Have you ever dreamed of turning your home cooking skills into a full-time career? Perhaps you’d like to travel the world while cooking up a storm? Or maybe you just want to turn your cakemaking talents into a paid job? The Ashburton Chefs’ Academy is one of the UK’s leading culinary schools designed to help elevate your skills to a professional level and it’s located right in the heart of the West Country…
What is The Ashburton Chefs’ Academy?
The Ashburton Chefs’ Academy offers a range of inspirational courses for aspiring chefs and food lovers. Students learn to master the fundamental skills, techniques and discipline needed to succeed as a modern chef or business owner, under the expert guidance of 10 highly experienced, professional chef tutors.
Who is the academy for?
People of all ages, aspirations and backgrounds attend courses at The Ashburton Chef’s Academy. The only entry requirement is commitment. Some students know they want to go down the Michelin restaurant route, while others simply want to challenge themselves and take their abilities to the next level. You should consider enrolling on a course if you dream of running your own restaurant, patisserie or café, if you would like to launch your own foodie business, or if you like the idea of travelling the world to cook professionally. As long as you know which end of a knife to hold and you’re ready to learn, you can prepare to go places.
What do they teach?
The academy offers a range of short courses (between half a day and 5 days) as well as diplomas and certificates in culinary arts. Anyone can learn to cook to a professional standard on a 4-week Certificate in Culinary Arts or become a fully qualified chef in just 17 weeks on a full-time, intensive course. Alternatively, students can opt to specialise as Pastry Chefs or even learn the skills required to cook onboard luxury liners on a special 2 Week Yacht Chef Skills course.
Success Stories
Many of the students that pass through the doors of Ashburton Chef’s Academy go on to have exciting and lucrative careers. These 3 successful graduates should provide you with a snapshot of what you may be able to achieve…
The MasterChef Professionals Winner
Eagle-eyed readers will no doubt recognise Laurence as the winner of MasterChef: The Professionals 2018. But before he hit our TV screens, this talented young chef graduated from the Ashburton Chefs Academy in 2012; having completed the intensive Diploma in Culinary Arts programme.
During his MasterChef experience, we watched Laurence battle it out against 48 other professional chefs from across the UK. With over 24 Michelin-stars between them, his victory in the show was impressive to say the least and his exceptional cooking even led the notorious Jay Rayner to have ‘absolutely nothing critical to say!’
Chef Director of the Academy, Darrin Hosegrove, said of the news “We are absolutely thrilled for Laurence. His skill, passion and commitment was clear to us early on but to reach such culinary heights at just 26 years old makes him an exceptional talent. We couldn’t be prouder to have been part of his journey to become the exceptional chef he now is.”
The Patisserie Chef
Sara Felix always dreamed of opening a patisserie; but for the longest time she felt she lacked the necessary knowledge to take on the challenge. Within weeks of embarking on a 15-week Diploma in Professional Patisserie, Sara’s confidence skyrocketed and she was quickly mastering all manner of pastry skills.
These days, you’ll find Sara busy at work behind the counter of her very own patisserie, Sara’s Petite Cuisine, in Topsham. Her Portuguese tarts are the talk of the town and when asked if she would recommend the course, she said “Definitely. I learned so much in such a short period. This course has definitely opened a lot of doors for my career.”
The Small Business Owner
Before Clare Gault decided to enroll at Ashburton Cookery School, her passion for cookery was purely as a hobbyist. But fast-forward to 2019 and her self-made business, Clare’s Preserves, is thriving. Like many students at the Academy, Clare knew she wanted to go on to work in her own environment, rather than a commercial kitchen. Initially considering opening her own cafe, she found her calling by chance when she entered one of her homemade marmalades into the Dalemain Marmalade Awards. As testament to the quality of her homemade products, she has since bagged 3 golds at The World’s Original Marmalade Awards and has attracted attention from brands like Fortnum & Mason.
When asked about the academy, Clare says ‘Everything about the course, tutors and the school infrastructure exceeded all my expectations and I couldn’t recommend it highly enough. The course I undertook gave me the skill set and confidence to pursue a career as a chef and ultimately found my own business.”
If this article has left you feeling inspired to partake in a diploma or cookery qualification, you may wish to visit www.ashburtonchefsacademy.co.uk or call (01364) 652784.