The course focuses on practical cooking skills to ensure students develop a thorough understanding of nutrition, food provenance and the working characteristics of food materials. At its heart, it focuses on nurturing students' practical cookery skills to give them a strong understanding of nutrition. Students learn the study of food science and how food changes and why. Food safety underpins the course which ensures students know how to cook and prepare food safely. Students develop essential life skills such as the ability to prepare and cook dishes from a range of countries and cultures, developing curiosity about the world around them. They learn about the importance of nutrient-dense foods and the effect an unbalanced diet can have upon health. Students carry out tasks hygienically and learn about the correct storage of different commodities, alongside the legislation followed in the food industry.
Students become eco-friendly cooks ensuring their practices are sustainable and have an understanding of how menus are constantly changing to ensure the needs of all customers are met for example customers with special dietary needs or choices. They also consider how to plan menus to adhere to a design brief and budget, making them more considerate consumers in the process.
Students use knowledge and skills from other areas of the curriculum, such as presenting data linked to nutrition and scaling a recipe, confidently communicating using French terminology and researching the history of dishes.