Skip to main content
25th January 2023

Westminster Kingsway College achieves Craft Guild of Chefs College Accreditation

Written by: Edward Waddell
Westminster Kingsway College’s award-winning School of Hospitality and Culinary Arts has been awarded the prestigious accredited status by the Craft Guild of Chefs.

The Craft Guild of Chefs is the leading chef association in the UK. It plays a key role in championing the skills and talents of the people in the foodservice and hospitality sector and, as a part of this, it runs a prestigious accreditation scheme which universities and colleges that teach culinary skills can apply to join.

To be accredited, universities and colleges must meet stringent criteria set by the Craft Guild of Chefs, demonstrating that the faculty offers a high calibre of teaching. An independent assessor also inspects the college to ensure it meets the high standards required.

Curriculum manager Miranda Quantrill commented: “We are absolutely delighted that the college’s Hospitality and Culinary Arts provision has been accredited by the Craft Guild of Chefs. This is great news and it’s a massive endorsement of the work that we do here. A big thank you to all the staff and the students who made this possible.”

The Craft Guild’s independent assessor visited the college in early November 2022 and spoke to staff including Miranda Quantrill and restaurant manager Marc Whitley as well as a number of the students.

The assessor was impressed with both the quality of teaching and the attitude of the students, saying in his report: “It is clear that everyone expects nothing but the best from each other and both staff and students understand that ethos, respect it and are more than happy to ensure the high standards requested are maintained by everyone.

“Westminster Kingsway College benefits from a committed and professional team of hospitality lecturers. The standards set by the faculty team is reflected in the appearance and enthusiasm shown by the students. It is clear that many students will have successful careers and the continued relationships with industry will support this objective.”

As part of his inspection, the assessor visited the Escoffier Room, the college’s fine dining restaurant, where students cook meals for, and serve, members of the public, and was served a meal by students.

Terry Tinton, assistant principal of Hospitality, Foundation Studies and Commercial, said: “We are over the moon that the Craft Guild of Chefs has awarded Westminster Kingsway College accredited status. This award has been well-earned and recognises the decades of skill and experience that has gone into the quality of our culinary teaching, as well as the way that we structure our courses to make them as industry-relevant as possible.

“It’s why students from all over the south-east of England come to us, and why so many of them graduate from here into great jobs in some of the country’s top restaurants and hotels.”

The Craft Guild of Chefs College Accreditation scheme was launched in July 2020 to inspire the next generation of chefs at grassroots level.

Since it started four catering colleges have now achieved the accreditation, including Eastleigh, Sheffield and Loughborough College, which was the first college to achieve it in December 2020. In addition to the four colleges, two other education institutions have also accomplished the award, these are HIT Training and Welcome Skills.

The innovative scheme is aimed at colleges and universities that want to benefit from the association’s decades of experience and to tap into its extensive network of chefs by associating their faculty with the Craft Guild of Chefs name.