in Kenya where we are piloting our programme.

Lacey GavinBuilding Surveying BSc(Hons) 2004I became Chartered in June 2006 through following the RICS Assessment of Professional Competence (APC). One of the senior partners of the firm I worked for during my APC left to start another practice and subsequently asked me to join him. In January 2008, I was made a director and offered an investment opportunity in the company.

Spicer ChristineSubject Conversion (Mathematics) PGCE 2004I have worked at Mascalls school in Paddock Wood, Kent as a maths teacher and now work with the West Kent Health Needs Education Service tutoring sick kids in their own homes or in one of the satellite units. I am now teaching both maths and science.

Heath GeraldEducation Inset MA 2002I applied for a ‘dream’ teaching post not a million miles away from Brighton. It might have just been co-incidental, but I was appointed, I am still there and I’m happy in the post.

Paggios DimitriosBusiness Studies BA(Hons) 2002I came back to Greece and completed an MBA course specialised in Total Quality Management (TQM) at the University of Peraus in Greece. I have been working as a part-time lecturer in accounting department at the Technological Institute of Peraus since October 2005. I am currently working for Bosch and Siemens Home Appliances Group (B/S/H) at the sales planning and distribution department.

Walton RichardComputing and Information Systems BA(Hons) 2002In my search for a stimulating and career-oriented role, I travelled to Brussels to join forces with a small, but highly technical soft-switch manufacturer where past lectures on telecoms from the excellent Saeed Malekshahi came to life! Moving on after two years, I recently started a new role for the office supplies company, Staples, working as a functional analyst within their data warehousing team. Every day is an exciting challenge, and every day I find I’m using the skills learnt during my time at University of Brighton .

Wells MariaInformation and Media Studies BA(Hons) 2002After having a second little boy (the first being half way through my course) I spent a short amount of time working at a blackberry farm before getting my career back on track. I now run a local arts charity established in 2003, working with disengaged/disadvantaged local people and groups. I am responsible for all fundraising, day-to-day management, community development as well as arts management and facilitation.

Hood TobyBusiness Administration (HND) BA(Hons) 2003I joined the Army which has been my main preoccupation. I have undertaken the 44-week commissioning course at RMA Sandhurst and have also completed the gruelling All Arms Commando course. I have spent a good part of the past six years out of the country on exercise and on an operational tour to Afghanistan. It has been a busy but rewarding time!

Leung SzewanFine Art Painting BA(Hons) 2003I returned to Hong Kong and worked in a contemporary art gallery as their marketing executive for two years. I have joined a new private art foundation in Hong Kong as their artistic director for international programmes.

Meyern ShelleyLeisure And Sport Studies BA(Hons) 2003I have had various roles, but am now sports development manager for Brighton & Hove Council. This includes working on the Brighton & Hove TAKEPART International Festival of Sport.

STOP PRESS

The University of Chichester recently honoured Professor Margaret Talbot OBE, graduate of Chelsea College of Physical Education 1968, presenting her with an honorary degree.

Margaret has provided a powerful and effective voice in improving access to and quality of physical education and sport, at home and overseas, particularly for all children, women and girls. She is currently President of the International Council of Sports’ Science and Physical Education and Chief Executive of the Association for Physical Education. Margaret was a member of the Department for Education and Sport Working Group that developed the National Curriculum for Physical Education in 1991 and she continues to work to develop new programmers for physical education and school sport at home and internationally.

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Cheng YutingArchitecture BA(Hons) 2008I volunteered at the Beijing 2008 Olympics for two weeks as an overseas volunteer, working at the softball stadium. Got to see women’s football and synchronised swimming for free! Now I am working in a Brighton architect’s practice which focuses on education and health care buildings.

Evans JonathanMathematics BSc(Hons) 2008I have started working for the pharmaceutical company GSK as an analyst for the sales and marketing operations department looking at product performance and representative performance. I have already used many of the skills picked up in my degree.

Francis Benjamin History of Design Culture and Society BA(Hons) 2008 I capitalised on my work experience completed while at university to get a job in the public sector at a charity in London. I was very enthusiastic about gaining experience in public policy organisations and the company I currently work for has helped me to further develop my skills from university. The project is to last two years and will provide me with the funds to start a masters degree in public policy management.

Grimmett SamanthaApplied Psychology and Sociology BA(Hons) 2007I have taken up the position of grants assistant at a major grant maker in the City. It’s a really diverse job, with lots of training and opportunities for development. I wanted to work in the third sector because of the rewarding nature of the work and thought I would have to start in fundraising, so I’m really please to have found work within a foundation and particularly one as prestigious as mine.

Harwood GuyInternational Finance and Capital Markets BA(Hons) 2007I had a fantastic time at Brighton University. I have since secured a very good job at American Express as a financial analyst.

Hollingworth AlexanderDigital Music BA(Hons) 2007I have been working as a freelance sound engineer in various venues and theatres in Sussex. This pays the bills and gives me enough free time to concentrate on my creative pursuits.

Pawsey MarkGraduate Certificate In Business Management 2007I now have an extensive new network of colleagues (there were 18 of us sponsored by the Pensions Regulator) and a better understanding not only of my organisation and the environment within which it functions, but a greater appreciation of my role and where I want to take it next. As a mature student, I really enjoyed this opportunity and will be looking for other chances to develop professionally – the MBA option looks promising.

Wood LauraNursing BSc(Hons) 2007I spent six months on an adolescent ward. I am currently working as a community staff nurse for a local hospice, visiting children with terminal or life-threatening conditions and providing care for them and their families.

Barber RichardBusiness Studies BA(Hons) 2008I immediately joined Diabetes UK, the largest funder of diabetes research (apart from the NHS) in the UK. I am currently in the marketing team, based in Camden Town, London and I am responsible for acquisition and retention of our ever growing member base through direct mail marketing campaigns. A fantastic role within a charity making a difference to the lives of 2.5 million people in the UK with the condition.

Butler LucyPhysical Education with QTS BA(Hons) 2008Throughout the summer, I worked full-time for Fulham Football Club and won Fulham Football Coach of the Year. That was a great achievement especially for a female secondary school PE teacher, whose work place is dominated by football mad males. I then started working full-time at Coombe Girls School.

McAteer MaureenAdult Nursing PRDN 2006My last placement was my management placement on the oncology ward. I worked very hard during my time there and when a job opportunity came up, the ward sister asked me to apply. I’m very pleased to say that I was offered the job and I have been working there since qualifying as a staff nurse.

Mears RebeccaFine Art Painting BA(Hons) 2006I completed two internships at Zoo Art Fair in 2006 and 2007. I worked as the finance director of David Risley Gallery for two years during which time I was selected to undertake a year-long residency at the Florence Trust, where I was awarded the Fenton Arts Trust Bursary for an Emerging British Artist. I now work for a new gallery, Poppy Sebire.

Proano Bustamante FernandoGeneral Management MBA 2006I had the opportunity to join Pricewaterhouse Coopers in London. It was a great experience to work for the biggest and most successful consulting company in the world. After two years, a new opportunity came along and I am currently working for a big corporation with operations globally.

Valiotis ApostolosCivil Engineering MSc 2006I am working in the construction industry as a civil engineer and I am very pleased with my progress. Finally, I would like to say that the years that I spent at Brighton were the best of my life so far and if I could go back in time I would again choose Brighton to study.

Wheeler AmyEnvironmental Sciences BSc(Hons) 2006I headed off to Norfolk to become an environmental instructor. I now lead environmental field study groups around north Norfolk, teaching school groups – physical geography, biology, ecology and even urban geography. It has been great fun. I have learnt a lot and am almost continuing the university life, living with around 20 young vibrant people.

Rebecca Mears Laura WoodSamantha Grimmett Benjamin Francis

Send in your own class notes by emailing alumni@brighton.ac.uk.

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Late nights, early mornings meetings, making life-changing decisions are all in a day’s work for the president of the Students’ Union. We asked a former Students’ Union president, Jacqui Oldham (1999) and current president, Phil Gilks to describe their typical days and surprisingly their responses were remarkably similar.

Jacqui Oldham Accounting and Finance, BA(Hons) 1997

Typical days in the Students’ Union rarely happen at the best of times. Throughout the two years I spent as University of Brighton Students’ Union president, I certainly experienced a full range of challenges and dilemmas. Thankfully, in the main, these were both personally rewarding and fantastic preparation for work. I can certainly say that trying to remember back to a normal day is difficult. Against a background of national debate on tuition fees, rewriting union constitutions, relaunching student magazines and the enduring question of how we continued to meet the needs of undergraduate and mature students alike

I was based out of the Grand Parade site at a time of premises enhancements and was lucky enough to have refurbished Students’ Union offices in which to carry out my role. Experiencing the cultural differences between the different campuses when travelling around was one of the most enjoyable elements. From central Brighton and the arts to Chelsea School and the sports campus, each had a distinct buzz and trying to capture that in our day-to-day work and reflect everyone’s best interests was a challenge I am sure the current Students’ Union sabbaticals still face.

Early morning starts were normal, with 8am university Board of Governors meetings. These considered the current actions and future strategic development of the university and

appropriate student views as well as Students’ Union development plans. There were also an excellent range of biscuits available at these meetings which have still not been bettered in my work meetings to this day!

Any sabbatical role in the Students’ Union meant regular meetings, canvassing students and planning to ensure the Students’ Union was run as effectively as possible as well as ensuring the role remained fun as you certainly didn’t do the role for the salary! With the exception of Freshers’ Week, which took months to prepare for and was over in five short days, the days tended to be filled by many meetings and the day-to-day elements of the role. The evenings however provided the perfect opportunity to remember why anyone would want to be a Students’ Union Sabbatical in the first place. Out and about at the numerous student nights available until the early hours ensured regular student feedback, even if it wasn’t in its most coherent form!

Then and nowA day in the life of a Students’ Union President

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Phil Gilks Building Surveying, BA(Hons) 2007

A typical day in the life of the Students’ Union president, after trawling through the last two years worth of diaries this still just doesn’t exist. No two days are the same in this role and no matter whether I come to work with a full packed day, or one that appears quiet, you can guarantee that I am going to busy as there are always things to do. During my time this role has allowed me to experience a full range of emotions from some of my happiest days ever, to some really low points, however I wouldn’t change any of it as it has allowed me to develop as a person.

I was a Moulsecoomb student whilst studying, so when I became union president I decided that I wished to have my office at Moulsecoomb too. This turned out to be a good move once I realised how many meetings I had to attend and that almost all of them where in Moulsecoomb anyway. Meetings still seem to take up a lot of the time and I am always trying to ensure that at every one I attend there is a student voice ensuring the best student experience possible. This can be anything from attending the university Board of Governors to Academic Board or Union Council. No matter what meeting it is, the union has a crucial part to play and its mine and my fellow officer’s jobs to fulfil it.

Mind you, looking back to my first year, the club life was another large area of the role of union president, with me being out a minimum of four nights a week and still making it up in the morning! Whilst it’s not work, it’s still been a time where I have had some of the best conversations with students as they feel relaxed, and willing to tell you what has been bothering them and what they want the union to do about it. This along with some recent research had a large part in spurring me on to conduct a full union review to make sure that this union really was offering everything it should and is relevant to all students. This appears to be something that Jacqui Oldham and many other previous sabbatical teams have also been contending with.

On top of attending meetings and interacting with students the role is about making life changing decisions and leading an organisation. Through my time I have seen the union in a financial deficit, and now with a good surplus. I have seen us hiring staff and making posts redundant. I have taken the blame for closing services and taken the credit for opening new ones. As I said, there really isn’t a typical day and I feel I have managed to gain more experience in two years than most will be able to get in 20.

Whilst there may never be a typical day, you can be sure there is also never a pointless one either.

(1) Jacqui Oldham – then (1999).(2) Jacqui Oldham – now (2009).(3) Babble student magazine. (4) St. Trinians night out (Jacqui third from left).(5) Leadership Challenge.(6) Phil Gilks.(7) Typical day in students’ union Rumblin Tum café, Cockcroft.(8) Typical night out.

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The academic

Dr Darren Smith of the School of Environment and Technology coined the term studentification to describe how the expansion of student numbers causes changes in the urban neighbourhoods.

Dr Smith has studied how this large growth in student numbers has been managed by universities and local councils, both in the UK and abroad. He has found that although there are lessons that British universities can learn from abroad, in general they are ahead of universities in the other countries he studied, including the US, Canada, Australia and Ireland.

His research showed that most UK institutions have policies to encourage students to act with respect for their neighbours and have appointed liaison officers to deal with areas of tension between residents and students. These tensions are typically noise nuisance, concerns regarding the growing numbers of students’ cars parked in neighbourhoods and problems with refuse. In addition, local people are sometimes worried by the increase in house prices caused by the rising population.

Dr Smith also reported that, “Many residents raised a concern that where once they knew the vast majority of people living on their streets, the demographic in a number of places has changed, seeing more and more students living transitorily in those areas. Many felt that this continual changing of tenants has changed the feel of a community that was once socialised to one where residents are more reticent about getting to know these transitory faces.”

“Students can help regenerate an area, leading to more amenities, improved transportation and better public services like GP surgeries”

It is also true, however, that students can help regenerate an area, leading to more amenities, improved transportation and better public services like GP surgeries and according to Dr Smith, “We should bear in mind that the vast majority of students are responsible – anti-social behaviour is attached to only a small minority and affects other students as much as local residents.”

Dr Smith believes the situation in Brighton & Hove itself is good, as both Brighton and the University of Sussex are active in promoting good relations. Although students form a high proportion of residents, local people are mostly very tolerant of people who have a different lifestyle. In fact, more often than not, residents are not anti students but rather resist the urban changes that come along with the high incidence of student housing – for example, when the local pub becomes a student pub.

Good practice at the University of Brighton on the issue includes developing an accommodation policy with the council and managing private sector housing so as to try to disperse students throughout the city rather than place them in one or two areas.

Brighton could house all of its students easily, but at present they are not dispersed equally across the city which can cause problems. Many students are keen to live close to their campus for security and cost reasons as well as feeling a sense of belonging hence why there are higher numbers of students living in these particular areas.

Another example of the city of Brighton being ahead of the game in dealing with this issue was the hosting of the first-ever university and community liaison conference in August 2008.

Everybody needs good neighbours studentification: the latest urban development

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Darren has written a 47-point checklist for the government which gives direction to universities, local authorities, local community groups, private sector actors and other leading policy makers on student housing issues.

He has also discovered some new approaches which have worked well elsewhere in the world that could be adopted successfully here in the UK, for example, a scheme in Toronto where students themselves managed their accommodation allocation and maintenance, giving them ownership of the process and encouraging responsibility.

So what’s the next step? Darren is currently drafting a student housing strategy for Brighton and Hove City Council commissioned by the local Strategic Housing Partnership (SHP). Also he believes preparation needs to be undertaken to respond to the reversal of studentification – when families will migrate back to the areas originally affected. Darren is investigating this notion and feels it is vital that councillors work with developers and universities to ensure appropriate provision to deal with this reversal when it happens.

The number of students in higher education has grown enormously over the past few decades, and this has had profound implications for relations between town and gown.

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The community liaison officer

Kevin Mannall’s role as community liaison officer for the University of Brighton came out of the studentification process. Kevin is the university’s point of contact for non-student residents in Brighton, Hastings and Eastbourne. Communities can contact Kevin in the first instance if they have comments to make about the university or its students in the local area.

In addition, Kevin represents the university and its students in the community and he works directly with resident groups and key individuals from the areas where University of Brighton students live and also where university buildings/campuses are based. Kevin attends local residents’ meetings and communicates regularly with community representatives to keep abreast of issues arising where his (or the university’s) intervention is required or indeed would be of benefit.

Kevin also works with local councillors and MPs as well as the police to ensure that the relationship between the university and the community remains a positive and rewarding one.

When a complaint is received from the community about University of Brighton students, Kevin talks through the nature of the complaint with the students and works with them and the community which made the complaint to resolve the issues. The most common complaints about students are regarding noise or environmental health. According to Kevin however, most friction between the students and their neighbours can be the result of misunderstandings.

An important element to remember is that Kevin is equally available to our students if they require advice or guidance – for example, if there are significant issues with housemates or landlords or if perhaps they are being harassed in their community.

Concerns about the high numbers of students living in Brighton & Hove have been highlighted a great deal by the media recently and therefore great effort is made in reporting upon the positive aspects of student life in the community and the significant role students often play in improving relations, for example via student volunteering activities and projects as part of the award-winning Community University Partnership Programme.

The Students’ Union

The University of Brighton Students’ Union are also working with local communities to ensure that neighbourhood relations stay positive.

As well as commissioning a four-page wrapper on students and the community in a local paper in April, the union also operates a Silent Students Happy Homes (Sshh!) campaign with plans to enlarge the campaign and roll it out across various parts of the city ready for the new academic year in the autumn. This campaign promotes consideration and respect for fellow residents as well as some guidance on noise issues.

Says Joel Andrews, Students’ Union Vice-President for Communications, “The vast majority of residents I’ve met this year have been quick to assert that it is not always students who are responsible for late night noise, but they can be a contributing factor. Many of the houses in Brighton & Hove are far from being sound insulated and a lot of us have probably spent time listening to, and even feeling, people walking down the stairs next door, or opening and closing doors.”

However, recent developments have shown that students as a whole are getting a bad press and some people think all students are noisy, untidy and don’t care at all about their local community. Whilst there will always be a small minority of students who match this stereotype there are thousands more who really do care about their community.

Students’ Union president, Phil Gilks tells us “The many thousands of students across the city of Brighton & Hove do a lot more than just bring money into the city – hundreds of University of Brighton students volunteer in the community, helping to ensure that vital services continue for those who need them most.

“Additionally, once students graduate many continue to live and work in the city, contributing educational expertise to professions such as the police, teaching, health professions and private businesses. Furthermore, these graduates contribute via taxes and spending their earnings locally which helps the local economy.”

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The vocabulary might be unfamiliar to you, but imagine what you would make of campus, fresher or undergraduate if you’d had no contact with university?

The widening participation and outreach team work with local schools and colleges to increase awareness of higher education, raise aspirations and encourage applications to the university from as wide a range of students as possible. The team works hard to support local pupils and forge meaningful and interesting links with schools and colleges.

The university is committed to developing a creative and energetic institution and we firmly believe that a socially diverse student population is central to this hence why widening participation is taken very seriously

The work starts with pupils in year 5 and 6 (9–11 year olds). The Professor Fluffy project aims to enable pupils to use the jargon of higher education, get some insight into the life of a student and also have the opportunity to visit the university. The scheme was devised by the University of Liverpool. Professor Fluffy is a large purple toy wearing a mortar board. This might sound slightly patronising but the children love her.

The first stage of the project takes place in the school. The session includes using comics and computer games to engage pupils’ interest and then the groups produce a poster using university prospectuses. As a follow up, the pupils spend a day at the university where they work with student ambassadors.

This is a vital part of the project – many children might live across the road from the campus but would never think it was an environment that would welcome them. It is hoped that this will not be their only visit to a university campus and therefore the work continues throughout secondary school.

“I thought that university was a place where people commanded you to do work and now I know that it is a place you can study a certain subject so when you are older you can get the job you want to do”

“I think I am going to like it at university” quotes from primary pupils who have participated in the Professor Fluffy sessions.

In the first year of secondary school, the pupils get the opportunity to play the Star Student game. This is a huge version of a board game

Widening the path to higher education

where the pupils themselves are the counters. Through a combination of charades, Pictionary and Cranium-type activities, the game introduces some of the aspects of student life. The game is run by student ambassadors who act as excellent role models. Aiming for College Education (ACE) sessions take place at the university. Pupils participate in quizzes to raise their awareness of the variety of courses and types of university. They also play Freshers’ Fortunes – a board game devised by Gino Graziano (a member of our Widening Participation team) which introduces them to some of the budgeting issues they might face as a student. They soon realise the consequences of Agnes B shopping habit over the more pragmatic Primark lifestyle! The highlight of these days is usually the tour of the campus and most particularly, the opportunity to visit a real student’s room.

However, it isn’t all fun and games; the work seeks to challenge the pupils involved and what is often inspiring is the commitment of pupils who are disaffected by formal education. The Suitable Boy”project is targeted at boys in year 9 and was devised by Aimhigher Sussex to respond to the growing gender gap in education. The three local universities (Brighton, Sussex and Chichester) each work with a specific school and also offer activities to the other participants.

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Professor Fluffy, Star Student, ACE days – these terms don’t describe a strange parallel university, but are just some of the activities offered by the widening participation and outreach team at the University of Brighton.

The Crew Club fashion project (see page 8 for more information about the Crew Club) involved the participation of the School of Architecture and Design . Five Crew Club members attended after school sessions at our Grand Parade campus and produced some excellent recycled garments and customised t-shirts.

The work of the Widening Participation team here is wide-ranging and seeks to make the University of Brighton (and the whole concept of higher education) far more accessible to pupils from the local and regional community. The quotes from some of the children involved in our various WP activities speak volumes and the team will continue to work hard to raise those aspirations.

If you would like to get involved in any of these projects or are able to make a financial donation to keep them going please email development@brighton.ac.uk.

The University of Brighton has worked with Falmer School this year on the project and was involved in delivering graphic design and criminology activities. The pupils the team were working with also chose to take the engineering option which involved a visit to Northbrook College, Brooklands Museum and Mercedes Benz World. The girls weren’t left out of course. A day was provided for a girls group from Plumsted School in London. A programme is being currently designed to encourage more young women to consider careers and courses in computing.

Summer schools are acknowledged as powerful tools for increasing student’s aspirations. The university has a successful track record here – running the Cracking Crime Summer School since 2002. Fifty Year 11 pupils from across the south-east participate in a four-day residential. The programme includes lectures, workshops, practical sessions as well as a lively menu of social activities. There is very little provision in the region for FE students and therefore this year, the Spring School was launched at University Centre Hastings. This encapsulated three years of student life in three days. Access and college students also benefit from the opportunity to visit the university. The new shadowing scheme enables local students to spend half a day at the university with a current undergraduate. It is felt that this is really important in allaying students’ worries about making the transition to university.

“It gave me an insight into what advantages you have as a student, and meant I could see what a seminar was like and how independent the learning is.”

“I was amazed by the library and the resources they had! The university had a lovely friendly atmosphere and even though it is quite large it feels very homely. The students I met were really friendly and recommended coming to the University of Brighton.”

The team is also looking at new ways of working with pupils and have run two pilot schemes this year; a family learning project and a fashion design course with a community group. The family learning project is being offered at Patcham High School. Parents, carers and students are taking part in a creative writing course led by a member of the university.

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(1) Professor Fluffy.(2–4) The Crew Club fashion project.

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product which would be environmentally friendly while also being attractive on an emotional level.”

Tim Katz, final year tutor for the product design portfolio, told us, “This year’s students have thrown themselves into the projects and come out with a plethora of designs that show flair, detail, empathy, surprise, perception, professionalism and a multitude of other qualities too numerous to mention. All have been fascinating to watch come to fruition: I hope you think the outcomes are too.”

The event was held at the School of Environment and Technology’s design and technology suite, a creativity zone designed to give students and tutors opportunities and explore their ideas in state-of-the-art surroundings.

For more information about BUDA visit www.budaonline.co.uk.

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Showcasing designs that aim to improve, challenge or reinvent a multitude of objects which surround us day-to-day, work from students this year ranged from a storage unit for recycling which doubles as a sleek wooden bench, a desk lamp made from disused Jaguar pistons and a solar panel light that can charged at your window.

Encapsulating the very best of design technology, sports design technology and product design, the event was a chance for the public and industry to see the next generation of designers. All the students are members of the Brighton University Design Association (BUDA), which aims to improve the quality, and also promote

the discussion, of design. BUDA is a non-profit organisation and in order to operate, relies entirely on contributions from volunteers, donations, sponsorship and fundraising events. They run a number of design-related events, trips, exhibitions and workshops throughout the year for their members and in some cases for anyone and everyone.

One of the briefs set out for students this year was sustainable and emotional design explains Dave Cole, final year Product Design student and current marketing manager for BUDA, “It required us to research emotional design frameworks in order to inform their designs, and also to research into sustainability in depth and design a

Answers to everyday design problems were unveiled by final year product design students at a recent university exhibition.

FOR LIFEDesigns

Oliver Couch

“Design is a way of creating beauty, a way of taking ideas, inspirations and emotions and bringing them to life, making them visible, tangible and real.” (1) Solar Eco: By using highly efficient solar panel and LED technology, this solar powered side light, when left by a window to charge throughout the day, will return an evening’s supply of light to the user.

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Heidi Williamson “I believe that the ability of designers to propose engaging products that deviate from the current throwaway culture is pivotal to the feasibility of a sustainable future.” (2) Created from redundant car pistons this desk lamp and the accompanying directional wall lamp gave a superflous component new life. The lamp is touch sensitive and can be activated and dimmed by touching any part of the metal casing.

Jamie Douglas

“Coming from a family engineering background has provided me with a vast knowledge of information from materials to manufacture, allowing me to design innovative products efficiently and within the last year I have started to explore the relationship between brand identity and product design.” (3) The Recycling Bench was designed to improve the emotions of recycling within the home environment. Made from a stainless steel frame with sustainable solid oak supports. A push release draw provides easy access to the hidden recycling boxes.

Meg Aitkenhead “Product design has allowed me to put in my own ideas and change the way in which people perceive the world around them. It’s not often you get to do that!” (4) In a society where change is constant, is it possible to design a product that the user has real attachment to? The Rolla explores this product/user relationship by adopting pet-like qualities such as movement and sound, as well as being an attractive ambient light for the home.

Tomasz Pendleton

“My interests have been cultured into an understanding of successful design and manufacture and a concern for the environmental minefield that surrounds it.”

(5) ElectroMule is an electrically powered delivery scooter designed for clean, low-cost inner city delivery. With a large loading capacity it is suitable for a wide range of deliveries at a speed comparable to a petrol scooter and has a range of 50 miles thanks to the latest in battery technologies.

BUDA student member showcase

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The University of Brighton’s beepurple entrepreneurship network, now in its fifth year, comprises a community of 1400 students, staff and graduates.

All members of the network have one thing in common,they all want to improve their enterprise skills, for their own personal development and their career. Many members also access beepurple’s support so that they can develop their own ideas for a product, service, event or community project which they may be working on.

Beepurple’s enterprise skills workshops and masterclasses featuring experienced entrepreneurs are an opportunity for members to gain new skills, meet other like-minded individuals and receive business support and advice. Around 20 of these workshops and masterclasses are organised each academic year. In addition, every June, beepurple runs five-day business start-up course for recent graduates.

Although beepurple is an exclusive network open to students, staff and graduates from the University of Brighton, there is a strong outward-facing focus and a desire to link with the local business community in a number of ways. For example, experienced members of the local business community (including University of Brighton alumni) are regularly invited to share their specialist knowledge and experience of setting up in business with the beepurplers. In addition, an external panel of judges, made up of local business leaders, choose the winning entries for the university’s ideas competition – the Research and Innovation Awards.

Clare Griffiths, business development manager in entrepreneurship, tells us, ‘By coming to beepurple events regularly, members develop key business skills which are relevant to everyone – whether they want to be self-employed or join a company’.

Beepurple also encourages its members to put into practice their newly gained enterprise skills in an initiative called the Charity Challenge.

During last year’s graduate summer course, three small teams were given £30 each and encouraged to use that money to fundraise for the local office of the Alzheimer’s Society. After a series of fancy dress car washes, massages, raffles and a deal with Sainsbury’s selling roses outside Brighton train station, the teams succeeded in raising over £400 for the Alzheimer’s Society.

Whilst not all beepurplers decide to develop their own business ideas and community projects, there are a number who do. Currently, the beepurple team is supporting 40 students and graduates who are in the process of starting up in business, or already trading. Di8it Limited and IT Skills 4 Rural Kenya (ITS4RK) are two examples of University of Brighton alumni who have set up initiatives to support specific communities in the local region and abroad.

Di8it Limited was founded by Shawn De Freitas and Begoña Bagur, who both graduated in 2006 from the Digital TV and Production Management MSc. Since then, they have successfully set up the company Di8it Limited which provides user experience design and consultancy services to clients and partners in the UK and internationally.

They specialise in the development of applications for digital television and also target services to web development and human computer interfaces. Their initial idea was the offspring of a research project conducted at the University of Brighton in collaboration with BSkyB.

The research was presented at the EuroITV conference in 2007 and opportunities for providing consultancy and design services emerged. Since starting up in business, Shawn and Begoña have accessed a range of beepurple’s support services including one-to-one time with a mentor.

IT Skills 4 Rural Kenya (ITS4RK) was founded by a number of graduates from the University of Brighton including Edward Kibosek (Communications studies MA, 2003), who is now operations manager, Jacob Munoru (2003), Andrew Willard (2003), Nicolas Kagia (2003), Rebecca Hume (2004) and Rebecca Duffy (2004). Recently, Edward Kibosek has been accessing both the beepurple workshops and a mentor to develop their work.

It is now a registered charity based in Brighton, supported by the United Nations and the Kenyan government, and its key aim is to overcome the digital divide between rural and urban communities of Kenya. So far, ITS4RK has set up two ICT centres in the Kenyan villages of Kibugat and Antubochiu.

So, whether you are want to develop your own enterprise skills, or an idea for a product, service or community project, you can access free beepurple support from the university as a graduate. To find out more about beepurple services and our forthcoming events, please visit our website www.beepurple.co.uk – designed, of course, by some of our graduate entrepreneurs!

We are also always on the lookout for successful entrepreneurs to present some of the beepurple workshops.

If you have successfully started your own business and are interested in coming back to university to talk about your experiences, please email alumni@brighton.ac.uk for more information.

beepurple: seeing ideas differently

Run by Clare Griffiths (business development manager in entrepreneurship), the beepurple network offers free workshops to develop members’ business skills as well as one-to-one support for any member looking to progress a business idea, start up a company or who is already trading.

Beepurple is a colour on the ultraviolet scale discovered by Nobel Prize winner Karl Von Frisch. Bees are one of the few creatures that can see this colour, which is transmitted by flowers that have pollen ready for harvesting. This colour became known as bee purple. Beepurple reflects the idea that entrepreneurs see opportunities others do not.

Clare was accepted as a Fellow in Entrepreneurship Education by the National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship in June 2008. She is now one of 25 recognised fellows in the UK.

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Entrepreneurship in action

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Building your futureAs a member of the BGA, you will be able to keep in touch with friends, find new contacts with a common interest and help other students with advice about your experiences. And what’s more… it’s FREE!

Helping you survive the credit crunch

There are a number of ways that the University of Brighton can help ease you though the current economic climate. You can turn to us for advice and guidance on applying for jobs and updating your CV and we can also help you to gain new qualifications and skills.

Looking for a new job or a change of career?

To help you get on the right track, the university’s careers service is committed to providing you with the most up-to-date advice and guidance on job searching, CV presentation and checking, as well as one-to-one careers counselling. These services can either be through face-to-face meetings, by telephone or email.

The careers department will be running its careers and job skills courses again in the near future, so if you are interesting in attending one of these, please make sure we have your most up-to-date email address and contact details. You can also view job vacancies online and if you are thinking of a complete change in career or are wondering which direction to take, why not try out our online psychometric testing.

All of these services are free and accessible to all graduates so email us at the usual address for more information. The careers department also have an extensive and informative website with careers tips and advice – visit www.brighton.ac.uk/careers.

If you no longer live in or around the local area, our agreements with other universities within the UK mean that you should be able to access the careers department of your local university for advice and guidance too. Why not ring them for more details?

Enhancing your employability through further study

Whatever your choice of career, updating your knowledge and skills is a major key to success in a flexible employment marketplace. The university offers a wide range of postgraduate training and

Wanted: Alumni Advisory BoardWe are currently looking for graduates to form an alumni advisory board. The purpose is to promote and maintain links between the BGA members and the University of Brighton and its predecessor and partner colleges. (Please see inner front cover for a full list).

We hope our advisory board will strengthen the relationship between the university and its alumni and friends and would encourage members of the BGA to take an active interest in the life of the university. In addition, these members would represent the

views of alumni and assist and advise the university in a number of key activities including alumni relations, student recruitment and career development.

Membership is open to all former students of the University of Brighton and its predecessor and partner colleges, whether you graduated or not as well as to any parents of current students, and friends and supporters of the university. If you would like to get involved, please contact us at alumni@brighton.ac.uk.

We value your input. Your development and alumni team – Allan, Alison, Andrew, Sam, Val and Faye.

professional development through taught courses and specialist short courses.

Many are available as short intensive blocks of study, or part-time day or evening classes. Also, as a former University of Brighton student you may be eligible to a 10 per cent discount on tuition fees when you enrol on a postgraduate course (including PGCerts, PGDips and research degrees, but excluding PGCEs), if you completed your undergraduate degree here.

In addition you may be eligible for 5 per cent early payment discount – details of which will be sent you when you accept a place on a relevant course.

You can find a list of our postgraduate and professional courses on our website at www.brighton.ac.uk/courses.

Starting your own business

If you are thinking of starting your own business, the university’s beepurple scheme can give you all the advice and guidance you need. Its aim is to stimulate entrepreneurship amongst students, staff and alumni, and develop the enterprise skills of its members.

By joining beepurple, you will gain key business skills and entrepreneurial attitudes that will give you the edge on other graduates. There are free evening workshops held every month and their service include business and enterprise skills training workshops, master classes and networking opportunities as well as one-to-one business support.

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Getting togetherTaking part in university events, supporting reunions or organising your own get-togethers are all great ways to keep in touch with old friends and the university itself. Tell us about your reunion and we’ll feature it on this page.

Celebrating 150 years of artAs part of the Faculty of Arts and Architecture’s celebrations for 150 years of the Brighton School of Art, we held an alumni reunion on the 12 March. Alumni ranging from those who graduated in 1967 to 2008 attended this event where they took the opportunity to view the exhibition, From Arts School to University: Art and Design at Brighton 1959 to 2009.

Renowned photographer, member of Magnum, alumnus and Professor of Photography at the University of Brighton, Mark Power reminisced to the alumni audience about his days spent at Brighton as a student and kept the audience entertained.

Alumni team for their wonderful help and guidance in organising this and for inviting us all to share in all the fun and gaiety of the Graduate Show and anniversary celebrations.It was great for us to relive those happy times, to view the current graduates’ brilliant exhibitions and to share the joy of seeing them having so much fun and soaking up the party atmosphere in the company of their proud families and tutors. Plans for our 50-year reunion are now on the drawing board!!

Contacting us

If you’d like help organising or publicising your reunion, please contact us by emailing alumni@brighton.ac.uk or call +44 (0)1273 642600 and we will be happy to help.

To keep up to date with forthcoming events, visit our website at www.brighton.ac.uk/bga.

Class of 1969 Architecture reunion by David Garbutt

In June 1969, a group of excited and happy Brighton Polytechnic architectural students gathered on the main entrance steps of the newly constructed Art College building in Grand Parade for a group photograph having all just been awarded their final diplomas after five long years of study.

On the Friday evening of 5 June 2009, the same group (from many corners of the globe) reassembled with their partners and gathered

in the precisely the same spot for an emotional and very enjoyable 40-year reunion and, of course, another photograph (see above).

The event was organised to coincide with the faculty’s Graduate Show 2009 and celebrations to mark the founding of the original School of Art 150 years ago at the Grand Parade building. We should all like to thank Sam Davies, Faye Brown and the excellent University of Brighton Development and

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Open professorial lectures To mark their appointment, each new professor gives an inaugural professorial lecture to illustrate their subject field and explain the research they conduct.

These lectures are intended to be understood by a wide audience and cover a range of diverse and topical subjects such as architecture, the environment, culture and business, demonstrating the variety of research undertaken at the University of Brighton.

These interesting and informative professorial lectures are free of charge and open to alumni so please do join us.

Keep an eye on our event page of the website, for more information www.brighton.ac.uk/bga.

Calling all...teachersThe Faculty of Education and Sport will be celebrating 100 years of the School of Education with an alumni event on Saturday 12 September.

The event will allow graduates from the school to reminisce at a memories exhibition, attend a professorial lecture, chat to current students and enjoy a buffet lunch. If you graduated from the school and would like to attend, please do get in touch.

Gifts and mementoesYou can order a wide range of university gifts and mementoes online at www.brighton.ac.uk/gifts.

E Tie £9.99

F Teddy bear £11.99

G Certificate tube £12.50

A Mug £4.99

B Keyring £4.99

C Baseball cap £8.99

D Paperweight £9.99

H Business cardholder £12.99

I Photo frame £13.99

J Hooded sweatshirt £22.99

K Scarf £22.99

L Parker pen £14.99

Available in blue and grey

Make someone’s vision a reality

Your will is your gift to the people and causes that are important to you. It is also the only way to ensure peace of mind that your money, assets and belongings are distributed in the way that you want. Leaving a legacy to the University of Brighton will help keep your memory alive. For example, by providing scholarhips and prizes to encourage our students to reach their full potential.

For more information about leaving a legacy visit www.brighton.ac.uk/giving or contact Andrew Scanlan on +44 (0)1273 643591. All conversations will be held in the strictest confidence and will not commit you in any way.

Keep in touch with the BGA!Brighton Graduate Association+44 (0)1273 642600graduate@brighton.ac.uk

Calling all…graduatesAre we searching for you?

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Brighton Graduate Association (BGA) would like to reconnect with all the graduates we’ve lost touch with over the years. As someone we are in touch with, we’d like to seek your help in finding those missing from our records!

If you have friends, family members, colleagues or neighbours who studied at the University of Brighton, Brighton Polytechnic or any of our predecessor institutions, we’d very much like to hear from them and find out what they’ve been up to since leaving. Please encourage them to get in touch with us!

We are keen to update all of our alumni with news and developments, put alumni back in touch with their contemporaries and provide our alumni community with an ever-increasing variety of benefits and discounts.

To find out more about BGA and to provide contact details for our missing alumni, please visit www.brighton.ac.uk/bga and click on the ‘Calling all…’ link. Once there you can enter yourself into our prize draw for £250 worth of Amazon vouchers.

Please cut out and display on your staff notice board – or pass on to a colleague or friend.