ISSUE 15 SUMMER 2020
University of Wolverhampton alumni magazine
FRONTLINE HEROES
Thank you
TO OUR ALUMNI TACKLING COVID-19
MEDIA MAESTRO
Meet the Head of Global Creative at Al Jazeera
SUPPORTING LAWYERS Alumna appointed Birmingham Law Society President
FULL THROTTLE
The man in the driving seat at Bentley Motors
WELCOME
VC WELCOME for Summer 2020 Life Magazine Welcome to the Summer 2020 edition of WLV Life, the magazine for graduates of the University of Wolverhampton. As a member of our alumni association, you are part of a family of over 130,000 graduates from more than 130 countries across the world. The potential for socialising, networking, and giving back to your fellow alumni and the students of the future is endless, and we are never prouder than when we can share your successes. At a time like this, our alumni are more important than ever to the heart and the soul of our university.
IN THIS ISSUE 15
46 02
LIFE MAGAZINE
It has been an unprecedented year so far and we hope that you and your loved ones have stayed safe. Countries across the world have bravely faced the COVID-19 pandemic and social isolation, and you will learn some of the ways in which the University has used its resources to help our wider community on pages 8-9. We are the University of Opportunity, and our role as an anchor institution in the regions that we serve has been particularly evident during the global crisis. We are very proud of the contributions that our students, staff, and alumni have made to society during the pandemic. We are always pleased to hear your stories, so if you would like to share something with us please send a message to alumni@wlv.ac.uk 2020 may have been unusual but higher education at the University of Wolverhampton has flourished, and in this issue of WLV Life you can find out
how we’re continuing to invest millions into our Springfield Campus on page 30. See how a Wolverhampton alumna became the Birmingham Law Society’s newly elected President on page 12, meet the snake expert who is one of our most adventurous professors on page 15, and find out how one alumna overcame a life-changing diagnosis to become the Gutless Warrior on page 18. You will also meet the alumnus who became head of one of the world’s most luxurious car manufacturers on page 24, Al Jazeera’s Head of Global Creative on page 40, and the UK’s first transgender rapper on page 44. Geoff Layer Vice-Chancellor
ENJOY SUMMER 2020
CONTENTS
12 24 18 20
50 It’s time to dive in. Stay safe and stay in touch!
34 04 University news 08 Cover story: Covid pandemic response 12 In profile: Birmingham Law Society President 15 Research: Professor Mark O’Shea 18 Society: The Gutless Warrior 20 Reunion
SUMMER 2020
24 In business: Bentley’s Adrian Hallmark
43 In profile: Composer, Alice Trueman
52 In profile: Filmmaker, Jet Summan
30 Investment: Springfield Campus
44 Society: Rapper, Nate Ethan
54 In business: Rug designer, Isobel Morris
34 In profile: Footballer, Jamille Matt
46 Community: The Children’s University
56 Alumni news
38 In business: Entrepreneur, Katy Holden
48 Alumni couples
40 Q&A: Al Jazeera’s Duncan Preston
50 International: Kyaw Si Thu Htun’s got talent
58 In pictures: Councillor Claire Darke: A mayoral year
LIFE MAGAZINE
03
UNIVERSITY NEWS
Howzat! Joe Root awarded honorary doctorate The England cricket captain, Joe Root, was bowled over when he was presented with an Honorary Doctorate of Sport in recognition of his significant sporting achievements. The top-order batsman spent a day at the University's Walsall Campus in September last year, when he took part in a training session with local primary and secondary schools, officially opened new £1million facilities in the William Penny Brookes building and tested out some of the latest sports science and research equipment. Afterwards, staff and students were treated to an 'audience with ...' event with the 2019 Cricket World Cup winner. The visit was Joe's second to the University, which sponsors Sheffield Collegiate Cricket Club where Joe’s stellar career started.
Bringing the house down: world’s first demolition graduates Seven students have completed the world’s first demolition postgraduate degree, launched by our School of Architecture & Built Environment in 2017. Accredited by the Institute of Demolition Engineers (IDE), the Master’s in Demolition Management course was designed with industry specialists and comprises a range of modules including management, methodologies, research and sustainability, and building information modelling (BIM). Dr Paul Hampton, Head of Built Environment at the University, said: “We are very proud to be the only university in the world that offers a programme for the entire lifetime of a building, from design right through to demolition, and it is thanks to the tireless efforts of partners that we are able to develop programmes which are both relevant to industry and vital to supporting local, national and international economies.”
04
LIFE MAGAZINE
SUMMER 2020
UNIVERSITY NEWS
Croeso, Tîm Cymru!* We’re proud that our Walsall Campus has been chosen to host Team Wales for the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games. Coaches and support staff will be based at the University campus for the major sporting event, which takes place in July and August 2022. Team Wales will occupy around 50 rooms in the halls of residence for the duration and as part of the deal, Team Wales Athletes Commission will be invited for Q&A sessions with our sports students and there will also be opportunities for our media students to interview and film athletes. National coaches, performance directors, physiotherapists, doctors and psychologists will also be invited to the campus to give presentations.
*
Hello, Team Wales!
Vice-Chancellor, Professor Geoff Layer said: “We are delighted to be hosting Team Wales for the 2022 Commonwealth Games. This news builds on the recent hugely successful Commonwealth Judo Championships, which we hosted in September and really put Walsall on the sporting map. “Sport is a key priority for the University and we are continuing to invest in cutting-edge new technology to develop our offer for elite sports teams and further expand the learning experience for our students.” So far, we’ve invested £1 million in revamping the sports and research facilities at Walsall Campus, installing hi-tech equipment such as 3D motion capture technology, which was tested out by England Test cricket captain Joe Root, and an environmental chamber to replicate almost all climates on the planet.
F3 success for engineering students Our engineering students have demonstrated their talents after successfully competing in Formula 3 races. The UWR Race Team clinched second place in the national MSV F3 Cup Championship title in October last year – the only university team to compete – and the following month saw the team secure second place in the F3 championship for the third time in four years of competing. Driver Shane Kelly said: “Since UWR entered into F3, we’ve never finished a season outside the top three. It’s an amazing effort by an incredible group of hardworking students who never give up.” The University has invested £10 million in the engineering facilities at its Telford Campus in Priorslee, creating world-class education facilities for engineering students, including industry-standard design, development and testing facilities as well as motorsport workshops.
SUMMER 2020
LIFE MAGAZINE
05
UNIVERSITY NEWS
Walsall hosted 2019 Commonwealth Judo Championships It’s not a bad way to start your life at University: winning a gold medal in the 2019 Commonwealth Judo Championships, held for the first time at our Walsall Campus! Jamie Spencer-Pickup, a BA (Hons) Business Management student, claimed first place in the -73kg category of the Junior competition in the week he arrived at University. Also celebrating were first-year student Oliver Barratt, who scooped gold in the -100kg (Junior) category, and student Ebony Drysdale-Daley, who took top spot in -70kg. Graduate Jodie Caller won silver in the -57kg competition, while fellow Wolverhampton alumnus Tomas Luckus won gold in the -90kg category (Senior). Dr Richard Medcalf, Director of the Institute of Human Sciences, said: “This was the first time a multinational event has come to the town of Walsall. It really has helped to put the town and our campus on the map.”
£4.8 million health education facilities open Our health education students have access to state-of-theart facilities with the opening of our £4.8 million nursing and health lab at the Walsall Campus. The Sister Dora Building features innovative teaching rooms, skills labs and simulation facilities, including several mock hospital ward rooms, mock bedsit and terraced house. Other advanced technology includes a computerised anatomic model that allows students to ‘see inside’ the human body, enabling them to practise skills in a safe environment. Vice-Chancellor, Professor Geoff Layer said: “As a university we are committed to providing excellent teaching environments for students to learn, develop and grow.
06
LIFE MAGAZINE
These new facilities at our Walsall Campus will ensure we continue to provide the very best education for the next generation of health professionals.” Dr Alex Hopkins, Dean of the Faculty of Education, Health and Wellbeing, said: “Our new health labs at the Walsall Campus have been designed with the needs of our students and the professions they will enter right at the heart of our plans. This will make a huge difference to the clinical experience our students gain while they are training with us.” The facilities were opened in January by Professor Lisa Bayliss-Pratt, former Health Education England’s Chief Nurse and a previous student and staff member of the University.
SUMMER 2020
UNIVERSITY NEWS
Indian students fly over for graduation
£9 million cyber centre to open A £9m state-of-the-art centre of excellence in cyber security – a joint venture between the University and Herefordshire Council – is due to open in Hereford later this year. The centre, which will support innovation and industry in the sector, is a trail-blazing project that will be part of a wider, growing campus of cyber sector companies based within the Cyber Quarter – Midlands Centre for Cyber Security, on Skylon Park. Supported by the University’s Wolverhampton Cyber Research Institute (WCRI), the centre will also be home to 16 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and will offer product testing and certification, continued professional development and short courses, and cyber conferences attracting experts from across the globe. It is part-funded by the Government’s Local Growth Fund, via the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
From left to right: Mark Pearce, Managing Director, Hereford Enterprise Zone; Councillor Trish Marsh, Herefordshire Council; Andrew Manning-Cox, Chairman, Hereford Enterprise Zone; Councillor David Hitchiner, Leader, Herefordshire Council; Professor Geoff Layer, Vice-Chancellor, University of Wolverhampton; Adrian Speller, Technical Director, Speller Metcalfe; Prashant Pillai, Professor of Cyber Security, University of Wolverhampton; Richard Clarke, Project Manager, Speller Metcalfe.
SUMMER 2020
We were thrilled to welcome 23 graduates from Rustomjee Academy for Global Careers, one of our partners in India, who flew to the UK to attend their graduation in September. The students, who completed degrees in International Hospitality Management and Automotive Engineering, were keen to join the rest of their peers in Wolverhampton for the ceremony.
And they were delighted to meet with our Chancellor, the Rt Hon. the Lord Paul of Marylebone, PC, who presided over the Schools of Engineering and Pharmacy graduation ceremony and said: “I would like to congratulate the Rustomjee students as well as all the people who are responsible for that university. What a wonderful thing you are doing. Education in India is most important and what they are doing is a great service to the nation.” Winny Rawal, Head of Transnational Education at Rustomjee, said: “For them it was a dream come true. They always knew the Chancellor was Lord Paul and it has been really nice of him to share so much of his time interacting with them and hearing their experiences.” This was the second cohort to graduate through the partnership between Rustomjee Academy For Global Careers and the University, which launched in October 2017 and offers degrees in BEng (Hons) Civil and Construction Engineering; BEng (Hons) Electronics and Telecommunications Engineering; BEng (Hons) Automotive Engineering; BA (Hons) Business and Human Resource Management and BA (Hons) International Hospitality Management.
LIFE MAGAZINE
07
COVER STORY
UNIVERSITY RISES TO COVID-19 CHALLENGES As a university community, we are proud of our dedicated health graduates who answered the call to action and headed to the frontline when COVID-19 struck. Staff across multiple departments also played their part in getting much-needed supplies to those who needed it most. WLV Life pays tribute to all their efforts. 2020 has been an exceptionally difficult year – across the globe, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in hundreds of thousands of people losing their lives, while millions more have suffered from the disease. But out of this appalling crisis has come heartening stories of individuals, businesses, charities and organisations rallying to help healthcare professionals and vulnerable people in our society – and the University is no exception. Staff members across our campuses have done superlative work to help, while our Nursing and Paramedic Science students also stepped up. More than 400 of our third year Nursing and Midwifery students entered the NHS to help deliver frontline care, while 84 Paramedic Science students applied to the West Midlands Ambulance Service to enter active duty as soon as they could. Seven postgraduate Pharmacy students also went to work in pharmacies, GP clinics, hospital and in pharmacy clinical homecare. Several of our departments came forward to aid our local community, manufacturing vital personal protection equipment (PPE) to keep health professionals safe, thanks to a fundraising effort, launched by the Alumni and Development team. As WLV Life went to press, more than £9,000 had been raised from more than 160 people, the proceeds of which went towards efforts across the University. Staff at the School of Engineering used 3D printers to make much-needed face shields for nurses, paramedics, care homes and other frontline careworkers across the region.
08
LIFE MAGAZINE
Using Prusa 3D printing machines from a variety of sources, including Telford Campus where they are used by students for engineering projects, staff perfected a fast and streamlined manufacturing process for RC3 headbands using a polymer called Polyethylene terephthalate glycol modified (PETG). As a part of the social distancing policy, some staff also printed headbands from home, using University equipment or personal 3D printers. When the headbands were printed, a transparent plastic visor, cut to shape using the School of Engineering’s Zund cutting table, was added to the front, creating a protective barrier that shields the whole face. So far, about 2,000 visors have been produced and distributed across the West Midlands, with more being produced each day. Dr Matthew Palframan and Dr Mark Hewitt from the School of Pharmacy, and Dr Aman Dhir of the School of Engineering’s Chemical Engineering department produced 140 litres of sanitiser that was given to local frontline care facilities.
SUMMER 2020
COMMUNITY
Racing driver turns PPE delivery driver
Natalia Hill, Business and Project Development Manager, who works in the University’s Faculty of Education, Health and Wellbeing, co-ordinated the supply and delivery of PPE to NHS Trust frontline staff as well as caregivers and volunteers working in the community. She has delivered gloves, clinical waste bags, 3D-printed visors, protective glasses, and disposable aprons to a hospice, care homes, City of Wolverhampton Council and Dudley Council, while Midland Partnership Foundation Trust collected 100 litres of sanitiser. Natalia also sent £8,000 worth of thermometers to New Cross Hospital. Even the Fashion and Textiles Department at the School of Art has played its part. Fiona Griffiths, a Technical Demonstrator and specialist in pattern cutting and garment manufacture, spent her Easter break making 16 sets of scrubs for local NHS Trust hospitals in Staffordshire. She teamed up with Julie Pearce, a Wolverhampton School of Art graduate, to make the garments for the ‘Scrubs for Stoke’ initiative, which was initially organised by nursing staff and former nursing staff working for University Hospitals North Midlands and Royal Stoke and County Hospitals.
SUMMER 2020
The University’s racing team was on hiatus when live sport was cancelled, but our professional racing driver, Shane Kelly, swapped the Dallara F308 racing car for a transit van to help deliver PPE to care workers as part of our response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Working with the Schools of Engineering and Pharmacy, which manufactured face shields and sanitiser to help protect frontline workers who were helping the most vulnerable, Shane swapped his racing gear for PPE. Dr Syed Hasan, Head of the School of Engineering, said: “We have enlisted Kelly, who normally would be driving for the University’s student team at racing circuits around the country, to use his skills on the roads of the West Midlands – but always keeping to the speed limit, of course! “The shortage of PPE has been deeply felt in care homes, and it’s been humbling for everyone involved to take protective equipment out to key workers in the fight against the pandemic.” Mary Dzimwasha, manager at The Villa Care Home in Madeley, Telford, said: “We really appreciate the face shields given to us by the University. It’s been so, so important to have supplies like these to protect both the vulnerable adults we work with and the staff that care for them.” Donations were also gratefully received at the Birkdale Residential Home. “All the support you have offered through the supply of PPE has been greatly appreciated. Keep up the good work of helping out the NHS, care homes and all those you are helping. It doesn’t go unnoticed.”
LIFE MAGAZINE
09
COMMUNITY
Fundraising in memory of Fine Art graduate
Serving the community during the COVID-19 pandemic Baldev Danny Singh, Master of Pharmacy (MPharm) graduate, described his life on the frontline as a pharmacist during the COVID-19 crisis. After graduating, Danny joined Boots UK Telford and has gone on to become a Boots Advanced Practitioner. “It is important our customers know that we are here for them; we are contactable over the phone, and for anything urgent or essential as long as we maintain a two- metre distance, we are still able to give customers general advice for minor ailments. We need to keep our eye on the holistic picture and not get completely side-tracked by COVID-19. “It is my mission to be part of this critical response to help people to stay well and feel better. It’s a privilege and an honour for me to serve my local communities. “I’m doing a Postgraduate Independent Prescribing Course at the moment and believe that this is the future of pharmacy – to enable us to prescribe in our areas of competency, like having a GP in your local pharmacy. This is where I’m aiming to be and this will make healthcare more accessible to our communities. “Being a pharmacist is a really rewarding career. The work placement opportunities offered to me whilst studying really helped me prepare for the world of work, taking me into primary and secondary care, including community pharmacies, GP surgeries, care-homes and hospitals. Now, more than ever, my team and I feel that we are making a real positive contribution in our community in the fight against coronavirus and other illnesses.”
10
LIFE MAGAZINE
The widow one of our Fine Art graduates has raised hundreds of pounds for our COVID-19 fundraising appeal in her memory. Lesley Goodwin was diagnosed with myeloma and died at the age of 58 in June 2017, just months before her graduation ceremony. As the pandemic crisis unfolded, Andy Goodwin posted daily music videos on his social media channels, most of them with adapted lyrics to reflect the current climate. As the number of views increased, so did the demand from family and friends and they decided to recognise Andy’s hard work by donating to the University’s COVID-19 appeal, which is manufacturing PPE for front line care-workers, as they watched his performances. He said: “As I posted my 50th video, a friend suggested we try to raise money for charity and when I saw the appeal I knew it would have been close to Lesley’s heart. “Lesley and I had some very memorable times while she was at the University and I am still in touch with some of her fellow students.
“It is important at times such as these that we stay positive and focused on the good times and supporting others.” By June, Lesley’s friends and family had donated more than £1,525 to the appeal, which funded more than 1,000 face shields. This isn’t the first time that Andy has supported the University. In April 2018, he worked with Dr Christian Mieves from the Wolverhampton School of Art to stage an exhibition of Lesley’s work in the Faculty of Art gallery space. Lesley studied Fine Art from 2013 until her illness meant she had to curtail her studies in spring 2017. She died in June of that year and Andy collected her award in September in her honour.
When I saw the appeal I knew it would have been close to Lesley’s heart.
SUMMER 2020
COMMUNITY
LESLEY’S FRIENDS AND FAMILY HAVE DONATED MORE THAN £1,525 TO THE APPEAL
WHICH FUNDED MORE THAN 1000 FACE SHIELDS. SUMMER 2020
LIFE MAGAZINE
11
IN PROFILE
A Partner and Head of Clinical Negligence at the Medical Accident Group Limited, part of Harrison Clark Rickerbys, Inez studied for a BA (Hons) Law degree at the University of Wolverhampton on a part-time basis between 1994 and 1998, before completing the Legal Practice Course (LPC) between 1998 and 2000.
COMMITMENT
An alumna is looking forward to an exciting 12 months after being elected President of the Birmingham Law Society.
12
LIFE MAGAZINE
Joining illustrious past presidents such as Arthur Ryland (1873, 1876), Sir Thomas Martineau (1888) and Sir Richard Alfred Pinsent (1901, 1926), Inez Brown will be taking the reins of the organisation that represents more than 5,000 legal professionals in the city and wider Midlands region.
During the day, Inez worked as a legal secretary in a busy litigation practice, which meant full-time study was out of the question. She enrolled for part-time studies, committing to spending six years travelling between her home in Birmingham to the Law School two evenings a week, demonstrating a real determination to realise her dream of becoming a lawyer. “I was impressed that the University gave me the opportunity to study as a mature student and it prepared me for my professional life assisting with organisational, advocacy and analytical skills,” she said. “Although the degree was parttime, I received the same level of support from the University that was also offered to full-time students. I was able to take part in regular mooting sessions, which helped me to improve my debating and advocacy skills that are essential skills for a solicitor, and I was also invited to take part in the University’s work experience scheme. This opportunity is key to law students to help them to gain legal experience, but thankfully I was able to arrange my own work experience, due to my former role as a legal secretary. “During my degree studies, I valued the support of Professor Peter Walton who operated an ‘open door policy’ to any student who had questions or needed additional support. I recall contacting him on a few occasions to discuss an
SUMMER 2020
IN PROFILE
area of business law that I did not understand. I have never forgotten the level of patience that he afforded me together with his ability to make business law seem so interesting.” After completing her studies, Inez decided to move into medical negligence law, where she has remained ever since, chalking up 18 years in this highly complex field. She started her traineeship at Anthony Collins Solicitors in 2002, enjoying the challenges of advising on medicine and the law, as well as being given the opportunity to work with eminent clinicians in their fields.
PROMOTION
She joined Harrison Clark Rickerbys in January 2012 as a Senior Associate and Head of Clinical Negligence and was promoted to Partnership just five months later. In November 2013, the clinical negligence department was rebranded as Medical Accident Group. “Medical negligence is an interesting and satisfying area of law to work in because you are given the opportunity to apply medicine to the law, which is quite fascinating,” she said. “Over the years I’ve been able to work with so many children with brain injuries and young adults, together with disabled clients, to either obtain compensation for the
I feel privileged and honoured to serve the legal profession as President of Birmingham Law Society
SUMMER 2020
injuries that they have sustained due to medical negligence or they have been able to have closure following an investigation.” She became involved with Birmingham Law Society in 2011 and has held a number of positions, including a member of the PR Committee; a member of the Personal Injury Committee for three years; and Joint Honorary Secretary for two years before becoming Deputy Vice President in 2018. In 2019, she was appointed VicePresident before being elevated for 2020-2021 to President. “I feel privileged and honoured to serve the legal profession as President of Birmingham Law Society and to also raise the profile of the legal profession that I feel so passionate about,” she said. “I would like to be an Ambassador for the Society and to also encourage more people to join the profession as we have so much to offer to our local community.” She also wants to use her 12-month presidency to set up a diversity access scheme and to raise awareness of law and technology within the legal sector. “I’m from a disadvantaged background but was fortunate to have teachers and lecturers who believed in me and encouraged me to have goals, to work hard and to never give up,” said Inez. “I have also had the benefit of having some good mentors on my journey. It’s really important to me to able to give back to my local community by offering students from disadvantaged backgrounds a helping hand and support to enter the legal profession. I believe that I can do this by setting up a diversity access scheme for disadvantaged students to apply to enter the legal profession. It will be my legacy to the Law Society but I will expand on this initiative during my inauguration in July 2020.”
A SENSE OF PURPOSE Sean Kyne, LLB (Hons) and LPC, fell in love with Wolverhampton when he came to study in the city. He stayed in the region and is now Senior District Crown Prosecutor at the West Midlands Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). He tells WLV Life why he’s a proud alumnus.
LM (Life Magazine): What are your memories of your time at the University? SK: I arrived in Wolverhampton from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in 1994, aged 18. I was a long way from home but I loved the region and stayed in Wolverhampton for quite a few years after I graduated. I completed my Law degree and the LPC at Wolverhampton. My abiding memory of those courses is that they were very practical and the lecturers always gave real-life examples and shared their experiences with good humour.
LIFE MAGAZINE
13
IN PROFILE
I can honestly say by coming to the University I literally made friends for life. The courses reflected what happens in the real world and brought legal practice to life, be it via mock advocacy in a real courtroom environment, mock client interviews or exercises involving client care. These all provided me with some key skills and the confidence that I needed to succeed. I know from speaking to colleagues that this experience isn’t reflected everywhere. I was very happy at the University, and in fact, I’m still in contact with people from Compton Halls of Residence where I spent my first year. We’ve all been to weddings and I’m godfather to some of their children, so I can honestly say by coming to the University I literally made friends for life. LM: You started off in private practice – how did you find that? SK: In all honesty, like a lot of people, I initially wanted work in an environment that would be lucrative. I’d enjoyed studying business law during my degree and took it as an elective during my LPC. On leaving university I successfully obtained a job at a global market leader in Birmingham and felt like everything was falling into place. It didn’t take long for me to realise that it simply wasn’t for me and I left after a year, not before being told that the decision was the biggest mistake of my life. As it turns out, it wasn’t!
14
LIFE MAGAZINE
From there, I then joined one of the oldest high street law firms in Wolverhampton. I loved it and found the role of a criminal lawyer exciting. I didn’t know it then, but the role that would give me the most satisfaction meant I would need to move to the opposite side of the courtroom.
LM: Do you no longer go to court yourself? SK: I do. I like to keep my hand in because I don’t want to be a lawyer who never goes into a courtroom, so I still go to court myself when I can. It’s really important to me that I continue to do that.
LM: Why did you decide to move to the CPS? SK: I was defending a two-day youth court trial against a senior prosecutor, who, at the conclusion of the case, recommended that I should think about a career with the CPS. I hadn’t thought about it before, but I decided that it would be a really good career move. At the very least I felt it would make me a more rounded lawyer. I successfully applied for a job as a junior lawyer at CPS West Midlands and 17 years later I’m still here. In 2016, I was appointed as Senior District Crown Prosecutor and I am presently Head of the Crown Court Unit, which deals with some of our most serious casework, a role I greatly enjoy.
LM: What do you love about your job? SK: The job satisfaction from being a prosecutor is immense. Making my contribution to keeping the public safe is something that gets me out of bed in the morning with a sense of purpose. I feel the same way about that now as I did all those years ago when I joined the service as a junior lawyer. No two cases are ever the same and knowing I’ve played my part in helping to secure a conviction in our cases is incredibly rewarding.
LM: What are the challenges to being a prosecutor? SK: The work of all prosecutors carries great responsibility. Decisions surrounding whether a case enters the criminal justice system will have significant ramifications for everybody concerned, whether that be the person accused of committing a crime or the person who is the victim of a crime. It is important never to lose sight of that. Being a prosecutor is not an easy job because making the right decision may mean you are not making a popular decision. What we do is constantly under public scrutiny and subject to challenge. It is important to all of our people that we get it right and we exercise great care, often in challenging circumstances, in ensuring that we do get it right.
LM: And you’re working with the University, too? SK: Yes – it’s been wonderful to maintain a connection with the University. I have had the opportunity to go back to speak to the undergraduate students about my career and I always relish the opportunity to talk to them afterwards. The response from the students has been great. The CPS employs about 3,000 lawyers, so in ‘law firm’ terms we are the biggest in the country. We have a highly successful legal trainee scheme that attracts thousands of applications for these posts, some of whom have and will come from the University, which is fantastic. Locally, we also have a thriving work experience scheme and some of our lawyers who now work for us ended up doing so because they enjoyed their time with us so much they decided to make it their career. Having the opportunity to nurture the next generation of lawyers is something that I find incredibly rewarding and am keen to continue to do.
SUMMER 2020
RESEARCH
FROM WOLVERHAMPTON TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH... AND BACK AGAIN
– Professor Mark O’Shea is always ready for an adventure. A lifelong snake enthusiast – he built up a collection of 200 when he was still living with his parents in their Wolverhampton home in the 1970s– Mark now teaches on the University’s Animal Behaviour and Wildlife Conservation courses and conducts herpetological research.
SUMMER 2020
LIFE MAGAZINE
15
RESEARCH
TURNING YOUR HOBBY INTO A CAREER Since graduating in 1985 from the-then Wolverhampton Polytechnic as a mature student with a BSc (Hons) in Applied Sciences, he has enjoyed a long and varied career, being author of six books, including the recently published The Book of Snakes, TV presenter and photographer. “Coming to the polytechnic started me on my academic life and it armed me with the tools I needed,” he says. “It made me think outside of the box and gave me the ability to question, and ultimately transformed me from a reptile keeper into a reptile scientist. The University of Wolverhampton is an excellent institution that gave someone like me, who hadn’t followed a conventional schooling route, the opportunity to have an academic career.” Fieldwork has always been his passion: he even took a
16
LIFE MAGAZINE
year out of his degree to organise an expedition to Borneo. Early outings include searching for British snakes through to expeditions to the tropics for Raleigh Executive, Discovery Expeditions and the Royal Geographical Society and three Operation Raleigh expeditions, on which he was scientific directing staff. Since his early days, he has worked on numerous tropical expeditions, including snakebite research projects in Papua New Guinea (PNG), Sri Lanka and Myanmar, working with toxicologists and medical clinicians from the Universities of Oxford, Liverpool, Melbourne and Adelaide. He also co-led a team surveying the entire reptile and amphibian fauna of TimorLeste, Asia’s newest country. Mark also presented four seasons of the internationally acclaimed O’Shea’s Big Adventure for Animal Planet and Channel 4 between 1999 and 2003, and also presented films for the BBC, ITV and Discovery Channel. But fieldwork has not been without its dangers: he has almost drowned at sea twice, has had malaria six times, Dengue fever twice, and Onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness. Mark also understands snakebite both as researcher and victim having been hospitalised by snakebites several times. His most serious was
a bite from a large canebrake rattlesnake at West Midland Safari Park, where he worked as Curator of Reptiles for 33 years. For Mark, who was awarded an honorary Doctorate in Sciences in 2001 for his contributions to herpetology and was appointed Professor of Herpetology in 2018, snakebite is an occupation hazard but one he prefers to avoid.
SUMMER 2020
RESEARCH
The prize of describing new species and learning more about snakes is what matters – as does the urgent need to ensure antivenom is available to the inhabitants of developing countries, such as PNG. “Snakebites deserve more attention in the West,” he says. “Around the world, up to 138,000 people die from snakebites every year and a further 400,000 are permanently physically disabled by their bites, and many more are affected mentally and financially. As many people die from snakebites in a single month, every month, as died from Ebola in 26 months. “Snakebite is primarily a disease that afflicts poor people in developing countries. Unlike Ebola, you can’t catch snakebite and bring it back
SUMMER 2020
home, so people in the West tend to ignore it, but it’s never been more important to find an antidote to snakebite.” For an herpetologist, one of the biggest honours that can be conferred is having a species named after you, and in 2018, Cylindrophis osheai – also known as O’Shea’s pipesnake – from Boano Island, near Seram, Indonesia, was described. So, what is next for the intrepid explorer and snake expert? As well as speaking at international conferences and symposia, he is revising his field guide to snakes of Papua New Guinea, which was first published in 1996, teaching undergraduates and postgraduates and is working to expand herpetology at the University. And with a fellow University of Wolverhampton herpetologist and conservation geneticist, Simon Maddock, another expedition to PNG is planned, this time to work on the seasnakes off the north coast. “Wolverhampton is my city and I thoroughly enjoy being at the University,” he says. “When you turn your hobby into a career, it might cease to be your hobby, but it’s still fun. I like going to work.”
LIFE MAGAZINE
17
A SOCIETY
leesha Verma is the Gutless Warrior – a voice for people with ostomy-related illnesses and inflammatory bowel disease. Her Instagram and Facebook pages tell of her experience of being diagnosed with colitis at the age of 17. Life for the alumna, a Health Studies and Social Work graduate who hails from Wolverhampton, changed irrevocably on New Year’s Eve 2014, when she was just 18 and studying for her A-levels. Instead of heading out with friends, she was rushed to a hospital operating theatre to undergo an emergency ileostomy, which left her with a stoma bag. “I had to take a year out as I was so poorly I couldn’t go to school,” she said. “When I came to the University, I didn’t tell anyone about the stoma because I was still trying to accept it myself and felt very conscious about it. As a consequence, I found my first year really hard.” It was during her first year of studies that Aleesha launched her Gutless Warrior Facebook and Instagram pages as a way of making sense of what she had experienced and to be a soundboard for anyone else needing someone to talk to who was going through the same.
18
LIFE MAGAZINE
SUMMER 2020
THE GUTLESS WARRIOR
SOCIETY
– speaking up for Crohn’s and colitis sufferers
“I felt I didn’t have anyone I could relate to, so I wanted to be that voice for other people through my blog,” she said. However, Aleesha suffered another setback as she completed her first year, having to have a permanent ileostomy in June 2016. “It took me back to square one, but I felt mentally stronger,” she said. “My family asked me to take another year out, but I was determined not to. I realised that the stoma bag had given me my quality of life back and that helped me to change my mindset and change my attitude towards my bag, which is now permanent.” Now working in the NHS, Aleesha said the stoma is so much part of her life that she named it Rosie and celebrates its “birthday” every year with cake and balloons. “The bag is part of me and it certainly doesn’t stop me doing what I want to do,” she added. Aleesha is also a mentor at Wolverhampton New Cross Hospital, where she buddies younger patients who have undergone ileostomies and similar procedures, and also raises money for the charity Crohn’s and Colitis UK. “The last thing I want to do is feel sorry for myself,” she said. “I would have benefitted if I’d have spoken to someone like me after I’d had my first operation. I know my bag has affected every aspect of life my, but it has also saved my life. I feel like I’ve been given a second chance.” In April, a film that Aleesha was involved with won an award for its impact. The It Takes Guts campaign scooped the People’s Choice Award in the Charity Film Awards, which celebrates SUMMER 2020
films that engage supporters and encourage donations for good causes. The two-minute animated film was created by Crohn’s and Colitis UK. Aleesha said: “I thoroughly enjoyed being part of the It Takes Guts campaign and definitely enjoyed being turned into a cartoon. I am so pleased we won the People’s Choice Award for this incredible animation, which had the message that it takes guts to talk about Crohn’s and colitis.”
LIFE MAGAZINE
19
REUNIONS
Let’s get together Every year, hundreds of alumni meet up to talk about old times and how things have changed since their day! WLV Life catches up with some of the reunions that have taken place over the past year.
Reflecting on why they meet up annually, Jacques Abeng Essamba, from France, who is now an agency recruiter in the online gaming industry, said: “It gives us the opportunity to take a step back and think about how we have moved on in our lives, what we have learned and how things have changed.”
David Wedge, Alumni Relations Manager, said: “We are always delighted to welcome back our alumni to have a look around the University to see how it has changed.”
Erasmus students’ 10-year reunion A group of former Erasmus students enjoyed a trip down memory lane when they returned to Wolverhampton a decade after studying at the University. The students from Italy, France and the Czech Republic have remained friends since first arriving in the West Midlands in 2009. And although they hold a reunion every year, they decided to return to the place where their friendship started to mark their 10th anniversary. During their visit, they enjoyed a tour of the University’s new
20
LIFE MAGAZINE
facilities, including the impressive Rosalind Franklin Building, and visited familiar sites from their days in the city. Former law student Pavla Ladova, from the Czech Republic, said: “The University has changed so much. It’s very modern and very nice now, and the students are very lucky to study here. Coming to the University was life-changing and shaped my future life. Every day was memorable – there were no boring days! We had fun, we travelled a lot, we learned the language and made amazing friendships.”
SUMMER 2020
REUNIONS
25 years of support for Deaf and Hard of Hearing students
Graduates having a ball! The annual Graduation Ball took place at the Grand Station, Wolverhampton, when hundreds of graduates celebrated the end of their studies in style, and were welcomed as new members of the Alumni Association.
SUMMER 2020
Dozens of alumni enjoyed a reunion to mark the 25th anniversary of the University’s specialist support for Deaf and hard of hearing students. Organised by Grace Peddie and Louise Rhodes, from the University’s Student Support and Wellbeing BSL interpreting team, the event saw 60 graduates, spanning 2008 to 2019, attending. These included a former Erasmus student from Sweden, and 10 former members of staff coming together for a celebration in the Chancellor’s Hall. Special guests were Dr Megan Lawton, founder of the Visual Language Centre (VLC), John Hay MBE and Honorary Fellow of the University of Wolverhampton, and former Fashion and Textiles student Keith Makombe, BA (Hons), MA, who is now an Artist in Residence within the University. John Hay, who played a key role in the development of the subject area of Deaf Studies and senior lecturer in Deaf Studies and British Sign Language/Interpreting for 15 years, said: “What a fantastic night I had meeting both old and new faces, especially the ones who came to University at the same time as mine in 1998! It was really interesting to know what sort of employment deaf graduates are now engaged with in the big wide world.” Prof Megan Lawton, Professor of Learning and Teaching in Academic Practice, told the gathering: “Over the
last 25 years we have supported over 244 Deaf students to study in higher education over a full range of degree programmes, we have trained over 200 interpreters and through deaf studies have educated students who have gone on to key roles across both the public and private sectors. We’ve not done a bad job; I give thanks for a University that was open to new ideas and to an amazing group of people that it has been my pleasure to work with over the last 25 years.” One graduate who attended said:
“I could talk for many hours about how amazing the University is for Deaf and hard of hearing students.” “There is one thing for sure, and that is that the excellent support the Deaf student community has received from the University and the interpreters. I am glad I made a right choice to be educated here and I left the University with my head held high.”
LIFE MAGAZINE
21
REUNIONS
Languages staff and students reunite
Dominican Republic alumni University of Wolverhampton graduates who are based in the Dominican Republic have organised their second reunion, where they reminisced about their time here. The members of the Dominican Republic Alumni Association met up at Carmesi, in Santo Domingo, where they also welcomed students who were about to depart to Wolverhampton to join the University in September 2019. It’s great to see another active alumni association overseas.
Former BA Modern Languages and European Studies students and lecturers met up for their fifth reunion since 1984. In total, 15 alumni, who studied at the University between 1973 and 1977, and seven academic staff – plus partners – travelled to Wolverhampton from as far as Spain and France for the event. Sheila Searle, one of the organisers, said: “The course started the year the UK joined the-then EEC and the Cold War was still raging. Many of us went on to use our languages throughout our careers.
Podar World College alumni reunion
Marking 25 years since graduation
Anyone thinking about a reunion: just do it! 22
LIFE MAGAZINE
“The reunions are always something to look forward to and our next one is planned for 2023 – 50 years after we all first met on the BAML course.” Among those attending was Alan Dobson, the former head of the course, who gave the keynote speech, while the former head of the Faculty, John White, sent a message.
Graduates of the BSc (Hons) Business Information Systems Class of 94 enjoyed rebooting their friendships when they celebrated their 25-year anniversary in their old stomping ground. It was organised by Marc Groves, who is now a lecturer in Social Care at the University, who gathered a group of graduates together to travel across the country to meet up in Wolverhampton. They started at the Hog’s Head before enjoying a tour of the University. “The Marble, Sports Hall and the Arts Block were the same, but the rest was unrecognisable from our stay between 1990 and 1994,” said Marc. “Anyone thinking about a reunion: just do it! Do not over complicate it, make it convenient.”
About 40 alumni from Podar World College in Mumbai, India, who studied for the BA (Hons) Business Management in association with the University of Wolverhampton, enjoyed a reunion. The graduates, who were from the classes of 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018, returned to celebrate the graduation of the new alumni class and they met up with Pro Vice-Chancellor Mr Tim Steele. Dr. Vandana Lulla, Principal, said: “It was wonderful to see everyone and many of those who couldn’t attend sent voice messages, live video, emails.” After the formal graduation ceremony, all the alumni celebrated at the Alumni Ball.
SUMMER 2020
INTERNATIONAL
New Alumni Association for Sri Lanka graduates
Ibrahim Sahib Fathima Nushani
Mohamed Nizar Abdul Mueez
An alumni association has been launched where you can catch up with others who studied at Wolverhampton or partner institutions in the country. Launched at the beginning of the year, the private Facebook community page has over 100 members, all of whom live in, or are from, Sri Lanka and studied a University course. Mohamed Nizar Abdul Mueez, the group’s ambassador, and Ibrahim Sahib Fathima Nushani, deputy ambassador, said the aim of the group is to be a social and professional networking that is open to all University of Wolverhampton award graduates. Mohamed said: “The launching of the Alumni Association in Sri Lanka opens up an array of opportunities for strong and professional collaboration. Being appointed as the ambassador, I am thrilled that we now have a platform to promote the values and ethos of the University. I strongly believe that our collective efforts will lead to the establishment of a dynamic Alumni Association in Sri Lanka.”
Ibrahim added: “As the deputy ambassador, it grants me an opportunity to bridge a strong relationship between the University and its fellow alumni to establish a solid and vibrant Alumni Association in Sri Lanka from which all the alumni would benefit immensely. I’m delighted to be a part of this global network.”
facebook.com/groups/SriLankaWLValumni
SUMMER 2020
Enquire about forming an alumni group – wlv.ac.uk/networks
LIFE MAGAZINE
23
IN BUSINESS
THE MAN IN THE DRIVING SEAT Adrian Hallmark is a man with a mission. The head of Bentley, one of the world’s most famous luxury car manufacturers, is not standing still when it comes to introducing radical changes at its car plant in Crewe, Cheshire. His appointment to Chairman and CEO in February 2018 saw him and his management team set in motion a series of strategic and operational transformations that are already boosting productivity, redefining the business model, and decarbonising the entire business and product range. “Sustainability is now as central to Bentley’s values as craftsmanship has been for the last 100 years,” says Adrian, who is on his second tour of duty in the company, having worked there as Board Member Sales and Marketing from 1999 until 2005. “This is demonstrated by the fact the Crewe site achieved carbon neutrality in October 2019, the first step in the full decarbonisation of all operations and powertrains. “This is just the beginning. We now have the opportunity and obligation to totally reinvent this 100-year-old company in less than 10 years, and this is the most exciting challenge that I and the team in Crewe have ever faced. We won’t be successful unless we fundamentally change the way we do things.”
24
LIFE MAGAZINE
SUMMER 2020
IN BUSINESS
Alumnus Adrian Hallmark, Chairman and CEO of Bentley Motors, talks to WLV Life about the future of the British manufacturer of luxury vehicles, studying in his home city and delivering the prestigious Crystal Lecture.
SUMMER 2020
LIFE MAGAZINE
25
IN BUSINESS
This is just the beginning. We now have the opportunity and obligation to totally reinvent this 100-year-old company in less than 10 years, and this is the most exciting challenge that I and the team in Crewe have ever faced.
26
LIFE MAGAZINE
he self-confessed lover of lifelong learning also introduced a comprehensive lean process optimisation programme, which resulted in a restructure from the top down. This led to a dramatic improvement in productivity: the most visible being a 24% reduction in hours assembly per car, delivered in a four-month period on four individual product lines, in all steps of the production system. In addition, the programme removed waste from both the supply chain and from its own processes. One of the more striking examples was how it used the leather hides for the vehicle interiors. About 25 of the finest quality leather hides are used in every Mulsanne, while 14 are used in a Bentayga and 13 in The Flying Spur. However, the old quality control process meant it threw away 45% of the
leather. The introduction of optimised algorithms on the cutting machines has reduced this wastage to 25% and the aim is to reduce it further. When Bentley unveiled the EXP100 GT – its electric autonomous concept car – last year, it did so to draw a line under the last century of extraordinary achievements, and set up a future manifesto for the brand in terms of sustainable and ethically transparent supply chains for the future. For example, it featured organic “leather” made from the waste grape skins from the wine industry in all nontouch areas of the interior, while the wooden veneers and elements were produced from East Anglian Fenland ancient oak. “The provenance of this material is important as is the philosophy behind its use: it was carbon dated to about 3000BC and extracted from underground sources, since it had fallen several thousand years ago, therefore was out of the carbon cycle,” Adrian explains.
SUMMER 2020
IN BUSINESS
“Its beauty and rarity fit perfectly with the needs of luxury and craftsmanship, and demonstrates the potential for innovation to deliver traditional elements in a modern and sustainable way.” Changing the way Bentley operates is key to the future of its success and will include fully decarbonising the business, doubling profitability, digitalising the business model. “I believe in electric vehicles for the next 10 to 20 years,” he says. “Lithium ion is the best solution at the moment, but we need a better solution. Lithium ion batteries are volatile and there are ethical issues with the mining of materials, so we’re hoping that a solid state battery could be viable by the mid 2020s.” The VW Group, to which Bentley belongs, has already invested in a solid-state battery start-up called QuantumScape, which aims to have SS batteries ready for car production by 2025.
The future of engineering has never been so exciting, says Adrian, who started his professional life as an engineering apprentice at NEI Thompson in Wolverhampton in the early 1980s. He went on to complete two HNCs in Fabrication and Materials Technology, plus Mechanical Production Engineering, from the-then Wolverhampton Polytechnic, where he studied five evenings a week after work for 15 months for the latter. Ironic, really, he admits. “I quit engineering after 18 months in a design office as I thought there was no future in it,” he says. “How wrong was I? What has happened in the last 10 years, and what will happen in the next 20, is probably the most innovative and exciting period in human history to date, and I would encourage anyone who has the right capabilities to throw themselves in to this exciting future. What’s happening in engineering is a revelation.” Adrian confesses he found studying easy, but used this ability to spur him on as he moved into the automotive industry, holding senior executive positions with Porsche, Saab, VW and JLR. He says he never under-estimates the importance of
continuous learning, whether that is via an academic route or by introducing new methodology into the workplace. “If you find something easy, it’s probably because you’re quite good at it,” he says. “The trick is to then push hard to find your potential, rather than relax and get distracted. One thing I learned very quickly was learning how to learn. I am a natural learner and love to discover new ways of interpreting things. Without a solid commitment to learning and working hard you can’t achieve everything.”
SUMMER 2020
LIFE MAGAZINE
27
Yoda Skywalker Guardiola Messi Dr Dre Eminem
You ?
Become a mentor Inspire a generation During these challenging times, why not share your expertise and experience with those who need it? Encourage, motivate, and guide a student towards a bright, exciting career.
Become a career mentor: wlv.ac.uk/mentoring
IN BUSINESS
BIOGRAPHY
The scale and the ambition of the University blew me away. He enrolled at the Henley Management College to study for an Executive MBA, coming away with a Diploma in Management (“I didn’t finish the electives because I got promoted,” he laughs. “I use what I learned every day, though.”) Adrian reconnected with the University in 2018, when he moved back to Bentley, and admits he was astonished by the changes that had taken place within the institution in the 25 years following his graduation. “I was positively shocked; I’d heard what had been happening with expansion, but the scale and the ambition of the University blew me away,” he says. “It’s a real achievement for the management and academic teams, as well as for the city itself. It is inspiring.” To honour the alumnus on his achievements, Adrian was awarded an Honorary Doctoral degree in Engineering in 2018 and was invited to deliver the 26th Crystal Lecture at the University in November 2019. “I loved doing that. I loved having the chance to interact with different groups, because it is important to test your SUMMER 2020
thinking and be challenged,” he says. “Talking about the growth of Bentley, talking about cars – it plays to my personal interests! It was a great evening, with a lot of selfies.” For a man whose career has taken him to some of the world’s best-known automotive companies, it may surprise some to learn that his first love is not the four-wheeled variety, but the two. An accomplished motocross rider, he reached expert and British championship levels after only four years. However, his motocross days came to an abrupt end when, at the age of 39, he suffered a bad crash. “I broke my left,” as he describes it, breaking, among other bones, collarbone, pelvis, kneecap, and ribs. “I thought I’d be crippled for life,” he admits, but he slowly he recovered over months and has never stepped foot on a motocross bike since. He does still enjoy the thrill of riding a trials bike in the French Alps, where he lives, and, of course, the luxury of driving a Bentley. “I was convinced I could be a world-class rider, but wisely studied hard in parallel to working my way up the sporting ranks, and eventually work came into focus and everything changed,” he says. “I was fortunate that I had the self-belief and drive to try anything, but more importantly, I learned the value of mentors and people that care and challenge you to do things differently. “I’ve always worked hard, but it’s always great to have people around you can trust and you can learn from to help you grow faster. But whatever you learn, the most important skill is how to learn, remain a sponge rather than a rock, and then you may be able to shape change rather than be a passenger to it.”
Chairman and CEO Bentley Motors Ltd February 2018 – Group Strategy Director Jaguar Land Rover 2013–2018 – Global Director Jaguar Brand 2010–2013 – Executive Director Global Sales Saab Automobile AB 2010 – Executive Director Asia Volkswagen AG 2008–2009 – Executive Vice President Volkswagen of America 2005–2008 – Board Member Sales & Marketing Bentley Motors Ltd 1999–2005 – Managing Director Porsche Cars GB Ltd 1996–1999
LIFE MAGAZINE
29
INVESTMENT
NEW
Springfield Campus revitalises historic brewery
The University’s £100 million investment in a new construction excellence super-campus on the site of the former Grade II listed Springfield brewery in Wolverhampton will welcome its first students this September. The opening of the new School of Architecture and Built Environment is the culmination of almost two years of construction and restoration of the historic buildings, including the 1922 clock tower, that survived a devastating fire in 2004. The new School will specialise in supporting skills in architecture, construction, civil engineering, building control, building services, facilities management, quantity surveying, planning, construction management, housing and commercial. The 7,900 square metre building, which sits in a 12-acre site, comprises specialist teaching and social learning spaces, design studios, specialist labs, multi-disiplinary workshops, lecture theatre, cafe, offices, meeting rooms, ICT rooms and a top floor super-studio with double height ceilings. It will provide space for nearly 1,100 existing students and 65 staff, although the number of students is projected to grow to 1,600. At a topping out ceremony earlier in 2020, Professor Geoff Layer, ViceChancellor, said: “Since the purchase of Springfield in 2014, the derelict site
30
LIFE MAGAZINE
At its peak, the Springfield Brewery was producing 1,500 barrels of beer a week and employing 900 people. has been rejuvenated into a centre of excellence for construction and the built environment, delivering an unbeatable skills pathway for construction education and training from the age of 14 to senior professionals and acting as a catalyst for economic and social regeneration. “The new School of Architecture and Built Environment is investing and growing to meet the demands of modern industry and our strong links with employers enable programmes to be developed to closely match their needs – this offers our graduates great employment opportunities upon completion of their degree course.”
SUMMER 2020
INVESTMENT
Richard Perry, Director of Associated Architects, which designed the campus, added: “This project is a fantastic example of what can be achieved when bringing together modern construction and historic building fabric. The re-purposing of this site has created a powerful piece of architecture, one that will act as a benchmark for future phases.”
Home to the West Midlands University Technical College, the University’s School of Architecture and Built Environment, and the Elite Centre for Manufacturing Skills, the regenerated former Springfield Brewery is central to the University’s vision of enhancing the student experience and supporting business growth. It will also be home to the University’s new National Brownfield Research Institute.
“Creating an inspirational space for future generations of construction professionals to learn, share, innovate and develop new solutions to our built environment challenges is an immense privilege. Our partnership with the University, to enrich the current and future curriculum and student experience, has seen us capture a vast amount of data on the full construction process. This learning asset is another unique aspect of a project that is set to make a hugely influential legacy for our industry.” – Wayne Flannery, regional director for contactor ISG
“Supporting the delivery of this world-class educational facility that will have such an impact on the built environment is a real honour for the RLB team.” – Mike Lally, Head of Project Management at construction, property and management consultant Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB)
SUMMER 2020
LIFE MAGAZINE
31
INVESTMENT
The new School of Architecture and Built Environment is investing and growing to meet the demands of modern industry.
Liam Davies, Senior Project Manager, ISG A former construction management student returned to the University to lead the Springfield Campus project. Liam Davies, project lead in charge of delivery for contractors ISG, said
About The Springfield Brewery
he was “in the right place, at the right time” to return to Wolverhampton, 21 years after he graduated with a BSc (Hons) Construction Management. He said the course helped him to prepare for a successful career in construction, which has taken him across the UK, Ireland and the Middle East. “The leadership module was where at the right time for me as a Project I ‘sparked’,” he said. “I had always been Manager in the right location. fascinated with leaders, having been “It’s been wonderful and influenced by some great leaders challenging in equal measure. I’m during my early career so I had sure the finished building will be identified that being a good leader award winning, so to be working would take me where I wanted to go. on what will be an iconic building is School of Architecture & Built Environment “University for me just helped Site Photographs great for me, ISG and the University.”
1922
32
LIFE MAGAZINE
1950 The Butler family connection ended when Samuel Butler left the board of directors in 1950.
The site was originally purchased in 1873 by William School of Architecture & Built Environment Site Photographs Butler to house his growing brewing business, with the Springfield Brewery opening in 1874 under the William Butler and Company name.
1873
to illustrate that I could learn at a higher level and display the level of intelligence that senior management would require. It was a great period in my life that will always stay with me and I will always promote to other people as it helped to shape me professionally.” Liam joined ISG to help bid for and win the Springfield Campus project, with a vision to take it through to completion. “I’ve worked on many projects across the world, all having contributed to the professional I am today,” he said. “It felt that the timing was fate – the right project
The clock tower was built in 1922.
In 1960 the company was taken over by Mitchells and Butlers, with a gradual decline in production at the site, until brewing ceased entirely at the site in 1990, with it closing entirely in 1991.
1960
1991 SUMMER 2020
INVESTMENT
Rachel Toor, Assistant Building Manager, Willmott Dixon Interiors “The highlights were definitely the relationships you build along the way both with fellow students and your lecturers. And, of course, the day you put on your cap and gown... it all becomes worth it.” Rachel, a former plumbing and gas apprentice, studied part-time at the University, first for an HNC in Building Studies before completing her degree in Construction Management in 2017. Now an assistant building manager at Willmott Dixon Interiors, Rachel has maintained a close relationship with the University, after one of her lecturers asked her to deliver a short presentation to the Construction Management students. “I loved that,” she said. “I also had the privilege of coming back the year after Shaylor employed me at the Meet the Employer
breakfast morning – this time as the employer! That was fantastic.” She has also done volunteer days, including the F1 and F3 day on International Women in Engineering day at the Telford Campus. “That will forever go down as the best volunteer day I’ve ever done. I love to come back and get involved with my uni,” said Rachel. She has fond memories of her time at the University, particularly the support of the staff. “I developed some great professional relationships with my lecturers,” she said. “They were so supportive, understanding and encouraging.
2004 A ferocious blaze ravaged the site in 2004, destroying much of the historic site.
2011
Foundations were laid, but plans to build 300 homes on the site were abandoned amid economic troubles in the late 2000s.
2000s SUMMER 2020
It can be quite difficult studying parttime but when they understand that and get the pressures of studying and working full-time, it just makes all the difference.” Speaking at the topping out ceremony of the Springfield Campus, she added: “I am extremely jealous that I won’t be studying in the campus. It’s a building that combines history and new construction whilst maintaining character. If we want to attract the next generation then what we build and how we do it will have a huge impact. I would love to study on a site with such an interesting history and amazing character.”
Broughs Brewery, a microbrewery, began producing Springfield Ale on the site in 2011.
3
The University of Wolverhampton purchased the site in 2014 – the start of ambitious plans to create a construction and built environment super-campus.
2014 LIFE MAGAZINE
33
IN PROFILE
Jamille 34
LIFE MAGAZINE
SUMMER 2020
IN PROFILE
Jamille Matt, BSc (Hons) Psychology, is a professional footballer at Newport County AFC. He talks about inspiring the next generation and how he uses his degree every day, on and off the field. LM: What are your memories and highlights of your time, studying at Wolverhampton? JM: I have great memories from my time studying at Wolverhampton. I can remember my first day and not really knowing anyone as all of my closest friends had gone to different universities. I was quite anxious about meeting new people and making new friends, but also nervous about the
*
LM: You were also invited to the Children’s University* graduation. Did you enjoy giving a speech to the children? JM: I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t nerveracking; it was pretty scary because it was something I’d never experienced before. I thoroughly enjoyed taking myself out of my comfort zone, even though I’d rather play football in front of a crowd any day! Attending the Children’s University graduation was important for me because I didn’t follow the traditional path after university, nor did I follow a traditional path in becoming a professional footballer. It was fantastic to see the children being rewarded for their achievements, with their families alongside them.
see p46 for a story about the Children's University
I’d like to get back into doing some work with my psychology degree when the time is right.
MattQ&A challenge of being able to adjust to a new and more independent way of studying. My biggest highlights are graduating with all family there and also meeting some great people who I still keep in touch with now. LM: You have returned to the University to volunteer. Why did you want to do that? JM: I had some contact from the University through my current club, Newport County, asking about how my time at the University and if my degree in Counselling Psychology helped with my football career. I kept in contact with the alumni office, who have been very supportive. When they invited me to a sports awards evening, I felt it was the least I could do. It was an honour to be back at the University for the first time since graduating.
SUMMER 2020
I was aware children may have a similar path growing up, where they have a passion for further learning but also a passion for something outside of university which they may also see a career path in. I wanted to encourage them to follow their passions alongside education; when I was told that was exactly what the Children’s University initiative was about, it made perfect sense.
LM: Everyone needs someone to look up to – who are your sporting heroes? JM: Thierry Henry is my biggest footballing hero. Growing up as an Arsenal fan, he’s possibly their greatest player and I just wanted to be just like him. To this day, I still watch videos of him playing. Ronaldo R9 is another striker I really admire.
LIFE MAGAZINE
35
IN PROFILE
Attending the Children’s University graduation was important for me because I didn’t follow the traditional path after university. LM: Why was it important to you to study for a degree at Wolverhampton? JM: I was playing semi-professionally when I started my degree studies. It was always in my thinking to go to university. It was tough at times because I would finish a long day studying and attending lectures and have to travel a few hours on public transport to get to training at Sutton Coldfield Town Football Club,
where I was at the time, on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, and then a couple of hours on public transport again to get home. I’d get home quite late and then be up early again the next morning to get to lectures. It was worth it: I enjoyed both my football and uni. In my third year of uni, I signed professionally for Kidderminster Harriers, which was fantastic. Credit to the club, too, because they allowed me to miss a few training sessions so I could finish my degree.
36
LIFE MAGAZINE
LM: What did your fellow players think about you studying while playing football for a living? JM: I got a lot of praise at the time for continuing my degree alongside playing and my team mates were very supportive. I didn’t know many players at that time who had gone a similar route, but nowadays, you see more players preparing for their futures after football by studying. The Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) also encourages players to study and it provides support with courses. LM: What did you learn from your psychology degree that you put into practice every day? JM: There are two main things that I use from my degree every day. The first is mindset: it’s important to have the right mindset, because football and sports can throw a lot at you, such as injuries, loss of form, not being in the team, losing a game – these all put you into a negative frame of mind, so I try to keep positive. I believe this helps you to achieve consistent personal performances. The second thing is empathy: it’s important to empathise with your team mates and help each other if someone may be going through a tough time off the field as well as on it.
against the-then Premier League champions was a surreal moment and something I will always remember. Getting to play against some of the best players in football was a great moment. LM: What are your long-term plans for your football career and beyond? JM: I want to continue playing for as long as I can and at the highest level possible. I’ve been a professional footballer for almost 10 years now, which is an achievement I am proud of. As one of the more experienced players at Newport I enjoy passing on some of my knowledge to some of the younger lads. Although I don’t see myself staying within football when I finish playing, I have recently started doing my coaching badges, so that may be a career path. I’d also like to get back into doing some work with my psychology degree when the time is right.
Thierry Henry is my biggest footballing hero.
LM: What has been your sporting highlight? JM: Playing against Manchester City in 2019: having my son, who was two at the time, walking out with me
SUMMER 2020
Turn your business idea into reality – with SPEED If you’re a business startup or haven’t registered your business in the last 12 months, the SPEED project can support you. With SPEED, you can: Access 6 hours of business consultancy Potentially gain a match-funded grant of £1,000+ Get help registering your business Master branding, marketing, business planning and more through funded specialised workshops Use a desk in our co-working space for up to 12 months If you’re registered business or you plan to register your business in the Black Country or Shropshire, discover the SPEED project. Email: speed@wlv.ac.uk or tel: 01902 518 960.
IN BUSINESS
MY LIFE: BABY STEPS INTO BUSINESS Katy Holden juggled parenthood and a growing enterprise making handmade baby accessories when she studied for her degree. WLV Life finds out how she did it – and how the SPEED initiative for new businesses helped her company on its way to success. I’ll always be grateful to the University for giving me a chance. I had to interview for my place on the Education Studies course because I’d left school at 17 and didn’t have any A-levels. I’d been working in the NHS since 2010, when I left school – first as a dental nurse trainee and then as an assistant audiologist at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust – but I wanted to do something different. Initially I was turned down and was told to complete an access course, but I took a deep breath and asked to speak to the Faculty lead and explained that I couldn’t afford to leave work to do a college course: I needed to come straight into university. Luckily for me, Dr Chris Wakeman saw something in me and said yes. I was ecstatic and knew I had to work hard to show Dr Wakeman that he was right to take a chance. I proved my worth with two 90% grades in my first year. This gave me the confidence and belief to try something new. My daughter Niamh was six months old when I started my degree in September 2016, and to start with it was a breeze. It helped that I really enjoyed the course and that I had such good support at home, with my parents and husband Martin. In July 2017, we were really excited to find out we were expecting our second child. Sadly this wasn’t meant to be and I miscarried five days before starting the first semester of my second year. This was really hard, even more so that life had to resume as normal, with Niamh to look after and my degree studies.
38
LIFE MAGAZINE
The idea for Niamhs Neverland – my business that creates handmade accessories for babies and toddlers – came about half way through my second year of studying. I wanted to fill the gap left by my miscarriage: I’m not sure why, but suddenly Niamh and University weren’t enough to fill the time.
SUMMER 2020
IN BUSINESS
I started making things when Niamh was born and I really enjoyed it. In fact, I thought I’d go on to become a textiles teacher. An opportunity came up to list my products with a company and then I moved to Etsy and things snowballed from there. To start with I didn’t find it too difficult: I was working as a supply teacher a couple of days a week, going to uni, running the business and looking after Niamh. Looking back, I have no idea how I did it! Then as my studies got harder and the business got busier, I dropped the teaching. Third year was definitely the hardest. I knew I was heading for a First Class, and I was determined to make it. By this time the business was taking between 50 and 100 orders a month, I was doing my dissertation and assignments, attending lectures and exhibiting nationally. Luckily, my mum also helps to make the accessories, which has been a huge help. In January 2019, my story featured in a bestselling book, Mumpreneur on Fire 4, and my Faculty lead, Faye Stanley, heard about it and asked to speak to me. She told me about the SPEED business support project for students and graduates of the University and how it could offer support packages, match-funded grants and business consultancy for newly launched companies. It was brilliant: SPEED has helped me immensely. It arranged some training with a business advisor and helped me to get Niamhs Neverland advertised in Tatler magazine, but best of all was the grant funding that enabled me to have three exhibition stands – one at the Baby and Toddler Show in Manchester, and The Baby Show in Birmingham twice. These were brilliant opportunities as I made four times as much as it cost me to get the stand. It helped to catapult my business in front of parents and baby businesses.
SUMMER 2020
In the third year of my degree I found out I was pregnant again. I had the most awful pregnancy, and I cried into my laptop repeatedly, but Aubrey Rose arrived just after I handed in my last assignment in July 2019. Niamhs Neverland is young, but growing and I’m grateful for everything the University has offered me, both in academic and business support. I’ve learned how to juggle a million things: I’m the designer, maker, seller, social media manager, packer, emailer and accountant. I’m two years in and it’s doing well, but I’m not yet at the stage where I can outsource the making of the accessories, so it’s all in-house (literally: we still work at home!). I’ve learned how to use my customer base to develop my designs and products and this enabled me to have my best month in January 2020, when I had 300 orders placed in 23 days. Every day I learn something new – and the skills I learned at University opened up my mind to new possibilities and ways of doing things.
niamhsneverland.com wlv.ac.uk/speed LIFE MAGAZINE
39
Q&A
A LIFE IN PICTURES As Head of Global Creative at Al Jazeera, in Qatar, awardwinning Duncan Preston is responsible for all the branding and design at the English language channel. The Visual Communications graduate tells WLV Life about his career so far. LM: What stood out about the Visual Communications degree at Wolverhampton that made you want to study there? DP: I looked around quite extensively at a number of graphic design courses across quite a few universities and was offered places at Central St Martins, Goldsmiths (and a few others), but settled on Visual Communication at School of Art and Design for a number of reasons. When I visited Wolverhampton and the University for my interview, I really liked the overall atmosphere. There was a real creative energy and a buzz about the place and it felt very comfortable. The course also stuck out for me: it was ranked as one of the best in the UK and the
40
LIFE MAGAZINE
SUMMER 2020
Q&A
with six other people from the same course. We used to sit and discuss projects, work together, offer advice and ideas, brainstorm and just help each other out. I don’t really see them anymore, other than glimpses on Facebook, but it’s great to see how they are getting on now and how diverse all our lives have become. LM: What were the highlights of your studies? DP: There were many inspiring tutors, including Dave Ashley and Ian Madeley, who taught multimedia, and that was something I really wanted to get into at the time. They also showed a lot of faith and confidence in me, and I remember for our degree show they asked me to create a multi-media interface that was a portfolio database of all the students that took the multimedia modules. It was a great project to work on, and once I had graduated I had to update it because a Malaysian university wanted to use it for their students the following year. That was a real honour and a nice acknowledgment of my work.
syllabus covered the whole spectrum of design, as well as multi-media, web design (which was a relatively new emerging technology back then), and it had a highly conceptual backbone. LM: What are your memories of studying at Wolverhampton? DP: As I was a mature student I had quite a different outlook from many students, so although uni life is about partying, I had ‘already seen it, done it’. I’m not saying I didn’t party, of course I did, but that just lasted for the first year, after which time I settled back into being me. My fondest memories have to be of the friends I made. During term time, I lived in a large house
SUMMER 2020
There were many inspiring tutors who taught multimedia.
LM: How did your studies prepare you for your career? DP: The course changed my perspective regarding design. It made me realise that great design is not just bashing something out in Photoshop that you may think looks cool just because you know how to use a piece of software a bit. Even the simplest and most straightforward designs come from thorough development of an initial concept. Every mark or direction must be well considered with specific goals in mind and with the aim of playing with the right emotions to achieve the desired actions or reactions. Prior to graduating I’d lived a fairly blinkered and uncomplicated life, I’d never really thought that deeply about anything before.
LIFE MAGAZINE
41
Q&A
LM: Has your career progressed as you expected it to? DP: When I graduated, my aim was to try and get into TV or film. I’ve definitely managed to follow that path, but I hadn’t envisioned it being within the news industry or emigrating to Qatar to work for one of the biggest and most controversial news organisations in the world. Part of me wishes I had gone down the route of TV entertainment or film because the news industry can be a bit heavy at times: it’s always extremely serious, and being immersed in daily global news events for over 15 years has created a level of desensitisation regarding all the hardships and issues going on in the world today. LM: Which projects have you done that you are particularly proud of? DP: I feel pretty lucky to be where I am and in my current role. Over the past 15 years, I’ve had some great opportunities: I’ve played a major role in winning more than 60 industry awards for design and promotion, as well as being given the honour of being on the judging panel for industry award bodies such as: PromaxBDA (Promo and Broadcast Design Awards); The New York Film Festival; and AME awards. Being recognised for my contribution in the field are some of my proudest moments and everything I could ever have wished for. 42
LIFE MAGAZINE
I started out at Al Jazeera working on the launch of its English language channel. It was a very intensive introduction into the news industry, working 18-hour days, creating the look of a new TV channel. But the pride from finally seeing everything you worked on for a year become realised for the world to see is a feeling that’s hard to beat. In 2011, I went to Sarajevo to direct a creative team of four, and launch another new Al Jazeera channel, Al Jazeera Balkans. That was a huge challenge: we had to create the entire look of a new channel in only four weeks. The largest project I’ve worked on was the refresh of Al Jazeera’s English language channel. The refresh was my vision and under my direction, so the full responsibility to deliver and, to deliver well, was solidly on my shoulders. It was a much harder task than the launch of the channel, mainly because it was not starting from a clean slate; there was legacy and an existing audience that needed to be fully considered. Everything that you see on the screen was included, starting with the cutting of a new font, to screen furniture and screen architecture,
promotional campaigns and promotional signage, the main news studio set, programme branding, as well as core channel branding. No stone was left unturned. The refresh launched on January 1, 2020 … so far, it’s gone down a storm! LM: What are your day-to-day responsibilities as Head of Global Creative at Al Jazeera? DP: I sit at senior management level and manage a global team of about 50 promo producers and designers across London, Washington DC and Doha (Qatar). I’m directly responsible for pretty much everything you see on the screen in terms of branding, promotion, graphics and design for Al Jazeera’s English language channel. The greatest thing about working at Al Jazeera has to be the team I work with of about 50 people representing about 20 different nationalities! The other thing I love is the freedom. Although it is quite a strict organisation in terms of its channel message and editorial outlook, in terms of design we have a certain level of autonomy. The fun part is designing something that pushes concepts as far as you can without obscuring or diluting the core message. SUMMER 2020
IN PROFILE
All images - Steve Leath Express & Star Shropshire Star
When award-winning soundtrack composer Alice Trueman first picked up a violin at the age of seven, she would never have believed that music would be central to her life and career. But now an established composer, having created beautiful soundtracks for radio dramas, short films and a feature film, she is firmly recognised as one of the country’s young creative talents. Born and bred in Wolverhampton, Alice joined the University in 2000, graduating three years later with a First Class BA (Hons) Music and the Blackwell’s Music Prize. It was during her studies that she began to explore seriously the idea of earning a living as a composer. “I’d always written melodies for fun, but never thought of becoming a composer before,” says the classically trained violinist. “But my tutors were very inspiring and encouraging and I began to think this might be something I could do professionally.” A departmental competition to write music for a string quintet, in which she reached the top five, helped to germinate the seed of the idea. She entered further competitions after she graduated, with successes including being chosen as one of the Hottest Young Creatives in the Midlands by Channel 4 in 2005, as well as reaching the finals of the BBC’s Baroque Remixed competition for Postgraduate composers. These provided money-can’t-buy experiences, such as masterclasses with Ivor Novello award winner Nitin Sawhney and the opportunity to conduct the BBC Concert Orchestra. With commissions coming in, Alice started to build up a strong portfolio with music for the BBC Radio 4 dramatisation of Solaris, as well as the station’s adaptation of Girlfriend in a Coma by Douglas Coupland. She remained close to the University after she graduated and in 2008 she returned as a guest lecturer in music for
SUMMER 2020
Alice strikes a chord film and other undergraduate modules, which led to her studying for a MMus in Composition and Songwriting. She graduated with Distinction in 2013. “The University has been really supportive and helped me to start off on the right path and into my career,” she said. “And now I love trying to inspire the next generation of musicians and composers.” In between her work composing soundtracks for corporate and promotional videos, animations and podcasts, she has landed some prestigious commissions for BBC Radio 3 and 4, writing the original music for an adaptation of Chekhov’s The Three Sisters, called Three Sisters Rewired. Last year she was commissioned to write the score for Art of Now: Migraine – an idea that she pitched to the BBC a few years previously, with Overtone Productions. The arts documentary explored migraine and creativity through the stories of artists and writers who live with the condition and her music followed the journey of a migraine attack. “I wanted to evoke the feeling of a migraine as closely as possible, the feeling of other-worldliness and the isolation of being a migraine sufferer,” explained Alice. “It was three months of intense work and I had quite a few migraine auras while writing it, but it was a great project.” Working in a musical and creative job is a constant source of inspiration for Alice. “I feel so privileged to be a composer, and so lucky to have had many great teachers and colleagues who have encouraged me along the way.”
alicetrueman.co.uk LIFE MAGAZINE
43
SOCIETY
When rapper Nate Ethan Watson (N.E.W) was studying for his Public Health degree, he also underwent gender transformation. He tells WLV Life about how his dream to graduate as a man was realised.
NEW life life NEW ’d known for decades that I was in the wrong body – I never felt female and told my friends when I was about seven that I was a boy. When I was younger I didn’t know that I could change and thought I’d always be trapped in a woman’s body. I suffered anxiety and depression a lot through my life, but music kept me sane and gave me something to focus on. I started writing songs when I was just eight years old and started to perform rap and grime as N’Chyx when I was 18. However, I struggled with gender dysphoria. It was important to me to keep going, though, and I released singles and four albums as N’Chyx and performed across the country and around the world. When I wasn’t doing that I went back to being a healthcare worker, a job I’d started when I was 19 and which kept me grounded. It wasn’t until I was 27 that I started to research gender dysphoria and was relieved to find out that what I was feeling was normal. But when I saw a doctor, I was told it was “OK to be a happy lesbian”. That’s not who I was, so
44
LIFE MAGAZINE
The University of Wolverhampton helped me on my journey to who I am now and I’m so grateful. I eventually changed doctors and was referred for psychological assessment. I was devastated to hear it would take years to see someone before I could even start hormone treatment. When I reached the age of 30, I decided it was my awakening year. I felt a shift happening within me and wanted to make changes in my life. I hadn’t really thought about going to university before, but it was the people I worked with on the mental health wards told me I should go for it and reach my potential. It was the push I needed and I enrolled at the University of Wolverhampton for what would be the next chapter of my life.
SUMMER 2020
I didn’t realise how difficult it would be to juggle everything: not just studies and my health work, but also my mental health struggles as the need to transition was becoming stronger. I had it in my head that when I started university I would be able to start transitioning, but the waiting lists for an appointment at the gender clinic were 52 weeks at least for the first consultation, with the prospect of up to 12 months for the second appointment. I started my studies in 2016 and I’m not sure how I got through the first year as I didn’t tell anyone about my gender dysphoria – I had also been diagnosed with depression – but I surprised myself by finishing it. When it came to starting the second year, I was so anxious, I didn’t know if I’d be able to continue. Playing on my mind was the fact that I didn’t want to graduate with my birth name on the certificate; it was really important for me to graduate and have my chosen name on it, but the time to get an appointment at the gender clinic meant I was running out of time. The workload was intense and with my healthcare shifts on top, I was close to giving up on my studies. Only a handful of people, including my parents, knew what I was going through and I knew I had to take matters into my own hands. I started researching private clinics that I could help me to start the transition process. I found one that was really supportive – I went through all the assessments and after six months I was prescribed testosterone. I started taking the hormones on July 25, 2018. By the time I went back to start my third year, I was already changing physically and psychologically and my name was now Nate Ethan and all my official documents had my new name on them. I was heading back to university as a man. I was nervous, but everyone was really supportive. It was a challenging year, though, and I look back now and I don’t know how I did it. I was working 12-hour ward shifts, the last year of the degree studies were intense and I was transitioning.
SUMMER 2020
All images - City of Wolverhampton Council
SOCIETY
When I reached the age of 30, I decided it was my awakening year. Some days I really struggled. I went back to my music – it was my escape – and I also confided in a couple of my lecturers, Dr Ranjit Khutan and Bhawna Solanki, about how I couldn’t cope. They were both amazingly supportive and they counselled me and helped me to keep going. To my astonishment, I graduated with a First and I was also the first student to win the Pauline Fuller Award for overcoming challenges and adversity. Pauline was a lecturer I have many fond memories of in my first year and was really upset to hear she had passed away. I was more than proud and thankful to receive the award. Since graduating, I’ve been working as an occupational therapist three days a week as well as working as a healthcare worker on a forensic ward. I’m still performing my music and I’ve also launched a project I created with the support of Wolverhampton LGBT+ Alliance and Inspiring Healthy Choices: TNB (Trans and Non-Binary) Connect provides a safe space for people to collect donated items of clothing. We’ve got some big sports brands supporting us, too, which is fantastic. I’ve never been happier – I’m doing work I love, I’m writing music and helping to make a difference to the LGBT community in Wolverhampton. The University of Wolverhampton helped me on my journey to who I am now and I’m so grateful.
LIFE MAGAZINE
45
COMMUNITY
THE ALUMNA HELPING CHILDREN TO EXPERIENCE GRADUATION
It’s not just university students who get to enjoy their graduation days: primary school pupils are also learning what it’s like to wear a cap and gown with pride after completing their hard work. It’s all thanks to the Children’s University – a charity that works with schools to develop a love of learning in children by celebrating participation in extra-curricular activities in and outside of school. The charity, which is headed by University of Wolverhampton alumna Helen O’Donnell, works with 59 partners across the UK, including further education and higher education providers, local authorities and other organisations in England. The University of Wolverhampton is one. “It’s heartening to see the University of Wolverhampton working hard to raise the aspirations of the city’s youngsters and being a central part of the local community,” said Helen, who graduated in 1993 with a BA (Hons) Modern Languages. “The Children’s University was designed as a social mobility tool and is open to all children. It focuses on breaking down barriers, giving children new experiences and helping them to grow in confidence and self belief.” The University of Wolverhampton Children’s University operates at 42 schools across the Black Country, south Birmingham and Telford, and is part of the national Children’s University Trust™ – a UK-based but international organisation that aims to provide exciting and innovative out-of-school-hours learning activities to children and young people aged five to 14. Children who take part gain credits for taking part in free or low-cost activities such as sport, cookery classes, choir, dancing, martial arts and visits to museums and community groups. They have a passport where they collect credits through their activities and attend a graduation ceremony to celebrate their achievements. Helen joined the Manchester-based charity in November 2015 after years of working in the education and third sectors and she’s pleased to be linked once again with the University.
46
LIFE MAGAZINE
SUMMER 2020
COMMUNITY
“It’s heartening to see the University of Wolverhampton working hard to raise the aspirations of the city’s youngsters.”
“It’s made me really proud of my former University,” she said. “And because I met my husband in Wolverhampton, it also feels like a family connection.” Helen studied French and Spanish at University, spending her third year in Barcelona, where she volunteered at the 1992 Summer Olympic Games as a translator and interpreter. While living there she also picked up Catalan and was able to continue learning the language when she returned to Wolverhampton as part of her studies.
“It was a fabulous course and I can honestly say it was the best four years of my life,” she said. After completing her studies, Helen stayed in the city to be with her husband, a local man whom she met on a night out in the city. They had their first daughter in 1994 and she started work the following year at a local housing corporation. In 2001, after the birth of their second daughter, she joined Wolverhampton Grammar School as development manager and from there Helen and her family moved to Cheshire to take up the role of development director at her former school, Withington Girls’ School. Her next role as Head of Development at the University of Liverpool saw her running the John Lennon SUMMER 2020
Scholarship, which was funded by Yoko Ono. Helen’s claim to fame – other than heading the major donor unit where millions of pounds worth of scholarships and appeals were co-ordinated – was that Yoko Ono was her first follower on Twitter (“That’s a really weird thing to say!”). After having her third child, Helen joined the Cheshire Community Foundation in January 2012, which enabled her to build on her fundraising and grant-making experience. Now CEO of the Children’s University, Helen has overhauled the charity, making it the success it is today. “We had to rebuild strategically and have been on that path for quite a while now, but now we have a framework that works well with our schools. It means we’re being more proactive in how we are helping schools on a national perspective,” she said. “I feel really lucky to be involved with the Children’s University and love it when we hold the graduations for the children where we can celebrate their achievements and it’s great that universities, such as Wolverhampton, play their part. “All children have high aspirations when they’re young and through Children’s University, the University of Wolverhampton is helping those that might not otherwise get to fulfil them, by setting them on a path to achieving them. “In other places I’ve met parents who are now doing a degree themselves because they saw their child graduate and I suspect we’ll be meeting some parents doing the same in Wolverhampton in the very near future.” LIFE MAGAZINE
47
ALUMNI COUPLES
A+R
A&R
Alison and Robert Bowen Robert and Alison Bowen (née Barker) met at the-then Wolverhampton Polytechnic in 1975, when he was studying Modern Languages and she was studying Economics. They met at a student party in December 1975 and have been together ever since. They married in 1977, just before they both started their final year, graduating in 1978, when Alison was heavily pregnant with their son.The retired couple, who live in Hereford and have two children and three grandchildren, both worked in the public sector. “We haven’t changed a bit!” said Robert.
J&D J+D
Jodie Wells and Daniel Hunt “We are very blessed to have found our soulmate on that first day at University in 2011 and absolutely love the story we have created so far,” says Jodie Wells. Jodie, a BA (Hons) English and Film Studies graduate, and Daniel met when they both moved into Kent Halls and quickly became inseparable.
After graduating in 2014, Jodie trained to be an English teacher and now teaches at a secondary school in South Birmingham, while Daniel, who did a BDes (Hons) Product Design degree, is now a design engineer. The couple got engaged in May 2018 and plan to marry in 2020.
SOUL MATES WHO MET ON CAMPUS
+L
R&L
Rosina Dawe and Luis Gazzelli-Hill
48
LIFE MAGAZINE
Apparently, one-fifth of students meet the love of their life at university – we catch up with some loved-up alumni whose eyes met across campus.
A mutual friend introduced Rosina and Luiz at the Christian Union in 2014, but it was not until two years later that the friends became a couple. Rosina, who studied Deaf Studies and Special Needs and Inclusion Studies before completing a PGCE in Primary Training, and Luis, who completed a BA (Hons) War Studies before going on to attain MA in Military History, are now saving to buy their first home together – and hope to adopt a cat. They are both working part time while they look for jobs in their respective fields: Luis hopes to become a published historian and Rosina a teacher.
A& A+ SUMMER 2020
ALUMNI COUPLES
Debbie Gilliland and Chris Simon The couple met at Compton Park Thursday night disco in 1987. Debbie, who graduated with a BA (Hons) Business Studies degree with sandwich year, and Chris, who did a BEd, completed their studies in 1991 before becoming teachers. The couple, who have two daughters, also went on to complete postgraduate studies and Debbie is now head of Transnational Education at the University of Wolverhampton, while Chris is senior developer at Shrewsbury College.
D&C D+C Anastasia Nikitina and Gleb Kapelka
The couple met after moving from their native Latvia to study in Wolverhampton. “Gleb was the first person I spoke to from University, and he helped me find a room to rent when I arrived in 2008,” says Ana, a BSc (Hons) Business and Finance graduate. Gleb, who graduated in 2009 with a BSc (Hons) Business and Marketing, is a principal IT consultant, while Anastasia is a finance co-ordinator and personal trainer. The couple have a son, Kevin, and are also foster parents.
&G +G SUMMER 2020
Briony Marshall and Liam Thornton The couple were on similar courses, but it was a student night at a “cheesy pop club” where Briony and Liam first met in 2012. Briony, who was in her final year of her BA (Hons) Creative and Professional Writing with English, was celebrating a friend’s birthday, while Liam, in his second year of a BA (Hons) Drama and Creative and Professional Writing was marking the success of his play “52” that had just finished a run at the Arena Theatre. “We met in a conga line to Rock DJ by Robbie Williams and the rest, as they say, is history,” says Briony.
B&L B+L The couple, who still live locally, got engaged in 2019 and are planning to get married in 2022 – ten years after they first met. Briony is a retail deputy manager and a published author who is working on two new novel manuscripts, while Liam is a front of house manager at Birmingham theatre. He also takes part in local theatre festivals, such as Artsfest, and has created a line of storytelling role-playing games (RPGs).
R&A R+A
Rachel (née Cooper) and Andrew Carey Rachel and Andrew met in the first few weeks of the first term of their HND Applied Biology course in September 1991. Friends for two years, the pair became a couple when Rachel split up from her boyfriend in the Easter of 1993. They’ve been inseparable since and both completed their degrees, Rachel being
awarded a BSc (Hons) Biological Sciences and Andrew attaining a BSc (Hons) Biochemistry, in 1995. They both went on to study for their Master’s degrees elsewhere and moved to Hampshire, where Andrew is from. After 20 years together, they married at at Blists Hill Victorian Town, near Ironbridge, in April 2013.
LIFE MAGAZINE
49
INTERNATIONAL
GRADUATE’S GOT TALENT!
How do you go from volunteering at UNICEF to managing a dance crew in Myanmar – and then stepping on the America’s Got Talent stage? Graduate Kyaw Si Thu Htun tells WLV Life how he made the unexpected step change.
There’s one thing we can surely all agree on: University of Wolverhampton graduates are talented people. But how many can say they’ve been on the TV show America’s Got Talent?
Kyaw Si Thu Htun can. A freelance translator and English tutor, he was also a volunteer at UNICEF Myanmar’s Youth initiative programme U-Report, a social media platform for young people, when he started his Business Management degree at Victoria University College, one of the University’s partner institutes in Myanmar. 50
LIFE MAGAZINE
As Media Focal for U-Report, Si Thu organised a 10-strong media team and managed more than 20 volunteers. It was a challenging role, but one he excelled at – so much so that he continued to volunteer after graduating in 2018 and starting work at a tech start-up. It was November 2018 when his career took an unexpected turn. He was first introduced to Junior Creative Dance Crew, a group of young dancers who had recently won the television show Myanmar’s Got Talent and who had been invited to perform in the Union Parliament for World Children’s Day. SUMMER 2020
INTERNATIONAL
Si Thu media-managed the event and the dancers were so impressed with him that they asked him to be their manager when they were invited to take part in America’s Got Talent: the Champions Season 2 in 2019. He takes up the story: “It’s safe to say I cannot dance at all, but I do know about management. My responsibilities
regarding America’s Got Talent were enormous. Since none of the members are English speaking, I had to be the main communicator between my crew and the AGT producers, and on stage as well. I also had to deal with the paperwork process. It was really a lifechanging experience.” Although Junior Creative did not advance to the semi-final, the crew received a welcome fit for heroes on their return home to Myanmar. They were regarded as national’s honorable youths by their fans and by their fellow countrymen and were lauded by
SUMMER 2020
parliamentarians and celebrities. Si Thu believes his career success so far is thanks to his Business Management studies. “I had my HND in 2016 and had practical knowledge working with the UNICEF but it still wasn’t enough for me to choose any full-time career because I believed myself to be still lacking of logical knowledge and wasn’t confident enough to pursue a full-time job,” he said. “In my country, everything requires a degree. So when I started doing my degree studies, it was more than just studying the modules. Combining with my experiences volunteering at U-Report, I had a clear understanding of how organisations work and what it needs to be done in terms of business management. “Even though I was volunteering for a social innovation programme, the working system was very organised and required professionalism and my degree studies, which encouraged me to think critically, helped me feel more confident with my work then and now with my full-time work, as manager for Junior Creative.”
LIFE MAGAZINE
51
IN PROFILE
ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE
hen Jet Summan fell out of love with acting, he knew exactly what he wanted to do: study. An actor from a young age, he won a scholarship to the-then Birmingham School of Speech and Drama at the age of 13 and spent his teens treading the boards, Jet Summan took time out from his acting performing Shakespeare career to study for a BSc (Hons) Fire and and other plays, eventually Rescue at the University of Wolverhampton. securing an agent. He’s since returned to his first love, releasing But after a few years, he an award-winning film that centres on a decided he wanted more male victim of domestic violence. He talks and made the decision to to WLV Life about making an impact. step away and pursue a more academic route. “I was in the wrong frame of mind for acting and because I’d always wanted to study for a degree, I wanted to do something completely different,” he said. “I’d always been interested in
52
LIFE MAGAZINE
the services, such as the police, fire and armed forces, so looked at what I could do; when I saw the Fire and Rescue degree, I knew it would suit me down to the ground.” He put acting on the backburner and focused on his studies, combining it with being a reserve firefighter in Derbyshire. But in the third year of his degree, the acting bug came back to bite him and he signed up with an agent again. “I loved my time at Wolverhampton; it opened my eyes to studying at a higher level and the teachers were really supportive,” he said. “I met people from different backgrounds and cultures
SUMMER 2020
IN PROFILE
and the whole experience was brilliant. I was so proud that I followed my dream to get a degree and wouldn’t hesitate to tell anyone to study because who knows where it could lead.” Since graduating, Jet has followed a diverse acting career, appearing in commercials, BBC TV series such as Holby City and Birds of a Feather, independent films and dramas. In 2019, his unveiled his most exciting project yet: a short film called Damage, which tells the story of a man who is the victim of domestic abuse. The film, for which Jet picked up the Best Actor award in a featurette at the Idyllwild International Film Festival of Cinema in Los Angeles in March, was the actor’s idea. “I saw a documentary about men who had been abused by their partners and I had a lightbulb moment for a film,” said Jet. “It’s not a story you hear about very often, because men don’t often admit to being victims of abuse. But it’s out there and the research I did, talking to men who had been abused and to the charity ManKind, really opened my eyes to it.”
SUMMER 2020
From a germ of an idea, it quickly grew into a concept and then a script, written by Melissa Donello, after Jet put forward the idea to TestaRossa Productions, with whom he had worked on the 2017 Italian/British crime drama, Artichoke. It agreed to co-produce it with Inspirit Productions. As associate producer, Jet used his industry contacts to gather a strong cast, including Amy Shepherd, who played Emma, the fiancée of Rav, played by Jet; Bhasker Patel of Emmerdale fame; Barti Patel, a regular in the BBC series Doctors; and Jason Riddington, whose appearances include Luther. “I had to go to some really dark places to do justice to the character and to the men who have suffered domestic violence,” said Jet. “I talked to so many men who were survivors of domestic violence when doing my research. What they told me was really powerful and it made the film powerful, too.” Funding is now being sought to turn the 17-minute film, which opened the Birmingham Film Festival in 2019, into a featurelength movie – and it would be a dream come true if that were to happen, said Jet, who still lives in the West Midlands. “There is amazing talent in the UK film and television worlds and I feel incredibly lucky to be a part of it,” said Jet. “I’m grateful for every opportunity – from getting my degree to working on such fantastic acting projects – and I’m hopeful for more collaborations in the future, especially here in the Midlands, where I’d love to see the independent film and TV sector continue to thrive.”
LIFE MAGAZINE
53
IN BUSINESS
ISOBEL’S PASSION Isobel Morris, an Applied Art and Textiles graduate who won an enterprise award while still a student, has spent the past nine years developing her love of rug design. Starting off in her spare room, she moved to a small studio where she has created hand-crafted designs inspired by everything from her father’s love of 1950s furniture to the natural world.
I’ve always loved interiors, but my passion for rugs really started when I was at University. The designs are beautiful but it’s the process of rug craftsmanship that interests me. There is a
54
LIFE MAGAZINE
FOR RUGS
physical process behind rug creation, especially hand-tufted craftsmanship – that’s a real skill. There’s a lot of versatility and I think of it as art in a textured form, it really pulls a room together. Following my graduation in 2011, I spent time supporting rug designer Helen Yardley and her team at Decorex International in London and I’ve also been part of several local exhibitions, selling pieces locally and through my own website. In early 2014 I had the chance to exhibit at Domotex after my rug, entitled Monarch, had been
SUMMER 2020
IN BUSINESS
shortlisted for a competition with manufacturers AfghanMade. My design was hand-tufted by their team in Afghanistan and is on show in my living room today. I returned to Domotex in January 2020 when I was contacted by blogger Michael Christie, who is known as ‘The Ruggist’, to design a collection for a collaboration between manufacturer Sarawagi rugs and yarn supplier Aquafil. I had to use its 100% regenerated nylon, Econyl, which is made from fishing nets and discarded old carpets. It was to be the first hand-knotted rug made with nylon made from old fishing nets and I couldn’t resist the challenge. I offered some designs that I felt embodied the brief – of fishing nets discarded in the seas, floating ghostlike – and the Synthetic Seas collection came together over a series of weeks. I love it: it uses a mix of colours, the usual blues and greys, but flashes of bright yellows and oranges depict plastic debris or colourful fish. Although Econyl has been used in carpets before, this is the first time it has been used by a manufacturer known for its hand-knotted
SUMMER 2020
expertise, and what is wonderful is that now it has been used in a more time-consuming, skilled method, we’ve found it is as luxurious and the colour is as strong as natural textiles. The collection is now on the road and the team is hoping to feature it at other shows around the world. I’ve also been asked to produce more colour palettes, which is exciting. I think the movement to use recycled textiles is undeniable and this is one of the first steps towards not just sustainably sourced materials but also a true circular economy. The public is requesting it, too, as consumers are much more informed about the use of people and materials in their goods. They are really driving this change. I’m excited at the prospect of returning to my alma mater to present to textiles students and I can’t wait to pass on knowledge that I have learned since graduating. To do what you love is a real privilege - I hope I can inspire that passion in others because it’s really important to encourage new talent. I loved my time in Wolverhampton and it was clear from the beginning that I had chosen a course that really helped me shine. The project work and facilities were first class and gave me an opportunity to try a number of methods that I wouldn’t have had an opportunity to experience – dyeing, screen printing, digital printing, I loved them all!
Isobelmorris.co.uk
LIFE MAGAZINE
55
ALUMNI NEWS
Computer Science student wins £5,000 bursary
ALUMNI NEWS We’re always proud to hear what our alumni do – and there’s no doubt that you’re one of the best advertisements for the University. We caught up with just some of our proud graduates to find out how they are progressing. We’d also love to hear from you, too. Why not share your successes with fellow alumni?
Alumna flies in for visit One of our international graduates enjoyed a whistlestop tour of the Wolverhampton Campus when she flew over from Dubai. Analisa Mediano, who attained a Masters of Business Administration (distinction) at Westford School of Management in UAE, a partner of the University of Wolverhampton, visited the city in 2016 for a few hours to attend her graduation, but never had chance to look around the University. So, in December 2019, the alumna, who lives in Sharjah, UAE, and works in government as a compliance executive, flew to Gatwick for a five-day visit to England during which time David Wedge, Alumni Relations Manager, took her on a tour of the campus. She said: “I did not get a chance to see the entire campus during my graduation in 2016 as I had to fly back to Dubai after the ceremony. In spite of needing to leave soon, I always wished to visit Wolverhampton again. “The staff were very friendly and helpful and I thought the campus was clean and modern with well-laid-out
56
LIFE MAGAZINE
buildings, offices, lecture halls, and laboratories. I’m so grateful for Mr Wedge’s exceptional hospitality and professionalism. My visit wouldn’t have been possible without his support.”
Poet published debut novel Former student Rob Francis delved into his Black Country roots for his debut novel, which was published earlier this year. Rob, who lives in Dudley, completed his PhD in Creative Writing in the School of Humanities and now teaches Creative and Professional Writing at the University. His debut novel, Bella, published by Wild Pressed Books, was launched officially at the Tilstone Studio in the University’s Arena Theatre. He has written five poetry chapbooks, Transitions (The Black Light Engine Room Press, 2015), Orpheus (Lapwing Publications, 2016), Corvus’ BurntWing Love Balm and Cure-All (The Black Light Engine Room Press, 2018), Lamella, (Original Plus, 2019) and Fieldnotes from a Deep Topography of Dudley (Wild Pressed Books).
One of our postgraduate students has won a £5,000 bursary to help him in his Master’s degree research. Iman Hussain is studying MSc Computer Science and was awarded the bursary from the Richardson Foundation, set up by one of the Black Country’s most famous business families. “£5,000 is a large amount and I want to make sure I use it for good,” he said. “It breaks down a barrier and gives me access to equipment that could be used to level the playing field. “Suddenly I have the resources to pursue projects that would otherwise have been shelved, I can dedicate more of my time to helping the people around me through technology.” His research focuses on the development of smartphone apps: one of the projects he is working on aims to redistribute food that will otherwise go to landfill. “Food waste is a huge issue, with about one-third of food thrown in the bin,” he said. “My idea is to have restaurants access the app and use it to see where their excess food can be distributed.” His other idea centres on a virtual reality history app that will allow the user to view cities such as Wolverhampton through history. “It would work in a similar way to Pokemon Go,” he said. “Virtual reality would mean we would find ourselves in Wolverhampton in the 19th century or Birmingham in the 1930s and you could really see how the streets had changed over the years.” Thanking senior lecturer, Herbert Daly for encouraging him to apply for the bursary, Iman added: “From my undergraduate days, Wolverhampton has given me the support I needed and I really appreciate that. It’s why I wanted to stay here for my postgraduate studies. It’s given me a fantastic platform and I’m really looking forward to carrying on.”
SUMMER 2020
ALUMNI NEWS
The Future Faces nomination is important and something I am proud to have been shortlisted for, especially so early on in my career.
Atif – a face to watch Atif Ali, who graduated in 2015 with a Bachelor’s in Law, has been tipped as someone to watch after being shortlisted for the Greater Birmingham Chambers Future Faces Award, which celebrates the achievements of young professionals. The development officer, who works in the Inclusive Growth Directorate at Birmingham City Council, said he was proud to be recognised in the public sector and education sector. “The Future Faces nomination is important and something I am proud to have been shortlisted for, especially so early on in my career,” he said. “It was great to see the work that I have done to date was being recognised and valued by not just the Council that I work for but recognised by the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce.” He was also later shortlisted in Birmingham City Council’s Chamberlain Awards in the ‘Rising Star’ category, for showing great attitude, initiative, accountability and responsibility in his role, which determines planning applications. For the past couple of years, he has worked on the 2022 Commonwealth Games compulsory purchase order (CPO) and Perry Barr Regeneration Scheme, working with residents and businesses in Perry Barr as well as external organisations to ensure that any CPOs are conducted promptly.
SUMMER 2020
Saudi student awarded PhD after online viva One of our postgraduate students successfully completed his doctorate virtually when the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted his studies. Abdulrahman Al-Shabeb, 31, a PhD student from Saudi Arabia, was about to complete his doctorate after working on his thesis when UK lockdown restrictions were imposed in March. As he returned home, he had to curtail his journey in Abu Dhabi, UAE, where he was hosted by the Saudi Embassy and from where he took his via voce via Microsoft Teams. Abdulrahman said: “I would like to express my sincere thanks to the Ambassador, Turki Aldakhil, for assisting me with my PhD viva. I am so proud to now be a graduate of the University of Wolverhampton.”
Vic’s double awards scoop 2020 went off to a flying start for LLB graduate Vic Younis, who won two legal awards to recognise his work as a disputes resolution solicitor. Vic, who graduated in 2009 and went on the study part-time on the Legal Practice Course between 2010 and 2012, picked up the Rising Star in Law awards at the British Muslim Awards and the Excellence in Legal Practice (individual category) in the Signature Awards. A partner at the Wall James Chappell in Stourbridge, whose roots go back to 1830, at just the age of 32, said he was thrilled to have picked up the awards. “I owe a lot to the University of Wolverhampton,” he says. “I always wanted to go into law and as a local student, it was where I was keen to study. “It was the foundation to my legal career and I firmly believe that without
the expert guidance and teaching provided by the tutors on my LLB and LPC courses I wouldn’t be the solicitor I am today.”
Novelist publishes last novel in his trilogy A former senior manager for Worcestershire County Council has published the third novel of his semiautobiographical trilogy. Steve Brotherton, who studied for an MBA at the University between 2004 and 2006, began to write The Shots trilogy about seven years ago. “The stories have been in my head for most of my life, but started to take shape when I did a 2000-words writing fiction assignment at Keele University, where I was studying for an MA in Creative Writing,” he said. The first in the series, Another Shot, was published in 2017, while the second, titled An Extra Shot, was published in 2019. The third story, One Last Shot, was published earlier this year. “The Shots trilogy is based on a first love relationship I had as a teenager,” he said. “It tells the story of Freddie and Jo-Jo, who are reunited in a coffee shop three decades after the end of their teenage romance. “How they originally met, why they parted, what happens in their lives apart, and what happens when they reunite are all told through a series of first person vignettes. I love the cathartic nature of writing stories; it’s a wonderful release and escape from the real world.”
Share your news with us – alumni@wlv.ac.uk
LIFE MAGAZINE
57
IN PICTURES
A MAYORAL
YEAR
1
The Mayor of Wolverhampton, Councillor Claire Darke (BA Hons English and Spanish, 1992), enjoyed 12 months as the official figurehead of the city, attending hundreds of events and meeting thousands of people from the region and beyond with husband Dr Paul Darke, who was Consort. WLV Life delves into the photo album of her Mayoral year
4 All images - City of Wolverhampton Council
5
58
1. Armed Forces Week, June 2019. 2. Headstart Wolverhampton funded through The Big Lottery Fund, Headstart is a “test and learn” programme, which aims to improve the resilience and emotional wellbeing of children and young people. July 2019. 3. Heath Town International Fun Day, celebrating Heath Town’s 50th Birthday and 100 Years of Council Housing. July 2019. 4. Open Heritage Day, September 2019. 5. Forging friendships with Nepal, September 2019. 6. An event to mark Guru Nanak and the anniversary of his birth 550 years ago. September 2019. 7. Holocaust Memorial Day, January 2020.
LIFE MAGAZINE
It’s been a whirlwind of a year. Paul and I attended about 400 events until March, when all activity was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Up until that point, it had been really good to connect with a wide range of people and organisations from Wolverhampton, the region, the UK and even across the world. We have met thousands of people and I’ve enjoyed connecting with the younger generation. We have had school children visit us in the Mayoral Suite to see some of the beautiful silverware that is part of their heritage. It was interesting to hear their perspective as they thought I’d live in a palace! As we’re already very communityoriented, it has been important to recognise the great work that organisations and individuals are doing across the city and we’ve very much enjoyed meeting those who are making other people’s lives better. We’ve also worked closely with the University of Wolverhampton, creating The Mayoral Scholarship to help students from the city
3
2
through donations from the Mayor of Wolverhampton’s Charitable Fund, and working with it on other activities, such as suicide prevention via the city’s Suicide Prevention Forum. Working with the University matters because we want children from Wolverhampton to aspire to study at their local university and fulfil their potential. We’ve loved promoting the city far and wide because we want people to come and live here and help to make it a prosperous place.
6 7
SUMMER 2020
Stay in touch!
As a graduate, you are part of a family of over 130,000 University of Wolverhampton alumni. Below are some of the ways you can connect socially and professionally with our global network of graduates from over 130 countries.
wlvalumni
wlv_alumni
wlv.ac.uk/alumni
wlvalumniassociation
alumni@wlv.ac.uk
TO STUDY FURTHER.
ER1646
HAVING A PROFESSIONAL ADVANTAGE HAS NEVER BEEN MORE IMPORTANT, SO GIVE YOUR CAREER A FLYING START WITH A POSTGRADUATE QUALIFICATION.
As a University of Wolverhampton graduate, you are eligible for a 20% loyalty discount on all Master’s and Research postgraduate programmes*. Learn more about postgraduate study at: wlv.ac.uk/PG.
*with the exception of PGCE, CIM qualifications, MPhil, Integrated Master’s, PhDs “by published works” or “higher doctorates”.
