Fancy yourself as the next Gordon Ramsey or Heston Blumenthal? Read on to find out some useful information that could help you along your way to an enjoyable and prosperous career in the catering and hospitality industry.
BY CHRIS BIRD
As with many industries, catering and hospitality is highly competitive; gaining the right education and knowing the right people can go a long way.
The recent Claridge’s charity dinner at Stratford-upon-Avon College is a great example of how education and networking can combine effectively. The charity dinner is hosted at the college, and provides students with a unique chance to gain real experience working with the top personnel from Claridge’s.
During the dinner, students are divided into three separate work stations: canapés and starters, main course, and pastry and petit fours (dessert to you and me!). Across the whole night, the students work through serving five to six five-star courses under the guidance of Claridge’s top personnel. Not stopping there, the students are also responsible for front of house and servicing duties.
Martyn Nail, Executive Chef for Claridge’s, was on hand to oversee the college event. Martyn is a strong advocate for such student-orientated events taking place. He divulges, “If we don’t come out to colleges, to embrace the students and encourage them into the industry, how will that happen?”
Events such as the Claridge’s dinner are a fantastic incentive for young people to get into education and mix with professionals. Martyn is keen to stress the importance of networking and being involved in such events: “You need to get yourself connected to someone who is connected”.
Of course, golden opportunities such as these are possible through specialist courses and apprenticeships. There is no better place to learn than in the work environment. Catering and hospitality courses like those offered by Stratford- upon-Avon College are fantastic at providing students with hands-on experience.
In terms of catering, it is important for any student to find a course, which can provide these elements.
Alan Deegan, the Hospitality Specialist at Stratford-upon-Avon College, offers five useful tips as to what to look for in a catering and hospitality course:
• Highly practical course – a large percentage of time in the kitchen
• High standard facilities
• Chances for networking
• Industry trained staff – preferably those who have links with the professional catering and hospitality world
• Creative freedom for students
Stratford-upon-Avon College can be justifiably proud of the hospitality and catering courses that it offers students (the College boasts a highly impressive 100 per cent employment rate for all students in catering and hospitality).
Once completing a Level 3 catering or hospitality course, many young people can find the decision on their next step a very difficult one to make. If you don’t feel ready to dive straight into employment, then higher education may be for you. Here are a few higher education institutions that include catering and hospitality courses on their prospectus:
• University College Birmingham - www.ucb.ac.uk
• Sheffield Hallam University - www.shu.ac.uk
• Compass Academy apprentices - www.compass-group.co.uk/compass-academy
• London Metropolitan University - www.londonmet.ac.uk
• D&D London Chef Apprentice - www.danddlondon.com/chef-apprentice
Once again, if you’re interested, visit the appropriate website and use the course search tool for more information. If you want to refine your search further, use the UCAS course search engine at www.ucas.co.uk
If you’re a budding young chef and dream of a career in which you can put your technical and creative skills to their best; go for it. Put yourself out there and utilise your passion for the field at all networking opportunities. Your perfect career in catering or hospitality may be just around the corner.
What is Claridge’s?
Claridge’s is a luxury hotel in Mayfair, London. The hotel has royal connections, as well as being a celebrity hotspot. The main restaurant of the hotel is currently run by Gordon Ramsey.
www.claridges.co.uk
Images - Emma Lambert/Claridge’s
