News

Eight students from Carshalton College are the latest to benefit from an accredited work experience programme created by Harrison Catering Services.

The contract caterer’s programme has achieved Springboard’s INSPIRE Work Experience Standard and has exceeded expectations according to the latest assessment.

Founder and chairman Geoffrey Harrison was also presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award for Contract Catering at the Cost Sector Catering Awards 2015 in April, partly for his work promoting training for young people coming into the industry.

Student Michaela Nzeh, who is studying for her VRQ Level 2 Diploma in Catering, said the course gave her more of an insight into catering: “When people think about becoming a chef, they tend to think about working in restaurants, but working in schools is a side that’s quite important because you’re feeding young children.”

Over 10 weeks, each student spent one day a week being mentored by a cook manager as they learned a variety of practical food preparation and cookery skills.

Ruth Bankover, head of work experience and INSPIRE, Springboard, said: “The robust process Harrison has put in place and the level of training invested in the cook managers and catering staff at the sites was evident in the support and overall experience the students received.”

Harrison initially piloted the work experience programme at a site in Herefordshire at the end of 2014, earning the INSPIRE accreditation, and the company is now rolling the programme out throughout its business, creating a designated work experience site in each of its client service areas.

Founded in 1994, Harrison Catering Services is an independent, family-owned company, providing contract catering to clients across the UK.