Contact the Scottish Sensory Centre
Phone for information or appointment:
Monday to Friday 9.30 am - 4.00 pm
Telephone: 0131 651 6501
Textphone: 0131 651 6067
Fax: 0131 651 6502
Staff
- Janis Sugden, SSC Coordinator; email
- Alison Duthie, Braille course tutor; email
- Margaret Miller, Deaf CPD course organiser, email
- Rachel O'Neill, Lecturer in Deaf Education; email
- Mariela Fordyce, Research Fellow, email
- Linda Hope, SSC Senior Secretary email
- Elizabeth Izatt, Website Manager; email
- Sheila Mackenzie, Resource Library Manager; email
- Ruth Simpson, SSC Administrator; email
Janis had worked with the SSC since she joined the University in 2004 when she became a Teaching Fellow in Education Support (Visual Impairment) for the Diploma course. During this time Janis also maintained a part-time post in Clackmannanshire as a chartered Teacher of Visually Impaired children. She became Coordinator in 2008.
Alison worked as Principal Teacher, Visual Impairment with the Fife Sensory Support Service for many years before she retired.
Margaret Miller has been in the field of deaf education for 34 years and was Head of Service of the Multi Sensory Service in Dundee for the last 16 years. Margaret was delighted to have the offer of a secondment to join the skilled team at the Scottish Sensory Service as CPD Organiser of Deaf Education. This period has been a time of constant change from free standing schools for the deaf through Warnock to Integration in units to the current practice of inclusion alongside the use of effective technology as well as cochlear implants. A challenging time and in the present climate the challenge of meeting deaf childrens needs will continue. Margaret would be very happy to hear from services and staff about their training needs. The SSC would like to explore outreach training using Inset days in local areas.
Rachel worked as a teacher in secondary, further and community education for 25 years before moving to the University of Edinburgh in 2006. She trained as a teacher of deaf children and an EAL tutor and used both approaches in my work in colleges with deaf students. She works half a day a week for the SSC.
Dr Mariela Fordyce has recently become a Research Fellow for the Scottish Sensory Centre and the Centre for Research, Education, Inclusion and Diversity at Moray House School of Education. Originally from Romania, she completed her undergraduate studies in Special Education at the University of Bucharest, Romania, and her postgraduate studies at Hiroshima University, School of Education, Japan. Mariela has a strong interest in issues related to deaf literacy and deaf bilingualism, as well as second language acquisition and language assessment. She is currently working on a project commissioned by the National Deaf Children's Society, which looks at the post-16 destinations (such as employment, training or higher education) of deaf young people in Scotland.
Linda is the Senior Secretary for the SSC and is most likely the first person you talk to when you call us.
Elizabeth is the longest serving member of the SSC, having started working for Moray House VI Centre before the SSC was first set up. She started as a Prestel editor with a steam-driven computer in the basement of Chessel's Land next to the Drama Department, where the Duelling Banjos from Deliverance was a loud favourite.
SSC is centrally located, just off the Royal Mile, in the Paterson's Land building of Moray House School of Education, University of Edinburgh
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