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from Chippy Chat July 2022

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The Age of the Train!

Training and apprenticeships available for fish and chip businesses

Training delivers long-term benefits for you, your staff, and your business. Being engaged with a training programme will have a positive impact on staff development and retention.

At Seafish, we are currently offering subsidised training programmes for people working in fish and chip businesses. These are available in user friendly formats including self-study online learning and remotely delivered taught courses.

Our Elementary Food Hygiene and Elementary Health & Safety programmes are fully subsidised and effectively free of charge, with successful candidates receiving a nationally recognised qualification awarded by the Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS). They can be completed by serving staff and fish friers and both are studied for using online learning materials in written and video format. This allows the learner to study at a place, pace, and time suitable to them, with the multiple-choice exam invigilated via Zoom. The Elementary Food Hygiene learning materials and exam papers are now also available in Welsh, thanks to funding received from the Welsh Government.

One business which has benefitted from this kind of training is The Welcome Fryer in South Molton, Devon. Owner Mark Dimelow says: “The application process was simple and many of my team have successfully completed the Elementary Food Hygiene and Elementary Health & Safety qualifications. It is fantastic to see them applying their new knowledge in their job roles.”

The Intermediate Food Hygiene eLearning programme is an attractive alternative to a three-day taught course. Like the Elementary courses, a learner can study when and where they wish to. It is 50% subsidised and can be completed by supervisors, team leaders and managers. The online remotely invigilated exam consists of 20 questions which require short written answers.

Our Principles of Fish Quality Assessment course is also 50% subsidised and is delivered via Zoom as a half-day course. It focuses on the Torry assessment scheme. The optional post-course assignment is aimed to help the learner make better decisions about fish quality.

Apprenticeships provide another great way of supporting staff. Combining practical on the job training with additional study, an apprentice is employed by a business while they gain experience and knowledge, important to their job role. We work together with organisations (see opposite page) that offer apprenticeships across the UK for the seafood industry.

One fish and chip shop which is benefitting from employing an apprentice is Towngate Fisheries in Bradford. Hollie Hutton is currently studying a Level 3 Senior Production Chef apprenticeship, which is helping her to learn new skills and knowledge relevant to her job along with developing her ability to be a team leader. Owner of Towngate Fisheries, Mark Drummond highlights: “Having an apprentice working in the business has helped develop staff training systems. We hope that Hollie will continue to work at Towngate Fisheries after completing her apprenticeship. It gives us something to promote on our social media and helps show we are a professional business with high standards.”