Two Term Diploma in Food and Wine

Students attend daily demonstrations and practical classes, each approximately 2.5 hours long. They also study menu planning, budgeting and wine appreciation. The final project, a working document to show future employers, forms a major part of the course.
Throughout the year visits are organised to a variety of establishments involved in the business. Students have the opportunity of work experience in leading London restaurants. We also arrange visits to Billingsgate fish market and Smithfield meat market.
Students learn about catering in commercial quantities and serving at large functions. Gastronomic celebrities and head chefs from leading hotels and restaurants lecture at the School throughout the year. Cookery writers and chefs demonstrate their specialities, such as sugarcraft, chocolate work or sauces. Students will also chefs specialising in Italian, Indian and Middle Eastern cuisine, as well as wine specialists.
Awards: Students completing the Leiths Diploma course are entered for the prestigious Laurent-Perrier and Louis Latour awards. The prizes are generous, enjoyable and educational. The BBC Good Food Magazine offers two 6 month trainee schemes to the winners of the BBC Good Food Leiths Award. Other competitions such as the Brown Brothers award invite students to show their creativity in developing and writing recipes and matching food and wine.
Health and Hygenine: Students must pass the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health. Level 2 Award in Food Safety in Catering and Health and Safety in the Workplace and attend the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health class. There will also be a First Aid training course
In the kitchen students are required to wear hats, chef’s jackets, neckties, aprons and chef’s trousers, as well as buy a set of chef’s’ knives. Good quality flat, black lace up shoes, such as Doc Martens, must be worn in the kitchens.

Exams: Students will be continually assessed during the practical sessions . They must also pass the theory and practical examinations and complete the coursework. Students on the Diploma course will be expected to study at home for about 4 to 5 hours a week. This will include writing time-plans, menu-planning and costing excercises. A final portfolio is assessed at the end of the academic year for students on the Diploma and Advanced Certificate courses.