CTH Connections Newsletter – Spring 2019

CTH signs new Level 6 Degree pathway agreement with the University of Derby Online

In April 2019, CTH and the University of Derby completed a ground-breaking progression agreement. The agreement will allow CTH Level 6 graduates direct online access to the final stages of Derby's Top-Up degree qualification.

Along with gaining access to the Top-Up Degree - International Hospitality Business Management, Level 6 students will also become exempted from three of the six units of the Degree's Final Year. This is the absolute maximum level of exemptions allowed by the University’s governing rules for the award of one of its degrees.

Furthermore, the University offers students the opportunity to study this programme online, allowing students to complete their UK university Bachelor’s Degree wherever they are based around the world, even if they are not living in the UK. This online study can be supported by the student’s local CTH Centre, subject to that Centre securing agreement from the University of Derby, so allowing students to continue their studies directly on from their CTH Level 6, in a seamless progression of study.

The cost of this top-up pathway is around £2,300 – a great deal less than studying a full degree at university and the expenses of relocation.

Full details of the University of Derby Top-Up Degree programme can be found at: https://www.derby.ac.uk/online/course/international-hospitality-business-management-ba-top-up-degree-online-course.

Following the official signing ceremony at the University of Derby campus, Professor Kathryn Mitchell, Vice-Chancellor of the University, said:

I am delighted that the University of Derby Online has entered into this new agreement with the Confederation of Tourism & Hospitality (CTH). As an applied university which prides itself on providing access to higher education, we see real value in this partnership for students, who will have the opportunity to convert their diplomas into degrees, assisting their professional development and enhancing their career prospects. Our reputation for Hospitality and Tourism education continues to grow with our Centre for Contemporary Hospitality and Tourism at our Buxton campus, and the online learning programmes we offer. This agreement very much confirms that.

How can YOU help improve the CTH Members site?

In line with our ambitions of continually improving our services, we are planning a complete overhaul of the existing Members site and replacing it with a fresher, more interactive one; however, we need your help!

For many years now, we've been running the CTH Members site as a way for our centre staff and students to use resources, access important documents and as a guidance tool. However, we feel it's time for us to revamp the site and offer much more.

In this digital age, there's more of an emphasis on interactive media such as video material and imagery, however it's also important that things aren't scattered, and users aren't left confused. So, we want to give you more visual content, different kinds of resources and tools, but we want to create a clear and helpful site.

Ultimately, the Members site is for you; our CTH approved centre staff and students, so it's essential we hear from you. Let us know what you want to see on the Members site. Do you want to have a section about career advice? Do you want competitions and prizes? Or maybe interactive videos related to your course? Let us know by completing the form below.

Thank you.

Latest CTH Spotlight film features MasterChef winner Laurence Henry

This Spring marked the release of our third CTH Spotlight film. This time, we had the pleasure of featuring Laurence Henry, who is not only the 2018 MasterChef UK winner but is also a CTH graduate.

Shot in London near the White City area, we were able to see Laurence in his natural element as he began prepping meals for a food workshop later in the day. The team had a look at some of the surrounding areas of the restaurant as they started to prep for the filming of CTH Spotlight 3.

In the film, Laurence discusses his journey on MasterChef - The Professionals, some of his highs and lows, as well as a few special moments he shared whilst being on the well-known cooking show. He spoke about it being a 'once in a lifetime' experience and the doors that had opened for him from being the winner of the competition. He looked back on where his love of food originated, being a child in his grandparents' kitchen and also what has shaped his chef journey up to this point.

It was a great experience for our staff at CTH personally, as seeing a graduate who studied the CTH qualification go on to do great things is always a special feeling. The film is also a great piece for young and aspiring chefs as it shows a young man whose determination has taken him to where he is today as he steps into the next stage of his culinary career.

Be sure to watch the film and join our priority list. Thank you.

Learners can now gain certification for the practical aspects of Hospitality

The CTH Level 2 Certificate in Hospitality Practice has recently been updated to allow learners to study specific areas of hospitality; this can be done through shorter award-level qualifications, such as Restaurant & Bar or Front Office skills.

Prior to its update, the Hospitality Practice qualification acted as a standalone practical course. However, in order to accommodate learners who would find it more ideal to study a specific area of hospitality rather than one that encompasses several disciplines, we introduced the award-level Hospitality Practice qualifications.

The adjustments are beneficial in a number of ways, as they can allow learners to focus on an area of their interest, such as Bar Service. For example, a learner would be able to attain a practical qualification alongside a hospitality management qualification at Level 3 or 4.

The Hospitality Practice Award can also be used by those already working in the industry, in order to boost their portfolio and become certificated in whichever department they work in. This demonstrates a high level of commitment to their craft and will be admired by employers.

The Hospitality Practice Certificate consists of 7 units and 145 Guided Learning Hours (GLH); whereas the Award level qualifications have between 4-3 units and consist of between 65-100 GLH. Find out more about the Hospitality Practice qualification below.

Become a part of our CTH Student Voices experience

Some of you may have already seen and read our CTH Student Voices films and articles, but what you may not know is, we have launched a page that will centralise all of them in one place.

CTH Student Voices is our way of giving our graduates a way to communicate their experiences of studying CTH and reflect on their journey. We love being able to catch up with our graduates and they love being able to share what they have learned with people who are currently where they once were.

We're looking forward to continuing to share more and more of these films to our students and audience. Whether you've graduated from Level 3 or Level 7, we welcome all our graduates to share their experiences and get involved; there's something to learn from everyone.

You can take a look at our CTH Student Voices page by clicking here: https://www.cthawards.com/students/cth-student-voices/

Use your CTH Diploma as a passport to study a Sustainability degree in Switzerland

CTH is delighted to announce a new pathway for CTH graduates to continue their studies at a prestigious business school in the heart of Switzerland.

Students who have completed the CTH Level 4 Diploma in Hospitality Management or Tourism Management can enter into the second year of the BBA degree programmes offered by SUMAS Sustainability Management School in Switzerland. Furthermore, students who hold both the CTH Level 4 Diploma and the CTH Level 5 Advanced Diploma in either Hospitality Management or Tourism Management can enter into the third year (Final Year) of the BBA programmes.

SUMAS is a unique business school located between Geneva and Lausanne, Switzerland, that offers innovative business programs integrated with state-of-the-art sustainability knowledge. SUMAS combines high level academic education with real life projects in partnership with top companies. SUMAS was the first business school in the world to launch the BBA and MBA in Sustainability Management.

For more details about the superb SUMAS school please visit www.sumas.ch.

CTH Director of Partnerships, Simon Cleaver, comments:

The issue of sustainability is becoming a hot topic in tourism. Already major tourist destinations like Venice, Beijing’s Forbidden City and Machu Picchu in Peru risk being permanently damaged by the very tourists that they serve.

Recently, we saw Thailand forced to close off its famous Khao Phing Kan (James Bond Island) because of tourist volumes causing damage to its environment.

As more and more people travel, tourism managers must have the skills to both maximise income and enjoyment whilst also protecting the beauty of these wonderful sites. I very much hope that this progression pathway will help ensure that today’s CTH graduates can go on to play their part in ensuring tourism remains sustainable into the rest of this century”.

Humans close to extinction!

By Yummy Love Journey (CTH Connections Contributor)

This will be a headline in the not too distant future if we don’t do something right now. There has been so much in the media and social channels about what we are ‘doing’ to our planet. I say ‘doing’ because we have been led to believe that we are killing our beautiful planet. What we don’t realise is that we are not killing the planet, but we are killing ourselves. The earth will rejuvenate itself like it has done many times before. What will no longer remain is the human species.

A recent programme led by Sir David Attenborough highlighted that if we don’t do something drastic within the next few years then we will have started the process of human extinction where there exists a point of no return.

So, what can we as individuals do? Because that is what it comes down to. Taking action. We know that our biggest contributor to climate change are fossil fuels. And most of us use a huge amount of this in our day to day lives. Of course, taking flights is a big part of this and airlines are trying to find and source alternative fuel energy. We need to plant more trees as this will then help to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the air. As you may already know from my past posts, I believe that travelling is an important part of education. So, if I am asking you to travel, what can you do to offset this?

• Firstly, you can contribute to the offsetting schemes that many airlines and operators have where they will plant trees to offset your carbon footprint.
• You yourself can help at the places and communities you visit by donating your time, your skill or items. Travel Kind Connect links holidaymakers with grass root projects and communities who could do with a helping hand or items that will assist with what they do. You only need to spare a few hours or if you love it then go ahead and do a few days!
• ABTA’s campaign of Making Holidays Greener asks you to make a pledge whilst on holiday. For example, not purchasing any single use plastic.

However, on a day to day basis there are small changes you can make - the main word here being 'small'. If we all made small changes then this can lead to something big.

• Switch to a green energy source or provider. Many energy companies also supply renewable and sustainable energy as well as specialist companies that only do renewable energy.
• Plant more trees and greenery wherever you can.
• Grow your own herbs or fruit and vegetables. It’s a great way to get children involved in nature which is said to also help with mental health. This in turn will reduce the food miles for produce that is not in season.
• Stop buying single use plastic.
• Reduce, reuse and recycle. In that order too. So first of all, reduce what you buy and reduce wastage too. Then look at what you can actually reuse before you decide to finally recycle.

So, let’s all do something now rather than just believe that it is not your responsibility or that it won’t be happening in your lifetime. Because, guess what? It already is.

CTH Centre View: Our Director of Partnerships, Simon Cleaver visits Russian centre, SWISSAM

As part of our on-going centre visits programme, we travelled to approved centre, Institute of Hotel, Restaurant and Culinary Art SWISSAM in St. Petersburg, Russia.

SWISSAM, is one of Russia’s finest Hospitality and Culinary training centres and partners with CTH on its final year Bachelor’s programme in Hospitality.

The CTH visit coincided with the semester-end student project presentations, as well as the college’s post-assessment Exam Board. Simon Cleaver, CTH’s Director of Partnerships, attended both events as part of the CTH quality assurance process, but was also able to take the opportunity to sample the culinary delights of this amazing world city!

With its high-calibre student body drawn from both Russia and its neighbouring countries, SWISSAM is training the next generation of Hospitality professionals to be ready to further develop St. Petersburg’s already booming Hospitality industry. We look forward to what's to come from them in the near future.

OPINION: "Service is more important than food" - Marco Pierre White

At CTH, we adopt a well-rounded approach to hospitality that includes both customer service, preparation and quality food but if you had to choose between service or food, what would you pick?

Last month, on the CTH Facebook account, we asked what was more important - Food or Customer Service? This was based on a statement by Marco Pierre White at a recent Global Restaurant and Investment Forum. Marco raised an interesting topic and therefore, in this article, we'll look at the topic and unpack it a bit further.

In his keynote discussion, Marco Pierre White said:

I think what's important when you open a restaurant is to ask yourself the simplest of questions - why do people go to restaurants? I suppose most people would say for the food, I disagree with that, I think the most important aspect for any restaurant is the environment you sit in. Because, if you don't feel comfortable, you're not going back. Secondly, I believe service is more important than food. So, ambience, service and then the food.

To some people, that may come as a surprise but there's a tendency to agree with Marco Pierre White. Albeit, most people haven't been to nearly as many Michelin-starred restaurants as him but in many cases, experiences can outlast tastes. Generally, when you go to a restaurant and have a meal, months later you'll be able to remember whether the meal was bad or good, but you might not be able to remember the actual taste. However, we bet if you were faced with good or bad service, you're more likely to remember what made it bad or good and what happened. That's because you can remember and describe an experience better than you can a taste.

Now, this isn't to say that the food should be mediocre, customers should get what they pay for and if you pay a good amount of money, you should expect good food. However, if you were to weigh them up, Marco Pierre White is spot on. He said something interesting in his discussion, "the [culinary] world has changed so much since I entered it and the one thing I have learned is that there's only one thing within our industry that doesn't date, which is... romance". People celebrate in restaurants, people make deals in restaurants, people fall in love in restaurants and it isn't necessarily because of the food.

The atmosphere and service in a restaurant can make people feel special, different to how they usually feel and that's what can make a good restaurant a really great one. "Candle lighting... people spend thousands on lighting, but actually candle light is the most romantic light of all", said Marco. Building an atmosphere and creating the right setting can enthral people; making someone feel great will captivate them. This is why service is more important than food.

However, you're most certainly free to have your opinion, just make sure you head over to our CTH Facebook page and continue the discussion there, click here: https://www.facebook.com/ConfederationOfTourismAndHospitalityCth

The team attends PACE 2019 Learning and Development Forum

In March, a few members of the CTH team took the opportunity to network with industry figures and stay informed, by attending the forum held by PACE. Find out more about the event and what happened below.

This year's PACE (Professional Association for Catering Education) Forum was held at Trafford College in Greater Manchester, UK as a one-day event. The Forum welcomed those associated with education and development in the hospitality sector in order to help update, share and develop our understanding of the educational landscape of the hospitality and culinary industry.

The Forum had exhibitions, culinary workshops and stands; of which CTH had one of its very own. Attendees had the opportunity to observe various demonstrations from professional chefs and hear talks addressing apprenticeships and changes in the industry. There was a lovely touch by the event organisers, who allowed returning students to demonstrate what they learned by working in the on-site restaurant and serving attendees.

The team really enjoyed leaving their CTH desks and communicating with different education providers and professionals. We look forward to being a part of more of these events in the future.