Cookery Course Provides a Banquet of Knowledge for Bield Tenants

Bield Housing And Care Press releases

bield 2 - CopyTenants of McCormack Gardens, a retirement housing development run by Bield in Newarthill, have hit on a winning recipe after teaming up with a local school for a special cookery course.

Students from Brannock High School joined the tenants for the six-week course –  which was funded by ‘Reshaping Care for Older People’, an organisation that looks to support and help  our older people – to showcase how to use fresh ingredients in an exciting way by creating exotic dishes like sushi and risotto.

The Food Cooperative, (a non-profit scheme) originally provided the students with work experience, which resulted in them supplying McCormack Gardens with competitively priced, fresh local produce.

From that, Lisa Crosbie, Brannock High School Partnership Officer, helped put in place a six- week course to allow the students and residents to learn new skills – and to work with each other.

Lisa said: “The course was a huge success and it is great to see continued support between the students and the tenants at McCormack Gardens – with both gaining a huge amount from the course.

“Brannock High School take pride in being able to offer the students wider learning opportunities and so it was a pleasure to be able to get involved in this project.”

For many, the course was the first time using some of the different herbs and spices and  saw students and tenants alike all pick up new skills to use in the kitchen.

Sandra Stewart, Manager at McCormack Garden, said: “The cookery course was a fantastic initiative. We originally had eight tenants sign-up, but once word got round of what was on offer, the numbers kept increasing week on week.

“Brannock High School have been excellent throughout, and the students were very friendly and eager to learn.

“The tenants at McCormack Gardens have all thoroughly enjoyed the course and the interaction with the students.

“It was great not only to see the tenants imparting their own cookery knowledge and years of experience in the kitchen, but also to witness them picking up new skills and broadening their own culinary horizons.

“Many of the residents had never tasted sushi, and although not unanimous – it was a surprising hit.”

Since the completion of the course, a new four-week course has begun during November, focusing on winter warmer recipes and encouraging the thrifty use of ingredients. Plans are in place to offer the courses in 2015 – all thanks to the overwhelming success of  the project.

Bield is a registered charity which grew from humble beginnings, starting out with one housing development in Bo’ness growing into a wide range of housing and services for around 20,000 older people across 23 local authority areas.