Page 110 - Microsoft Word - Guiding light final version 1812 1206.doc

After 18 years’ service Ros Newlands retired as Course Director in 2012 at Edinburgh University and was replaced by Mary Kemp-Clarke. Pat Blain became Training Manager replacing Viola Lewis who stepped down after five years in the post. In October that year Pat and Mary received a delegation from Slovenia interested in raising the standards in tourist guide training in their homeland. On two occasions STGA trainers received delegations from Singapore who wanted to model the Blue Badge.
Renfrewshire Council also funded a Yellow Badge course as part of the Paisley regeneration project.The course was led by Viola Lewis and resulted in the five new guides: Betty Graham, Aileen McGruther, Catherine Hancy, Alexander Wilson and Les Fernie.
A total of 19 Blue Badge guides qualified in 2014 and one of the students was Alasdair Northrop who recalls the course as being very intensive but rewarding. ‘I was working full time as the editor of a business magazine so it was challenging getting all the work done. Our lectures were at weekends at the University of Edinburgh Extra Mural department. The lecturers were a mix of university academics and tourist guides with an expertise in particular areas such as law and social geography. We had to write eight academic essays and if we failed to reach the standard they had to be re-written. The practical side of the course was the most enjoyable for me when we set off on coach tours to focus on particular regions including the Borders, Fife, Glasgow, the Trossachs and Aberdeen. Everyone had to be prepared to talk at any stage of the coach journey and it was a nerve- wracking experience at times. We also had to learn walking tours in those regions as well on my home turf of Edinburgh.
‘On the coach we had mentors who would tell us what we did right and wrong and there were also examiners on the final trips. During the summer of the second year we went on a week-long tour of the highlands and were lucky enough to have the most beautiful weather. Our final test was learning 300 facts about Scotland and being examined on them. I am delighted to say that all of us passed.
The University of Edinburgh had been involved in the training of guides since its foundation so it came as a major shock in 2013 when negotiations to continue the partnership collapsed after the retirement of Con Gillen. The then chair Sue Gruellich said the STGA seized the opportunity to take the course in-house and tailor it more to tourist guide needs. A subsidiary company, Guide Training Ltd, was set up to look after the running of the Blue Badge course which ran for 18 months instead of two years.
The STGA Training Manager Pat Blain and Course Director Mary Kemp Clarke presented the newly developed course to the AGM in 2014. Mary said she was no longer bound by one course provider and was able to choose the best speakers from a multitude of institutions. Some 160 applications were received for the 2014-2015 Blue Badge course without having to advertise at all. Sixty candidates were invited for interview and 36 new students enrolled on the course.
Mary points out that there have been many changes to the course over the years.
‘When I signed up as a BB trainee I signed up for one year and at induction was told it would be two years! We have gone from open/public lectures with guide attendees as a side-line, to purpose-thought talks and lectures aimed at multi-skilled guides. Technology has changed things dramatically,’ continued Mary. ‘We now film presentations and share individual folders and performances on Google Drive and other platforms. ‘I remember that our BB intake changed from mainly female trainees to a few more males after 2011, and slowly, ages also began to decrease a little. It was all good news showing diverse appeal and a willingness to devote a lifetime to this career. When I joined there was still an air that this was a ‘semi-retirement’ choice for some but not all. For me it was, and is, my income.’ Viola Lewis said as training manager between 2007 and 2012 she oversaw the wider STGA training of all levels of badges, plus initially Continuous Professional Development and the follow-up training for the Scottish Parliament Contract. (see chapter..) ‘I worked with Ros and Mary, who as course directors shaped the Blue Badge Course over the period I was training manager. Having taken over from Ros as training manager in 2007 I embarked on a consolidation process.
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