Scotland's Rural College: Seeds are sown for a prosperous future

“When you are considering the skills gap, you have to consider the critical place of lifelong learning,” she explains. “At SRUC, we often find ourselves debating – how do we train people for jobs that are needed by society but do not exist yet?

“The way to do it is to ensure skills development is embedded in all of our programmes, whether it is a full-time course, a postgraduate distance learning programme, or an apprenticeship.”

Dr Thomson adds: “We are in a time of rapid change, so we have to ensure our learners are adaptable, developing specialist knowledge and technical skills and embedding skills such as sustainability, enterprise, equality and diversity.”

SRUC’s SEEDABLE approach to curriculum design (Sustainability, Enterprise, Equality and Diversity through Active and Blended Learning) recently triumphed at the prestigious Green Gown Awards, which celebrate change-making initiatives and projects in sustainability across the further and higher education sectors.

“SEEDABLE is an approach to curriculum design which aims to address the fact that our learners are graduating into a world where creative ideas and innovation, digital and otherwise, are required to help solve global and local problems,” says Dr Thomson. “The scale and controversial nature of our challenges and opportunities require diverse perspectives, innovation and enterprising practices, which support long-term environmental, social and economic solutions.

“Embedding a SEEDABLE approach in the curriculum supports our learners to be actively engaged in their learning experience and to graduate equipped with the knowledge, skills, digital intelligence and confidence to help them thrive and cope with the pace of change.”

Central to SRUC’s approach is its partnership working with industry, government, and other education providers such as schools.

“Our aim is to be an enterprise university, co-designing our curriculum in partnership with industry, for example, and making sure we are accelerating the delivery of skills that meet industry needs,” says Dr Thomson.

“This also goes back to the idea that some of the ‘green jobs’ that will be required in the future do not exist yet. Things are changing very quickly because of the challenges we are facing.

“Even three or four years ago, we did not realise we would have to train people in projects like peatland restoration project design, for example, and now it is one of our most popular short courses.”

SRUC’s course, developed in partnership with NatureScot Peatland ACTION, is the first of its kind in Scotland.

Aimed at graduates currently involved in, or aspiring to work in, the planning of peatland restoration schemes – a vital nature-based solution to the climate emergency – it aims to provide them with the skills to understand what restoration techniques are best used in any particular situation and how to meet Peatland ACTION funding requirements.

The Scottish Government has a target to restore 250,000 hectares of degraded peatland by 2030, but there is a skills shortage. 

The fast-growing sector requires an additional 1500 skilled people over the next few years to meet the country’s ambitious climate targets. While the focus now is on restoration there will be an associated need, for example, for additional skills related to long-term management of the peatlands and associated watercourses.

Recently, the Scottish Government announced it is scrapping its ambitious targets to reduce carbon emissions by 75 percent, compared to 1990 levels, by 2030, but Dr Thomson believes the decision is unlikely to have an impact on businesses already taking steps towards net zero.

“I think many businesses will be on the journey already, addressing skills shortages and updating practices,” she explains.

“Our role in education is to design learning programmes that react to the rapid changes happening across a number of industries. When you hear or read about the ‘net zero skills gap’ it tends to focus on things like energy and ‘high-tech’ sectors, but land-based industries are equally important, and technology has an essential role to play here too.

“The Digital Dairy Chain, for example, supported by SRUC’s Barony campus in Dumfries, is helping to transform the dairy sector, developing digital connectivity, stimulating research and new product development, supporting business growth and attracting talent and skills.”

The five-year £21m Digital Dairy Chain project, funded through UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) flagship Strength in Places programme, offers any business or individual involved in the dairy supply chain across Cumbria, South and West Scotland a range of services to support innovation and productivity through collaboration. 

Elsewhere at SRUC, its approach aims to cater for all learners, from senior phase at school to postgraduate, with the emphasis on widening access.

“We know how important full-time educational pathways are, but learning is not linear, particularly if we are looking at CPD opportunities, or upskilling employees who are changing direction, or more mature students returning to learning after a break,” says Dr Thomson.

“Learning on a modular basis can help students who may not otherwise be able to engage. On our tertiary education pathways too, such as the courses offered in our new school of veterinary medicine, novel projects like live-streaming will help us to offer practical and immersive learning at all stages.”

One of the newest courses offered by SRUC is the distance learning MSc Sustainability in Agriculture and Business, which aims to equip students with technical and professional knowledge relevant to sustainable agriculture.

“The idea is to ‘future-proof’ learning,” says Dr Thomson. 

“So even if a new technology develops in their sector, the learner is equipped to adapt – and, through the lifelong learning opportunities that exist, also has the chance to come back and develop the skills required to meet the challenges ahead.”  

www.sruc.ac.uk