Scottish Talking Newspaper Conference

An annual conference takes place in Scotland, offering an opportunity to organisers and volunteers from around the country to meet, share ideas and problems and learn from one another. Listeners are encouraged to come along and meet the "people behind the voices" and, most importantly, give advice so that our service is tailored to meet their needs.

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The 2011 Conference will be held in the
Inchyra Grange Hotel, Grangemouth
(www.macdonaldhotels.co.uk/inchyragrange)
on Saturday 15 October.

For information or booking forms, please e-mail info@astn.org.uk

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The 2010 conference was held on Saturday 30 October.

Speakers included:

Robert Brown MSP is the Liberal Democrat Spokesperson on Justice with special responsibility for promoting civil liberties (including Human Rights issues). He is also a member of the Justice Committee and the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee of the Scottish Parliament. Robert was the Deputy Minister for Education and Young People from 2005 to 2007 and before that he was Convenor of the Education Committee of the Scottish Parliament. He was also a member of the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body, the management group of the Parliament, from 1999 until 2005.

Robert Brown was the Convenor of the Scottish Liberal Democrat Policy Committee until 2007 and was responsible for a number of their election Manifestos. Robert was elected as the first Liberal Councillor on Glasgow District Council in 1977 and was Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group from 1977-1992. He was Liberal or Liberal Democrat candidate for Rutherglen in the October 1974, 1979, 1983, 1987, and 1997 General Elections and the Scottish Elections of 1999, 2003 and 2007. He was first elected as regional Liberal Democrat MSP for Glasgow in 1999.

Born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in 1947, Robert attended the Gordon Schools, Huntly, Aberdeenshire. He studied at Aberdeen University where he obtained 1st Class Honours in Law. Robert is a Solicitor by profession and was senior Civil Partner with Ross Harper & Murphy Solicitors, Glasgow, prior to his election.

He lives in Rutherglen with his wife and has a grown up daughter and son. He has served two five-year terms as Chair of Rutherglen & Cambuslang Citizens' Advice Bureau.

Robert is Convener of Cross-Party Group on Visual Impairment and Co-Convener Cross-Party Group on Children and Young People. He is also a member of Cross-Party Groups on Tobacco Control, Epilepsy, Deafness and Human Rights.

Robert Brown MSP
9 Newton Terrace
Charing Cross
Glasgow
G3 7PJ

Phone: 0141 572 5000

Evelyn Boyd is Outreach Development and Support Manager at Big Lottery Fund Scotland. Evelyn is responsible for raising awareness of BIG in Scotland and ensuring that applicants, as well as organisations that receive funding, can access relevant information, advice and support.

Evelyn has worked with BIG since June 2009 and prior to this was responsible for managing the Objective 3 European Social Fund in Scotland. Evelyn has a background in guidance and has worked in a range of roles providing careers guidance and developing advice services for a variety of client groups including school pupils, college students, unemployed individuals and adults facing redundancy.

Evelyn´s hobbies include gardening, DIY, walking and going to the pub. A few years ago, she bought a cottage in the East Neuk of Fife and spends as much time there as possible, trying to incorporate all four activities into visits although mostly this involves walking to and from the pub!

Big Lottery Fund Scotland
1 Atlantic Quay
Glasgow
G2 8JB

Phone: 0141 242 1447

Richard Bradley has been neck deep in music technology since the age of twelve when he got his first Yamaha DX100 electronic synthesiser keyboard. He then quickly picked up how to play guitar and drums, which led to wiring his school sound system for the non-uniform day rock concert and DJ-ing at some school formals.

After obtaining A-levels in Maths, Physics, Economics and Technology (coming 3rd place in Northern Ireland) he took one year out in voluntary youth work. As this was unpaid, he was eligible to apply for an Access to Community Employment scheme post in the Blind Centre for Northern Ireland. In his year as Studio Technician, Richard refurbished studio 1 and created studio 2. He then researched himself out of the potential job of managing a radio station for blind and partially sighted people by proving one was not financially viable. Instead, he set up his own telecoms and IT business in two years before becoming the fifth engineer to be recruited by Cabletel in Belfast (renamed NTL Cabletel, then became part of the Telewest Group and finally Virgin Media). After eleven years by then, covering all of Northern Ireland as one of four specialist on-call business telecoms engineers, Richard (Bradley not Branson) decided it was time for a change.

He had continued to volunteer as a studio engineer since leaving the Blind Centre until its merger in 2007 with RNIB Northern Ireland. At the start of 2008, he project managed the combined move of three studios from the two charity headquarters to a brand new RNIB NI Transcription Centre in Belfast which he designed and fitted out. When this centre needed a manager, Richard jumped at the chance and landed the job, coming full circle in career since 1994. He currently manages 2 staff and 60 volunteers aiming to make all information in Northern Ireland accessible to blind and partially sighted people.

Richard managed an £80,000 project (fully funded by the Department of Social Development for Northern Ireland's Modernisation Fund Capital Programme) to upgrade all twenty talking newspapers in the province to full digital recording and distribution on CD or USB stick. He also sits on the committee of the Association of Talking Newspapers in Northern Ireland and two of the RNIB Northern Ireland Priority Action Groups.

In his spare time, Richard eats and sleeps - not simultaneously. He has jumped off the World's highest commercial bridge bungee at Bloukrans while in South Africa (obviously with the bungee cord attached) and likes to compete in duathlons. He owns a 60mph Seadoo jetboat but so far has not managed to learn how to wakeboard (bad weather).

Currently single, Richard has two cats, one house, one big, old beat-up car and he is available to DJ for any occasion!

Richard Bradley
Transcription Services Manager
RNIB NI Accessible Media
159 Durham Street
Belfast
BT12 4GB

Mobile: 07802 62 65 60

Office: 028 90 501 888

E-mail: richard.bradley@rnib.org.uk

Web: www.rnib.org.uk/northernireland

Richard Ellis runs his own training organisation which specialises in spoken communications. He works in the public and private sectors on presentation, interviewing and chairing skills. He assists trainee ministers of the Church of Scotland, examines for the English Speaking Board, and acts as adjudicator for the Scottish Community Drama Associations. He has authored three books on communication and co-written five others. He writes scripts and performs voice-overs for radio and company training programmes.

Many of you will know Richard as Reader Trainer at ASTN-organised training days.

Richard Ellis Training & Consultancy
14 Jordan Lane
Edinburgh
EH10 4RA

Phone: 0131 447 4124.

E-mail: rellis.consultancy@virgin.net