Hospitality and Catering
Love cooking? Ambitions of becoming a chef; joining the catering industry or running your own shop, cafe or hospitality business? This course is for you!Level 2 Hospitality and Catering is an exciting and creative course which focuses on practical cooking skills to ensure students develop a thorough understanding of the importance of nutrition; the skills and techniques of preparation, cooking and presentation of dishes.
Students will evaluate their cooking skills and plan menus throughout.
EXAM BOARD: WJEC
HOW IS THE COURSE ASSESSED?
COMPONENT | UNIT TITLE | ASSESSMENT METHOD | GCSE WEIGHTING |
---|---|---|---|
01 | Hospitality and Catering Action | Internal Assessment | 60% |
02 | The Hospitality and Catering Industry | Examination | 40% |
WHAT WILL YOU STUDY?
Hospitality and catering is a dynamic, vibrant and innovative sector delivering vital jobs, growth and investment in the heart of our local communities - important culturally, socially and economically. The sector is a major contributor to the UK economy, employing 2.9 million people and generating £130bn in economic activity, while paying £38bn in taxation to fund important local and national services. Hospitality is the 3rd largest private sector employer in the UK; double the size of financial services and bigger than automotive, pharmaceuticals and aerospace combined.
Businesses which make up the hospitality sector include hotels, restaurants, coffee shops, pubs and bars, leisure parks, stadia, nightclubs, contract caterers, food service operators, entertainment and visitor attractions. Employment can range from waiting staff, receptionists and catering assistants to chefs, hotel and bar managers, and food technologists working for supermarket chains. Some of these roles require further education and training either through apprenticeships or further and higher education.
COMPONENT 1
The UK is currently perceived to offer the friendliest hospitality service in Europe. For the majority behind this vibrant industry, hospitality is more than just a job; it is a passion, an opportunity to express creativity - a form of ‘art.’ For the public, dining out is not just ‘eating,’ it is a whole experience, a time to let go and encounter new senses.
The greatest challenge facing the hospitality and catering industry today is the shortage of skilled staff at all levels; the industry offers fantastic careers to all.
In this unit learners will gain a comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the hospitality and catering industry including provision, health and safety, and food safety.
Topics
- Hospitality and catering provision
- How hospitality and catering providers operate
- Health and safety in hospitality and catering
- Food safety in hospitality and catering
COMPONENT 2
Career options in the hospitality and catering industry are vast from popular restaurant chains to Michelin-starred restaurants. Careers in catering involve providing food services with the responsibility of customer service, food preparation, cleanliness and hygiene. Food needs to be stored, handled, prepared and cooked correctly to ensure its consumption does not affect people’s health. Everyone who has a role to play within the food industry has a responsibility to minimise the risks of causing food borne illness. Chefs and nutritionists are involved in the preparation of menus and reviewing how preparation and presentation methods affect nutritional values. Food on a menu needs to meet the nutritional needs of the customer and be prepared, cooked and served in a certain way to ensure customer appeal and standards are maintained in any establishment; thus food safety and meeting nutritional needs must be the focus of all planning and activities.
In this unit learners will gain knowledge and understanding of the importance of nutrition and how to plan nutritious menus. They will learn the skills needed to prepare, cook and present dishes. They will also learn how to review their work effectively. This unit is synoptic and draws upon the knowledge gained in Unit 1.
Learners will need to apply knowledge gained in the following topic areas in order to be able to complete this assessment:
- the operation of the front and back of house
- hospitality and catering provision to meet specific requirements
- health and safety in hospitality and catering provision
- food safety
- preventative control measures of food-induced ill health.
Topics
- 1 The importance of nutrition
- 2 Menu planning
- 3 The skills and techniques of preparation, cooking and presentation of dishes
- 4 Evaluating cooking skills
MORE INFORMATION
If you have any further questions, please speak to Mrs Bowles.
You can also find more detailed information on the WJEC website.
CAREERS IN HOSPITALITY AND CATERING
A Food Technology qualification can lead to a range of career opportunities within the food industry - such as food technologist, dietetics and sports nutrition, hotel and catering management, retailing, as well as the many careers related to food production. It will also train you in a variety of skills from decision making, to problem solving and team work - all of which are important life skills. The career paths available from initially taking a GCSE in food to progressing to Further/ Higher education are vast, here a few to consider, but there are many more: Chef, Development chef, Catering industry, Dietitian, Nutritionist, Hotel management, Food technologist, Sports science, Quality control, Quality management, Food safety, Brewing industry, Medical industry.
Take a look at some of the jobs we've identified below that make use of Hospitality and Catering:
Nutritionist
Herbalist
Restaurant Manager
Barista