Triple A chef award completes pilot stage

A new practical qualification designed by chefs for chefs has taken another step towards accreditation with the successful completion of a pilot.

The British Food Trust-led Applied Ability Awards, which are divided into trainee and chef levels, aim to fill the void left by the replacement of the practical City and Guilds 706 exams with the largely college-taught National Vocational Qualifications.

Findings from pilot scheme, which covered 100 candidates, will now be fed back to the participating chef associations to create an operating plan.

These comprise Academy of Culinary Arts, Association Culinaire Francaise, British Culinary Federation, Craft Guild of Chefs, Federation of Scottish Chefs, Master Chefs of Great Britain and the Welsh Culinary Association.

Negotiations are also underway with the British Institute of Innkeeping Award Body and the HCIMA to jointly accredit the scheme.

British Food Trust chairman Prue Leith said: "I have no doubt that the Triple A can provide a home-growth route to improving and extending in-house training in ways that craft-based kitchens need and understand."

Hospitality sector skills council People 1st has cited the new initiative as a way to encouraging continuous professional development, endorsing it as part of its ongoing development of a Sector Qualifications Strategy.

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By Chris Druce

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