News / how to be a chef

How To Be A Chef opens registration for spring 2022 cohort

By Ellie Pipe  Friday Mar 11, 2022

The application process is now open for a free 12-week course that teaches practical skills in a professional kitchen and opens up employment opportunities.

Run by Square Food Foundation in partnership with Bristol24/7, the How To Be A Chef programme is set to relaunch in April within brand new premises at The Park community centre, situated next door to the previous site in Knowle West.

Aimed at people aged 16-25 who are not in full-time work or education, the accredited course provides trainees with a wide range of transferable skills as well as mentoring and job opportunities with employers in the city.

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While the course is centred around food and cooking, there’s no requirement to know how to cook and there are no specific qualifications needed. The Square Food team are interested in people who show their commitment, enthusiasm and motivation for the course.

A former cohort of young chefs with Square Food Foundation’s Barney Haughton – photo: Bristol24/7

Jamie is a How To Be A Chef graduate. “The course has helped me realise what I wanted with my future,” says Jamie.

“It’s a really good thing to do if you are like me and had no idea what you wanted to do in the future. Also having a cooking course in your CV opens up your opportunities infinitely and is something that seems to really interest interviewers even if the job isn’t that related to it.”

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The course starts on April 27 and runs on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 10am- 4pm over 12 weeks. In this time, trainees will learn how to hold their own in a professional kitchen, be taught a range of different cooking techniques and recipes, visit food producers, growers and factories, and work with mentors to create a CV and improve interview skills.

Students will also gain a Level 2 BTEC qualification and Level 2 Food & Hygiene certificate, as well as the transferable skills that employers might look for such as teamworking, taking the initiative, working without supervision and presentation skills.

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The Square Food team also work with members of the cohort to help match them with future employers. Previous How To Be A Chef students have gone on to find work in Bristol’s hospitality scene at places that include Box-E, Harvey Nichols, Philpotts, Windmill Hill City Farm and Flip on North Street.

Find out more and register interest via www.squarefoodfoundation.co.uk/how-to-be-a-chef.

Main photo : Square Food Foundation 

Read more: Square Food Foundation marks ten-year anniversary with major fundraising drive

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