ULF

THE RMT-backed Brighton Learning Centre opened its doors last month. The learning centre, which is based at Brighton station, is open to all rail workers as well as family and friends, writes Scarlet Harris. Computer courses will be on offer, alongside sign language, Spanish, French, Maths, literacy, and ESOL (English for Speakers of Other Languages). All courses will be free to the learner. Tutors will be on hand to discuss other courses or qualifications that are not already on offer at the centre. The first two open days in November saw 70 workers, from cleaners and caterers, pass through the centre’s doors to have a look at the facilities, discuss courses with tutors from local colleges and to enter the free prize draw. What makes the Brighton Learning Centre different from other learning centres is that it is run by the rail unions. Most learning centres such as those in South West Trains and Virgin are financed and managed by the companies. The Brighton Learning Centre is funded primarily by government money via Brighton and Hove City Council as well as the Union Learning Fund. It is managed by Scarlet Harris, who is based at Unity House and is a project worker on the Rail Union Learning Project and Emily King (see article below) who is based in the centre itself and is employed by the Rail Union Learning Project. One of the main advantages of the rail unions running the centre is that it is open to more people. Southern, Thameslink, Network Rail, Amec Spie and a host of cleaning and catering contractors are all based at Brighton Station and Virgin and South West Trains also have trains on this route. Employees from any of these companies are welcome to use the learning centre, whether it is to gain qualifications, learn new skills, or brush up on old skills. Flexible The Brighton Learning Centre is also unique in that it aims to cater for the specific requirements of the rail industry. Although the centre is only open from 9am to 5pm at present, in the long term the centre aims to run early morning and late night classes to accommodate shift patterns. Local colleges involved in the scheme are also aware of the problems posed by rosters and ULF is looking to make the courses as flexible as possible to allow rail workers to fit them in around their shifts. The centre has been newly refurbished, and what was once a dingy conference room is now a bright and airy room equipped with the latest technology. A wireless broadband network has been installed which means that internet access is fast and easy and laptops can be moved around the room easily without the need for lots of cables and wiring. G If you live or work in the Brighton area and you want to use the centre, please contact Emily King on 01273 723066 or emilyking@rul.org.uk. G If you are interested in the learning centre project in general and would like to find out more, please contact Scarlet Harris on 0207 529 8820 or s.harris@rmt.org.uk G Or you could just drop in and see the centre for yourself. It is located on the top floor of the South Side building at Brighton station. The entrance is by the taxi rank at the front of the station. The centre is currently open 9am-5pm Monday to Friday. My name is Emily King and I am the Administrator at the Brighton Learning Centre. I will be based at the centre full time so will be the first point of call for all visitors and learners. I am very excited to be a part of this new project and hope to help make it a huge success. There has already been a lot of interest in the Brighton Learning Centre so it looks like I am going to be very busy! We plan to have a full timetable of courses running in the New Year so if you would like to register an interest in a particular subject, or just find out about the sort of courses we will be offering please contact me and I will be able to give you more details. The Brighton Learning Centre is currently open from 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday so feel free to pop in to get more information on learning opportunities available to all railworkers, your friends and family. I look forward to seeing you at Brighton Learning Centre soon! Brighton’s new union learning centre open for business 29