Heather West

Location: Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire

Role: Community Learning and Development Worker

Hello, or “Fit like?”, as they say in our part of Scotland. I live in Fraserburgh on the North East coast of Scotland with my husband Robbie, our two sons, Scott (17) and Ryan (14), our cat Stevie (10) and our Border Collie, Miller (4).

I work in Adult Learning, a role I find very rewarding. Helping people who have faced educational challenges to learn new skills and build confidence is something I’m passionate about. It’s inspiring to see individuals who once believed they couldn’t manage certain tasks involving reading, writing, numeracy and ICT for example, discover their abilities and thrive. This helps build their resilience in dealing with various everyday situations, build appropriate support networks and establish themselves more positively in their communities. I deliver tailored one to one and small group learning sessions in the Fraserburgh area, in communication skills (e.g. reading and writing), numeracy and ICT mainly among other skills such as employability and working with others.

Outside of work, I enjoy reading, especially history, the supernatural, and crime, and watching similar genres on TV. I’m a big fan of Aberdeen Football Club and travel regularly to games with my husband and sons around Scotland, love socialising with friends, and my music taste leans toward classic rock, with favourites like The Beatles, Black Sabbath, and The Doors.

I’m really looking forward to this exchange in Kenya and am eager to learn how literacy work is approached with both young people and adults in a different cultural context, and to share ideas and experiences that can benefit us all. I am keen to broaden my understanding and also learn about how Kenyan literacies provision works around the barriers, their approaches, resources used, buildings / learning spaces and what education is available. This will help me understand the differences and commonalities between Scotland and Kenya and consider bringing fresh perspectives to my work in Scotland, following completion of the exchange.