NHS Supply Chain introduce brand new culinary training experience ‘Skills Academy’ for Catering staff
Following the success of the award-winning Chef’s Academy, NHS Supply Chain: Food are excited to announce the official launch of the Skills Academy, a brand-new training experience aimed at raising the profile of NHS General Catering Assistants, providing them with new skillsets for both personal and professional development within the NHS.
The free, innovative program offers attendees the chance to develop a range of skills across a broad curriculum, including but not limited to:
- Operations.
- Teamwork.
- Nutrition, with topics covering reducing food waste, hospital food standards, knife skills and more.
The aim of the academy is to inspire and empower NHS General Catering Assistants, the unsung heroes of hospital food service. Not only does the Skills Academy focus on skill enhancement, but it goes far beyond, helping raise confidence, to feel a sense of pride and professionalism and be seen as integral members with meaningful impact within their trust and teams.
Having the opportunity to upskill and empower General Catering Assistants, who are often a powerful workforce behind the Chefs, is an opportunity myself and the rest of the Culinary and Dietetics team are really looking forward to. We cannot wait to host days full of exciting education and experience. We aim to make our Skills Academy an invaluable, lasting experience for all who attend.
Idrees Anwar, Lead Dietitian, NHS Supply Chain
Unlike the Chef’s Academy, which focuses on training for NHS Chefs, the Skills Academy provides a fantastic training opportunity specifically aimed at NHS General Catering Assistants. Comprehensive training programs for General Catering Assistants are not often the norm. These professionals are critical to the day-to-day operations of hospital kitchens and often work behind-the-scenes to ensure patients receive nutritious and well-prepared meals. The Skills Academy fills the gap by providing creative and innovative culinary training necessary for them to succeed.
Skills Academy events are packed full of learning opportunities, attendees will:
- Experience live demonstrations from an expert culinary team.
- Take part in hands-on cooking sessions, trying recipes from NHS Supply Chain: Food’s Culinary Concept Range as well as fun food challenges.
- Opportunities to learn from expert Dietitians and Nutritionists covering topics like allergens and hospital food standards.
- Network sessions with other NHS General Catering Assistants from across the UK, as well as industry experts and supplier guests.
- Receive a free apron, certificate and training booklet to take home and continue learnings.
Skills Academy provides an inclusive learning environment, offering a safe, inviting and collaborative space where General Catering Assistants can learn, thrive and go on to make a difference in their own trusts and to the wider public.
Earlier this year, the first Skills Academy pilot events were run at Lainston House, Winchester and Leicester Glenfield Hospital. Following the success of the initial pilot events, which set a high standard for future sessions, NHS Supply Chain: Food hosted two summer events at Edgbaston Cricket Ground that received outstanding feedback, scoring a perfect 10/10 from attendees and remarkable feedback from General Catering Managers. These events demonstrated the significant impact of the Skills Academy, with attendees leaving feeling empowered with new skills ready to implement in their own trusts.
What a positive return to work I had following the recent Skills Academies, a lot of positives and exciting conversations happening amongst the staff and a lot of other members of staff eager to join the next events in our area. I think it really brought home to them that they are the key to making positive change in hospital setting whether its patient feeding all the way through to the retail where we are providing food for our visitors and staff. What’s even better they are going to be using some of the concepts and skills learnt from both days to provide food for our patients in the gardens for one of our hospital charity events.
Daniel Hoggett, General Catering Manager, The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Keep your eyes peeled for the next round of events and get in touch with NHS Supply Chain: Food through your local Food Account Manager or through their enquiry form if you’d like more information about Skills Academy or would like them to host a session in your area!
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About NHS Supply Chain
NHS Supply Chain is part of the NHS family and manage the sourcing, delivery and supply of healthcare products, services and food for NHS trusts and healthcare organisations across England and Wales.
We manage more than 8 million orders per year across more than 129,000 order points and over 17,000 locations. We deliver over 35 million lines of picked goods to the NHS annually and our systems consolidate orders from over 1100 suppliers. This enables us to bring value to our NHS partners, helping them save time and money in removing duplication of overlapping contracts.
NHS Supply Chain aims to leverage the collective buying power of the NHS to drive savings and provide a standardised range of clinically assured, quality products at the best value.
NHS Supply Chain is committed to enabling the NHS to deliver safe and excellent patient care.
Supply Chain Coordination Ltd (SCCL) is the company at the heart of NHS Supply Chain. It provides oversight and operational management for NHS Supply Chain and its service providers.
SCCL is the legal entity through which NHS Supply Chain undertakes its procurement services and transacts with customers and suppliers.
Whilst its shares are owned by NHS England, SCCL is a separate organisation.
Links section
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Skills Academy 2024
Interested? Read our Skills Academy events page for upcoming events and more information.
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Food
Category information and links relating to our food products and services.