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Leeds Trinity University is committed to getting their students ready for work and making a difference in our city.
They work with businesses, media agencies, public sector organisations, community projects, local initiatives, charities and much more.
If you have a waiting project that a student could work on, can host an unpaid placement, mentor a student, connect with other businesses, or simply want to talk to them about what’s new with you, please get in touch.
One student at Leeds Trinity University, Eleanor Webster, now a final year Journalism student at Leeds Trinity University, did her placement at Welcome to Yorkshire. We caught up with her to learn about her experience.
What sort of things did you do on your placement?
On the placements, I have been involved in writing press releases, attending events and organising them, using social media, pitching ideas, researching and writing features which have been distributed to newspapers.
How has this placement benefited you?
I grew in confidence and built up good social skills which are needed to communicate effectively which is key in a press office or any business.
Has the placement changed your mind on your future career path?
I have started to consider to go down more of a PR route because it is exciting and fun and where jobs will be when I graduate.
We also spoke to Graham Poucher, who oversaw her placement at Welcome to Yorkshire.
He told us “It’s vital for undergraduate students to have relevant work experience. It gives them and edge and help shapes the direction of not just their career, but their life. I remember what it was like being a student, trying to get work experience but having doors slam in my face. Once I got one, I got others and helped me secure a job and before that a post grad place at Leeds Trinity.”
Contact Jess Sewter, the Head of Partnerships & Placements at Leeds Trinity, [email protected] or by ringing 0113 2837182 if you’d like to get involved and host a placement for a student.
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In the Creatives on Tour series, leading men’s fashion brand Farah embarked on its exploration of some of the most creative people and businesses in Leeds. As a champion of alternative culture, it is important to Farah that individuality is celebrated in a world where it’s sometimes difficult to stand out from the crowd.
Creativity can manifest itself in hundreds of ways. And in Leeds, it truly does. Hiding in the arcades that stray from the beaten track or residing in the structures of its Victorian past, Leeds is awash with creative minds, daring attitudes and busy hands.
In a bid to uncover those behind the city’s creative spirit, Farah headed up north to meet some of the individuals currently driving Leeds’ innovative surge towards a new and exciting future. From bohemian barbers to contemporary coffee shop owners, here are some of the city’s most creative people giving their view on one of our favourite towns.
Ben Holmes, Village Bookstore
What is it?
Established in 2012, this store specialises in independently published magazines, journals and books.
What do you do?
“We sell books. Or at least try to.”
Why Leeds?
“After university, there were a lot of people here giving things a go. There was more of an openness to trying new things. The traditional way can be to graduate and then move down to London to get a job, but in Leeds you have the freedom to try something and be different.”
What is the company’s style?
It is a style founded on wood, plants and books – it is very minimalist.
Leeds in three words is:
“Open, creative, independent.”
Brian Dickinson, Northern Monk Brewery
What is it?
Established back in 2013, this independent brewery has come a long way in such a short space of time.
What do you do?
“I brew beer, package it, clean, clean, write recipes, give brewery tours and talks, and clean.”
Why Leeds?
“As I lived in Huddersfield, I was bang in the middle of Leeds and Manchester, but for a good few years it was always better to go to Manchester for interesting beers and bars. But in the last two or three years, the bar scene in Leeds has grown and, as a result, more and more breweries have moved here. Suddenly Leeds had much more appeal and much more going on.”
Leeds in three words is:
“Hive of activity.”
Alex Galantini, La Bottega Milanese
What is it?
Established in 2009, La Bottega Mialnese is an Italien espresso bar.
What do you do?
“We provide a Milanese lifestyle through continental café culture.”
Why Leeds?
“I came here for a summer to learn the language and do something a little bit different. I was totally fascinated by the scene here, I loved Leeds straight away – the young vibrant life that was going around here was definitely appealing.”
What is the company’s style?
“Subtle elegance, classy and detailed”
Leeds in three words is:
“Innovative, happening, buzzing!”
In the first part of its Creatives on Tour series, leading men’s fashion brand Farah embarked on its exploration of some of the most creative people and businesses in Leeds. As a champion of alternative culture, it is important to Farah that individuality is celebrated in a world where it’s sometimes difficult to stand out from the crowd.
Creativity can manifest itself in hundreds of ways. And in Leeds, it truly does. Hiding in the arcades that stray from the beaten track or residing in the structures of its Victorian past, Leeds is awash with creative minds, daring attitudes and busy hands.
In a bid to uncover those behind the city’s creative spirit, Farah headed up north to meet some of the individuals currently driving Leeds’ innovative surge towards a new and exciting future. From bohemian barbers to contemporary coffee shop owners, here are some of the city’s most creative people giving their view on one of our favourite towns.
You can watch a video on the project here.
Myke Greaves, King Koby’s Chop Shop
What is it?
A barbershop that, in their own words wants to ‘exist with purpose’.
What do you do?
“At King Koby I am a barber/stylist. I cut and style gents hair, I also trim, shape up and shave beards.”
Why Leeds?
“It’s just such an awesome city and it’s just going to grow and grow over the next few years – and I can’t wait to see what happens.”
Leeds in three words is: “It’s flipping awesome.”
Owen Brinley, Department M
What is it?
Established in 2012, Department M are a band.
What do you do?
“Our sound is impressionistic pop, I suppose – weird-dream hangover music. Sonically, a marriage of electronic experimentation and indie-rock.”
Why Leeds?
“There are other towns and cities in the UK but Leeds just has everything you need to be a musician. As opposed to somewhere like London, where I suppose it’s a nightmare to find affordable space to make music or art in, Leeds has that in spades.”
Leeds in three words is:
(After minutes of deliberation) “That’s too difficult”
www.facebook.com/departmentmband/
Chris Lambert, Tattooist, Snake and Tiger
What is it?
Established in 2015, the experienced tattooists pride themselves in their ability to adorn the highest-quality designs onto the skin of their loyal customers.
What do you do?
“I started tattooing 8 years ago. I initially did my apprentice at Ultimate Skin, I worked there for about 2 years. Finally I came back to Leeds to set up Snake and Tiger which is my tattoo shop in Thornton’s arcade.
Why Leeds?
My client basis at the end of the day, I think I have a really good client basis here with a lot of regulars. Business is good in Leeds for me anyhow. I like working with people from Leeds because I think that they know what they want, and they are willing to pay for quality, which is not what I have necessarily found at the other places I have worked. So the people of Leeds are good, and that’s what has brought me back.
How would you pitch the city to someone who is considering opening a business in Leeds?
There is a large turnover of students which means there are new people coming each year. That is one thing that I think has really helped Leeds’ economy. I think probably out of the major cities in the North, Leeds to me seems to be the one that is the most up and coming, compared to the other big three.
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Ryan Tomlin is a 20 year old independent author currently studying in Leeds. He uses Amazon’s ‘Kindle Direct Publishing’ service to publish his books online.
Ryan first got into writing during secondary school and began writing his first novel in 2012. Three years later, he’s currently writing his seventh and has two ongoing book series. Most of Ryan’s books fall well within the action-adventure genre, with sub-genres of thriller, fantasy and more recently science fiction.
After being rejected over 50 times by various literary agents and publishers, Ryan took to the streets of Leeds to promote his latest book “The Transition”. Since then, his works of fiction have begun to reach a growing audience. Ryan’s most recent fictional endeavour is that of a young-adult science fiction story with dystopian and post-apocalyptic elements. It follows a society in which children are raised separately from their parents until the age of eighteen.
The story follows Rume, who has never met his parents. Like all the other children in the community, he must wait until his eighteenth birthday before he does. For years he has seen countless people travel through the vault door and, with a white flash, be gone and never return, traveling over the Ridge to join the rest of the adult world. This is called The Transition. The day when you leave the community and your new life begins.
Follow Ryan Tomlin on Twitter @rjtomlin
Support Ryan by purchasing his titles at: http://goo.gl/mhbvMs
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City Authors: 3 New Books in Leeds
Showcasing some of the undiscovered talents and authors that make Leeds the great city we all love! Here are our city authors:
Leeds United – The only place for us
Jon Howe, a passionate Leeds fan and the author of ‘All White: Leeds United’s 100 Greatest Players’, is releasing his latest Leeds United book to the world.
Through fires, gypsy curses and a whole host of cherished memories ‘The Only Place For Us’ pulls together the never-been-told history of Elland Road, one of the most iconic sporting arenas in the country. Using archive research, fascinating photographs, fans’ memories and the inside knowledge of people involved, Jon Howe tells the unique story of how Elland Road fought through adversary, neglect and re-development to become one of the most feared football grounds in Europe, and a fine, modern stadium reeking with history and intrigue. The book is illustrated throughout with some rare and unseen photographs of Elland Road’s development and unique features.
We spoke to Jon about Elland Road and how he went about writing the book:
“The book has taken the best part of three years to put together and has become a really personal mission. I’ve spoken to lots of people associated with Leeds United; fans, ex-employees/contractors, managers, directors and even mascots and have loved listening to people’s stories and memories.
I wanted the book to be a record of the ground’s history but also to acknowledge the geographical area around Elland Road. It’s a fans’ book and fans park in certain places and go to certain pubs and fish ‘n’ chip shops etc every match of every season, so the surrounding area is important to them and there is history all around Elland Road.
There are also some great photos in the book, some of which have been provided by the families of people who have worked at Elland Road, so I know they haven’t been seen before. There are a lot of books about Leeds United, but I think this book is unique, and completes the ‘Leeds United’ picture because it documents everything around us and tells some untold stories about what happened there.”
The book will be available from Amazon via this short link at www.goo.gl/BqJ2rP, Waterstones and all other good stockists from February 12.
You can visit Jon Howe’s website here:
www.jon-howe.com
Experience a new type of friendship – a new novel, with an eastern twist!
Gideon and the Crimson Samurai is a new pre teen novel, by Black British, indie-author, Ricky Lee Baxter. Ricky might have a familiar face if you have visited Trinity Leeds – working in their customer service lounge. Often handing out your favourite City Dweller magazine to visitors.
As we live in an age that is becoming more culturally integrated, with diverse ways of life, friendship and love – Gideon and the Crimson Samurai is a fictional novel, made to reflect the unique kinds of relationships we have, and resulting obstacles we face, together in this world.
Twelve-year-old Gideon has never felt at home within his city – only displacement, especially following the mysterious departure of his father. Life isn’t kind to the young boy, and a series of unfortunate events seem to roll from bad to worse.
His life changes however, when a foul-mouthed samurai enters his life, and the two embark on a grand journey of friendship and self-discovery. Along their journey they will meet others, from different backgrounds – each sharing a misfortune, yet with a burning desire for belonging. Gideon and the Crimson Samurai is a unique novel, written in play format, suited for readers aged 12+, and contains relevant themes that mirror our society today.
Within the first three weeks, this exciting new novel has acquired five 5 star reviews, and will soon be made into an audio book. Gideon and the Crimson Samurai is a self-published work, available online at www.goo.gl/BhYmrw (Amazon). Ricky is an avid blogger and you can view his past publication, Colours of Destiny – a Youtube visual novel, on You Tube with over 2,000 views at www.goo.gl/B4aloE
Bright Lights White Nights – New Fiction Novel From A Leeds Author
Andy Carter was born in Leeds in 1986 and grew up in Headingley. After graduating from Lancaster University in 2009, he spent two years as a care worker with St Anne’s community services in Bramley. Andy has now turned his hand to penning novels.
Bright Lights White Nights is a crime-fiction book, it is humorous and not meant to be taken too seriously. There are references to Leeds throughout the book as the protagonist grew up in Leeds and is a Leeds United supporter. Andy sums up the novel –
“Struggling with the daily torture of call-centre work, Chris’s mid- twenties disillusion hits its lowest ebb when his girlfriend reveals that she has been sleeping with her driving instructor. Something has to change. Chris exchanges Leeds for the bright lights of Hong Kong where he finds a flat in the infamous Wan Chai district and hopes to rekindle his dwindling enthusiasm for life. After finding a job teaching English to adults and befriending some colourful characters, it seems that moving east was an inspired decision. However, following a chance meeting with Sophie, a beautiful girl from his past, things takes a disastrous turn and Chris inadvertently becomes embroiled in a debauched adventure involving the players and oddballs of Hong Kong’s cocaine underworld.”
Bright Lights and White Nights is being published by Proverse and will be out in April. Andy plans to do a book launch in the Wardrobe in Leeds.
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REVOLUTION Review by Geoff Gibbs
Russell Brand
Laying my revolutionary cards on the table, I am a fan of Russell Brand and sympathise with most of what he has to say. Mr Brand has an awful lot to say about many things and despite his checkered past his heart is definitely in the right place.
Russell Brand’s Revolution was recently published by Random House in October of last year and is available in hardback only.
The genesis of this book was arguably born out of an interview with the political giant Jeremy Paxman on BBC Two’s Newsnight where Brand advocated that the politically disenfranchised abstain from voting where no preferred political option was present. Brand was given a very hard time by the press in the following months and I guess this is his considered response to mass media fury.
Brand writes from the hip and he uses a style that isn’t too dissimilar to his unique form of East London articulate vernacular. As you flip the pages you almost imagine Brand sitting in front of you and reading Revolution direct to you.
Let’s not be mistaken, Revolution is a self indulgent monologue that is sometimes confusing. Brand refers often to personal experiences to draw analogies with issues he raises and I often I thought ‘you just had to be there’ to make sense of the context. More often than not, he is spot on with thoughts and makes very concise points with comical pertinent comparisons of political and economic corruption.
Brand is not a tourist to poverty. Raised by a single mother in the depths of one the most socially deprived areas of the UK – Grays Essex.
Brand advocates a social revolution wherein, “corporate tyranny, ecological irresponsibility and economic inequality” come to an end. A worthy aspiration for all of us and society. The problem for some is that ‘Revolution’ doesn’t include a 10 point bullet list on how to achieve this lofty goal. Does it make ‘Revolution’ a hollow and senseless exercise? No! For those who have reached this conclusion, they are missing the point. Revolution isn’t a political manifesto but a ice breaker to start the conversation.
This book is important. As Nick Cohen of the Guardian states; Russel Brand is the nearest thing Britain has to a ‘Revolutionary Populist’. Brand champions the ideas of fairness, peace, equality, egalatarism and, dare I say, love. Revolution screams out, albeit muffled and obscurely, that the system is broken and it needs to be fixed for the benefit of us all.
Brand is seeking something all too utopian and it is a big ask!
However, agree with him or not – what is important is that this is the beginning of a discussion that needs to happen and only then will changes be made.
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]]>The post Jon Howe’s A-Z History of Elland Road appeared first on Leeds Student Magazine.
]]>Jon Howe, a passionate Leeds fan and the author of ‘All White: Leeds United’s 100 Greatest Players’, is releasing his latest Leeds United book to the world.
Through fires, gypsy curses and a whole host of cherished memories ‘The Only Place For Us’ pulls together the never-been-told history of Elland Road, one of the most iconic sporting arenas in the country. Using archive research, fascinating photographs, fans’ memories and the inside knowledge of people involved, Jon Howe tells the unique story of how Elland Road fought through adversary, neglect and re-development to become one of the most feared football grounds in Europe, and a fine, modern stadium reeking with history and intrigue. The book is illustrated throughout and with some rare and unseen photographs of Elland Road’s development and unique features.
We spoke to Jon about Elland Road and how he went about writing the book:
“The book has taken the best part of three years to put together and has become a really personal mission. I’ve spoken to lots of people associated with Leeds United; fans, ex-employees/contractors, managers, directors and even mascots and have loved listening to people’s stories and memories.
I wanted the book to be a record of the ground’s history but also to acknowledge the geographical area around Elland Road. It’s a fans’ book and fans park in certain places and go to certain pubs and fish ‘n chip shops etc every match of every season, so the surrounding area is important to them and there is history all around Elland Road.
There are also some great photos in the book, some of which have been provided by the families of people who have worked at Elland Road, so I know they haven’t been seen before. There are a lot of books about Leeds United, but I think this book is unique, and completes the ‘Leeds United’ picture because it documents everything around us and tells some untold stories about what happened there.”
The book is out soon and will be available from from Amazon, Waterstones and all other good stockists.
You can see Jon Howe’s website here: http://www.jon-howe.com/index.html
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]]>The post New British Noir Crime Novel Set in 1950s Leeds appeared first on Leeds Student Magazine.
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Author Chris Nickson has written the first crime novel in a new series about a Private Investigator and jazz-music-fan working in 1950s Leeds. This historical, Noir-style novel explores themes of murder, power and most importantly; Jazz music.
The book, entitled Dark Briggate Blues, begins when a beautiful woman asks Dan Markham PI to discover if her husband has been unfaithful. He believes the case will be simple. However, when the gentleman in question is murdered, Dan becomes the number one suspect. Dark Briggate Blues is exploration into the rare genre of British noir.
The author Chris Nickson has written many historical mystery stories including The Crooked Spire for The Mystery Press. A well-known music journalist, he’s a frequent contributor to numerous music magazines and lives in Leeds.
You can buy the crime novel here.
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A teacher made his students write letters to their future selves AND then delivered them!
We’ve all been there, haven’t we? The teacher, who thinks he’s weirdly creative, that gets his students to write letters to themselves twenty years in the future. The kids put in a half-hearted attempt with the expectation that the teacher will throw their letter in the bin and it’ll never be seen again.
Well one teacher actually kept these letters. Bruce Farrer, a Canadian high school teacher, made sure he kept every single letter and delivered every one of them twenty years later. The results are interesting and uplifting. You can see a video about it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeX1H7ajOvQ
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THE SELFISH GENE!
A BOOK FOR EVERY STUDENT
Richard Dawkins
Richard Dawkins first catapulted to fame with his iconic work The Selfish Gene, which he followed with a string of bestselling books: The Extended Phenotype, The Blind Watchmaker, River Out of Eden, Climbing Mount Improbable, Unweaving the Rainbow, The Ancestor’s Tale, The God Delusion, The Greatest Show on Earth, The Magic of Reality, and a collection of his shorter writings, A Devil’s Chaplain.
An oldie but a goldie! The Selfish Gene was first published in 1976 and is soon approaching the 40th anniversary of this legend in science writing. I spent three years referencing Dawkins at university whilst reading Marine Biology. I consider it a primer to understanding human behavior and why people do things. Is there truly such a thing as altruistic behavior? Dawkin’s would argue that there is not. Personally I agree him and he makes a convincing case for why.
Dawkins inspired a generation of biologists and life science students with this title as well as thousands of popular science readers. Over a million copies have been sold and it has been translated in to 25 languages. When originally published, it caused a small revolution in the ‘Life Sciences’ and is still the topic of hot debate.
In short, Dawkins proposes that we are simply a container for our ‘Genes’, a machine that aids in their propagation. Your genes simply want to be passed on and they will do just about anything to achieve this. A seemingly charitable act of kindness can be whittled down to a, essentially, non-altrustic motive (even if it is a subconscious motive). He explains how related individuals may perform acts of kindness – due to genetic relationships and investment in protecting related gene carriers over those who are not related.
Dawkins does not stop there. In fact he starts with a first class primer in genetics and the biological concepts you’ll need to understand his message. He covers how the earliest forms of life came to exist and how molecules can in fact replicate themselves to give birth to organic compounds in turn to living creatures. He discusses group behavior, why it may be advantageous to not breed in a peer group and how co-operation may have arisen.
My favourite chapter is ‘You Scratch my Back, I’ll Ride on Yours’. This is really about reciprocal altruism, in that I will only do a kind act because you promised to do one in return or I you expected to return the favour.
Reviewers often claim that this book will change your life, if this one doesn’t… at least you’ll understand about life that bit more!
Dawkins end his book with these thoughts:
We are built as gene machines and cultured as meme machines, but we have the power to turn against our creators. We, alone on Earth can rebel against the tyranny of the selfish replicators.
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