The trick was the return in the function, like so:
return $rsCMS->getColumnVal("CMSContent");
So with this method of data loading I can have a simple database table made up of
CMSID
CMSLocale
CMSElement
CMSContent
The CMSLocale stores the page,php
The CMSElement could be any reference you like, such as Header, SubHeader, FooterTitle, MainContent, SideContent...or anything
I should really put this into a tutorial, but originally I did have an issue with it that i posted, buy since deleted that as I worked it out :)
Chris