Upcoming events

HMS Prince of Wales

We were honoured to welcome Captain Steve Higham and his crew from the HMS Prince of Wales to the City Restaurant in December. Officers and crew from the Royal Navy’s fifth generation aircraft carrier enjoyed a weekend of events to commemorate the ship’s affiliation with Bristol.

The ship is one of the most powerful surface warships ever constructed in the UK and holds anywhere from 800 to 1,600 crew members at once.

The weekend’s events culminated with a special Evensong service at Bristol Cathedral which included the witness of the ‘Blessing of the White Ensign’ which traditionally flies on Royal Navy ships. Ahead of the event at the cathedral, Catering Lecturer Ryan Fernandes and his students produced and served an impressive buffet lunch for Captain Higham, Commander Weapons Engineer Shaun Riordan and 40 members of the crew.

Dishes, including mini cottage pies, pulled pork buns, Vietnamese prawn rolls and lemon tarts, received high praise from the Captain and his crew, which included some of the ship’s top chefs.

Master Chefs of Great Britain

One of our lecturers has joined an illustrious band of chefs from across the country to help build aspirations and opportunities for his students. Catering Lecturer, Ryan Fernandes, joined us in September 2009 parttime before joining as a full-time member of staff in 2012 and has now become a member of the Master Chefs of Great Britain (MCGB).

The MCGB celebrates British cuisine to both the chef and the consumer. It also provides a forum for the exchange of culinary ideas, focusing on furthering the profession through training and guidance for young chefs.

College of Sanctuary

December was a busy month of celebrations as we held three events to mark College of Sanctuary month. City of Sanctuary started in 2005 with the vision that the UK should be a welcoming place of safety for all and proud to offer sanctuary to people fleeing violence and persecution. Schools and Colleges of Sanctuary is an initiative from Bristol City of Sanctuary, which aims to foster positive attitudes within schools, colleges and their communities around people seeking sanctuary, and support schools and colleges to take positive steps towards being places of safety and inclusion for all.

Talking about becoming a member

of the MCGB, Ryan said: “I feel honoured and humbled, as this will give me a huge opportunity and a platform to network nationally and keep the momentum of learning and celebrating British cuisine which is fast growing with the amalgamation of different cuisines. This will shape the future of the exciting eating culture which will make the hospitality sector in the UK the most sought after.”

Rich Harris said: “We are very proud to have been awarded College of Sanctuary status. This accreditation is now renewed every three years and we are pleased to be able to demonstrate our ongoing commitment and support to those seeking sanctuary in Bristol.”

Take advantage of the Apprenticeship Levy!

From 11 January 2022, you will be able to apply for a payment of up to £3,000 for apprentices who started their employment between 1 October 2021 to 31 January 2022. Applications close on 15 May 2022. You can read our Employer Apprenticeship Information booklet here

www.cityofbristol.ac.uk/wp-content/ uploads/8.-Employer-ApprenticeshipInformation-Guide-booklet.pdf

or call 0117 312 5250 or email apprentice@cityofbristol.ac.uk for more information.

We need you!

Can you support one of our learners to gain valuable workplace experience? We are looking for employers from a range of industries who would be able to take on one of our Supported Internship students for up to five days a week.

The aim of the Supported Internship course is to help learners with additional educational needs the opportunity to achieve the employment and learning goals in their Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

The interns would be supported in the workplace initially until they are able to work independently, with a weekly supportive visit from one of our job coaches.

If you are interested, please get in touch with sharon.langford@ cityofbristol.ac.uk

Workforce for the Future

We are proud to be part of the Workforce For The Future project and promote a wider support network to small and medium businesses (SMEs) in the region. Workforce For The Future is a free support service for businesses and individuals in the West of England. The £8m programme helps businesses develop employees’ skills, understand how they can meet their current and future skills needs and attract, develop and retain talented people. It also supports local residents to upskill and improve their career prospects. The West of England combined Authority (WECA) and European Social Fund (ESF) co-fund the project. While we are specialising in construction SMEs, we invite businesses from all backgrounds to get in touch with us to find out more about the project and how we can help you to future-proof your business. For more information, contact luke.hastings@cityofbristol.ac.uk

Bristol Talent

We have teamed up with South Gloucestershire and Stroud College (SGS) to create Bristol Talent, a unique solution for a unique city-region. Bristol Talent aims to future-proof the workforce of some of the largest and most progressive employers in the Bristol and South Gloucestershire region by providing a talent pool of apprentices and employment-ready students from both SGS and City of Bristol College. Bristol Talent provides a skills pipeline and a single recruitment service for employers to work with our learners through delivery, work experience placements and lectures, to develop learners’ skills to meet their business needs.

So how can you get involved?

Do you need an apprentice to support you in various areas of your business?

We have an apprenticeship-ready talent pool of graduates and existing students ready to start.

Do you worry about an ageing workforce and need help future-proofing your

business? Employers can engage our college-based learners through extended placements and projects, so that following graduation, we can ensure the very best match of our learners to your vacancies.

Do you need someone who has knowledge about present

and future technologies? With Bristol Talent employers helping to shape our curriculum design and delivery, we can ensure our programmes deliver the skills, knowledge and behaviours your future workplace needs.

Interested? Find out more here

https://www.cityofbristol.ac.uk/employers/bristol-talent/

For more information, get in touch by emailing bristoltalent@sgscol.ac.uk or calling 07730 870850