South West College students ‘Beauty and the Feast’

South West College Level 2 & 3 Beauty Therapy and Hospitality and Catering students have united to take part in an exciting cultural exchange to Iceland in the forthcoming weeks.  Ten Hospitality and Catering students and five Beauty Therapists will take part in the Exchange, which will take in two parts place over the next two years.  The first of these exchange trips will take place in April/May 2011 and the second in April/May 2012.

This exchange has been organised by Liam Curran, European Exchange Co-ordinator, in conjunction with the host partner IDAN who are a private company that manage the majority of Vocational Apprentice contracts on behalf of the Icelandic Department of Education.  Liam said; “The title of this exchange programme is a little like a fairytale, but for many of our students it is the opportunity to experience a trip of a lifetime.  IDAN, the association that specialises in organising student exchanges in Iceland, has facilitated good quality work placements for the students in some of Iceland’s top hotels and restaurants, providing invaluable work experience.  The link between the Beauty Therapy and Catering and Hospitality students and staff has fostered great relationships prior to the exchange and I am sure this will continue as the exchange develops.  South West College has had a very strong working relationship with IDAN over the past 4 years and in particular with Helen Williamsdottir who co-ordinates the student work placements”.

This exchange will create an outward looking focus for the students who operate in the small economy setting of Northern Ireland and will strengthen their existing skills and experience.  For the Hospitality and Catering students this exchange experience will expand not only the menu and dish range of the students but also increase their knowledge and appreciation of the demands and challenges of modern tourism.  Despite the recession many of the new grade 4 and 5 hotels being developed in Northern Ireland since the ceasefire, require multi-skilled chefs who can work with a variety of new meat and fish dishes as Hospitality, Tourism, Health and Wellbeing is a key strategic area for Government despite the recession.  Also there is the challenge of learning to source new ingredients and create value.

This exchange for the Beauty Therapy students will address the need for learning and expanding on new Spa treatment skills as this type of experience is very difficult to gain in Northern Ireland.  A lot of Hotels in Ireland have invested in Spa’s and Wellbeing clinics to attract new customers and augment their product/service offerings.  This work placement will develop skills for the students that will inevitably help them to be competitive and create employment opportunities in the Tourism Industry here in Northern Ireland.