Nailed it @ Newton

In January 2017, the Nail Bar project started in Newton Primary.  The aim of the project was to provide ten young mums, with children attending either Newton Nursery or Primary School, with an opportunity to develop new skills and gain a recognised qualification.  The course was delivered by a lecturer from Ayrshire College and  literacy support was provided by Lesley Shepherd from the Adult Leaning Team. Ten learners now have a SCQF Credit Level 4  Creative Nail Finishes to Hand & Foot.  Considering that some of these mums have experienced various barriers to education throughout their lives, and therefore have no previous qualifications, nor any experience of this subject area, this is a fantastic achievement. Not only that but six of the mums have applied to progress on to the next level of this course, or will be starting a  different college course in August.  It was undoubtedly this opportunity and the positive learning experience of participating in this project which fuelled their desire to continue their learning.

At the beginning I banned the phrase “ I can’t do this” and encouraged them to think “ how am I going to do this”.  They were a great group of learners to work with throughout and ‘gelled’ as a group very quickly. When asked for their comments on how this experience had been for them, they stated that:

“I discovered that if I put my mind to something, I can achieve it”

“ (I) gained more confidence working with others”

“...the other students.  We kept each other going and we’ve been a great group”

And when asked what they were going to do now, they replied:

“I want to learn more. Take this further”

“ I want to go to college”

“ I want to keep building on my skills”

Lesley Shepherd