St Helens College participated in a variety of exciting activities and events in support of Visitor Economy Week.
The annual celebration, which took place from 8th to the 11th February, brought together staff and students across a range of departments including Catering and Hospitality, Travel and Tourism and Hairdressing and Beauty, to highlight some of the fantastic career opportunities that exist within the thriving tourism industry which generates £4.1bn, playing a vital role in the city region’s economy.
To launch the week, Travel and Tourism students undertook a two-hour Mandarin lesson with experienced tutor, Jie Wang, enabling them to gain a comprehensive understanding of the Chinese culture, in addition to developing crucial foreign language skills. The students also had the opportunity to take part in a Chinese Culture Masterclass, having a go at calligraphy writing and learning about the origins of Chinese new year and Chinese cooking.
The department also welcomed three successful Cabin Crew alumni, who upon completion of their course, have progressed on to established airline, Jet2. Hannah Price, Leah Winstanley and Faye Harnick shared their own experiences and industry tips with aspiring Cabin Crew students.
The celebrations continued with staff and students attending The Prescot School’s annual careers fair. Students had the chance to showcase their skills across a range of interactive activities including styling, makeup and nail tutorials, live cooking and pancake tasting and interactive flight evacuation demonstrations and airport operation games.
Towards the end of the busy week, St Helens College teamed up with Liverpool FC to host a successful guest chef dinner at Colours Restaurant, where students cooked and served a six course menu alongside the club’s Senior Chef, Chris Marshal and their hospitality team. The fine dining menu included dishes such as roasted monkfish, oxtail tortellini, red wine, cèpes and rare duck breast, confit leg cannelloni, parsnip, blood orange, orange jus.
Visitor Economy Week concluded with a celebratory dinner at The Richmond Hotel in Liverpool, where catering staff and students helped to prepare and create a delicious desert and petit fours to be served to special guests, consisting of lemon mousseline with clotted cream ice cream and hazelnut almond praline, served with a crispy biscuit.
Head of Department, Julie Heap, said, “Many of our students have gone on to establish careers with some amazing employers including Michelin starred restaurants, global companies and luxury airlines. These students are a prime example of how successful a career in the Visitor Economy can be and how it opens up opportunities to work around the world. We were delighted to have taken part in another successful Visitor Economy Week. We have a long-standing Beauty, Hairdressing, Catering, Hospitality and Tourism department which has equipped generations of students with the skills to go on and achieve great success in their professional careers.”
For more information regarding St Helens College’s Catering and Hospitality, Hairdressing and Beauty or Travel and Tourism courses, please visit www.sthelens.ac.uk or contact enquire@sthelens.ac.uk