A week in the life of

Got off the plane from Spain at 4.00am, so was quite tired when I reached the office. Turned on the computer to find quite a few emails, so set about the task of answering them. One email was an invite to a posh event at the Royal Opera House to celebrate apprenticeships, so not all bad. Had cleared my diary for the afternoon as I had arranged for Chicken Shed to perform in the theatre a play called 'Crime of the Century', a fantastic piece about gang culture. Had 100 students watching who were captivated, twenty of whom stayed behind afterwards for a workshop looking at the effects of gang violence and mental health. They were brilliant and made me very proud.

Knew it was going to be a busy day. At 9.00am got called to a meeting to discuss a possible visit by Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister. Ordinarily, not a big thing but we were to host his first speech in his new role and this would generate a huge amount of media interest, so spent the first hour of my day with his advisers and James the other Deputy in the centre and Priti, Head of Marketing to put a plan of action together. My role was to ensure students were present - this event was clearly going to involve team work. At 10.00am flew down to the Honourable Artillery Company barracks as our performing arts students were providing music for their annual garden party event. Met the technical guy to ensure the set up was happening and then flew back to college to resume the Nick Clegg preparations. At 4.30pm, gathered the 26 music students and two members of staff and we all went to the garden party to perform. The students were brilliant and one member of the audience watching them was very taken with their talents. This was HRH Duke of Kent. After receiving praise from royalty, the finale saw the students play against a backdrop of a huge Chinook helicopter landing. Not your average day, however, was glad when we finished at 10.00pm as very tired.

D day. The Nick Clegg visit was happening. The centre was a flurry of support staff, Facilities Managers and Directors, all preparing for the visit. The team work and communication between everyone was crucial to the success of the event. At 11.30am Nick Clegg arrived. All of the media were present and a few famous faces. Within 30 minutes, he was gone and the hard work had paid off. The event was a huge success and many of our students were able to sit in on a live political speech by a senior politician. It was a great opportunity for them. In the afternoon, I had the cross college Deputy Directors meeting. As a team, it's important we discuss our centres' issues and also plan for the next academic year. Being part of a team provides support and allows me to share and learn best practice.

The day started with the school liaison group meeting where we plan for admissions and enrolment and also look at the wider student experience. Always a lively meeting, we often debate key issues affecting our applicants. The meeting allows for key staff across the service to come together and ensures everyone is represented in the planning and execution of complex tasks. That evening I was attending a posh dinner in the city with a company that sponsored our student awards. These events are excellent for networking and looking for new opportunities and partnerships for the college. I met the new Mayor of Islington and a senior civil servant in the cabinet office, both of whom agreed to follow-up meetings to look at them visiting and supporting the College, so watch this space!

Friday, at last. Met with the Port Authority first thing to see if we can set up some links for our NEET students at Islington Boat Club. In the afternoon I went to a meeting with the Borough to discuss the College's involvement in the Summer University project, after a successful involvement in the Easter project. These projects are important for us to be involved in as we are able to promote the college to the local community and provide facilities for the young people in the community to take part in innovative and exciting courses. My role is to ensure we maximise partnerships and at the meeting we are able to secure funding and support from the Borough for our involvement. Its 5.00pm on Friday and it's been a busy week of emails, Royalty, the Deputy Prime Minister, Chinook helicopters, the Mayor of Islington, but most importantly fantastic students who took part in events and really did me proud. Right now, I'm off to the gym, But already I'm wondering what next week will bring!