Paisley Town Centre recently hosted 225 S3 pupils from across Renfrewshire.
These pupils attended a two-day educational programme which offered a packed schedule of activity focused on the topic of creative industries and visitor economies with the aim of informing them of how Renfrewshire can support their creative futures. This Pathway Programme was produced in partnership between Renfrewshire Council and the University of West of Scotland, through the Centre of Culture, Sport, and Events and, alongside a range of local partners and stakeholders.
Students participated in educational morning sessions followed by visits to cultural venues in the afternoon including the opportunity to visit the following locations in Paisley:
- UWS Campus
- West College of Scotland Campus
- Paisley Central Library
- Paisley Museum’s Secret Collection
- PACE Youth Theatre
- Outspoken Arts
- Paisley Town Hall
The Pathway Programme was devised to develop Renfrewshire secondary school pupils’ understanding of the culture and visitor economies across the region. The programme informed pupils about further education routes and professional development opportunities in Renfrewshire’s cultural sector, including internships, volunteering opportunities, courses available at West College of Scotland, and the UWS Foundation Academy. The programme was free to attend and spaces in the programme were offered to 20 students from each of Renfrewshire’s 13 secondary schools.
Photo Credits: Kieran Chambers
Students stated that the programme helped them understand how many options were available to them for their futures. One student stated in feedback, “there are lots of different opportunities through creative subjects, [many more] than I thought!” and another said that the programme helped them understand what “college and uni actually feel like”. As students buzzed around the workshop room seeking out cameras and audio recording equipment to test or as they descended the steps into the state-of-the-art archive storage facilities at The Secret Collection, it was evident that the programme was introducing pupils to aspects of creative work and culture that they had never seen before.
Photo Credit: Kieran Chambers
This pilot initiative contributed to the delivery of Future Paisley, Renfrewshire’s ambitious cultural investment programme designed to harnesses the power of arts, heritage, and culture to impact social and economic change. One of the five core Step Changes which Future Paisley seeks to deliver for Renfrewshire is to develop a sustainable and resilient creative economy in Renfrewshire. This includes creating pathways into employment and progression routes in Renfrewshire’s tourism, cultural and creative sectors. Through participation in this Pathway Programme, pupils were given the opportunity to develop an interest in working in these sectors and learn about the available routes into training and employment in the region.
Positive feedback regarding the Programme has already been forthcoming a colleague from Children’s Services at Renfrewshire Council observed that;
“The Future Paisley Pathways programme provided an exciting opportunity for S3 pupils from all 13 Renfrewshire secondary schools to develop an understanding of the culture and visitor economies across the region whilst showcasing further and higher educational experiences at UWS and WCS.
Yvonne Ward (Children’s Services, Renfrewshire Council)
Feedback from young people and school staff has been overwhelming positive, pupil cohorts now have a greater understanding of creative industries opportunities and would recommend the pathway programme experience to future year groups.”
This blog was written by Micaela Levesque, Monitoring and Evaluation Reporting Support Officer, Future Paisley
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