 Home Learning in Scotland Learning in Scotland Sweet memories
Sweet memories
Shop worker Liz McHugh took a trip down memory lane to her childhood sweet shop recently in a bid to encourage more people to get into learning.
Union Learning Rep Liz McHugh with colleagues
|
Liz is an Usdaw shop steward and union learning rep, who works on the checkouts at Morrisons in Troon. She recently gave a short talk to her colleagues about the Individual Learning Account Scotland scheme, which is funded by the Scottish Executive. Individual Learning Accounts are grants worth £200 that members in Scotland can use to help pay for Courses they want to attend.
“I think ILA Scotland is a brilliant idea and I knew what I wanted to say but couldn’t think how to best describe things. Then it came to me – making choices about what you can use your ILA for is like being a kid in a sweetie shop, so that was that!” she explained.
Liz told her colleagues how, as a little girl, she would visit a Glasgow sweetie shop, close to her grandparents’ Bridgeton home, every Saturday.
“I would take my threepence or if I was lucky, my sixpence, and head to the shop. The man who owned the shop must have had the patience of a saint. He would take out the penny, twopenny and threepenny trays. I would take so long to choose he probably had to stay open late!” said Liz.
“If I had a sixpence I would be sorely tempted to buy a bar of Dairy Milk chocolate, but that would have taken up all my pocket money. So, usually, I would walk out of the shop with a bag full of penny sweets. I was into value for money even then” she added.
“When I got my ILA Scotland card, it was like getting my pocket money. I also got a University of Paisley module catalogue – that was my penny, twopenny and threepenny trays all over again. I could decide to spend all my £200 in one go or spend it in little bits. The child in me may want a big bag of courses. The choice is mine to learn what I want to learn and become what I want to be,” she told her workmates.
Liz, who has been a shop worker for 13 years, has made her first decision on how to use her ILA Scotland – she is hoping to do a Spanish course at Ayr College. She just hopes she will be able to learn how to say ‘penny caramel’ in Spanish.
For further information on ILA Scotland contact Usdaw’s Lifelong Learning Project Worker, Margaret Fleming on 0141 427 6561 or email: margaret.fleming@usdaw.org.uk or alternatively call the ILA Scotland helpline free on 0808 100 1090
 Printer Friendly Page  Email to a Friend
|
