TVU is only modern university to win Queen's Anniversary Prize for education
Thames Valley University (TVU) has for the first time in its history achieved a prestigious royal accolade when the University won the Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education for its work with the hospitality industry this month.
The biennial Queen’s Anniversary Prizes scheme was set up in 1993 by The Royal Anniversary Trust with the consent of the Queen and the approval of the Prime Minister and all political parties, and of the Charity Commissioners. Uniquely in the field of education, these Prizes sit within the national honours system. They recognise and honour outstanding achievement and excellence in UK universities and colleges. TVU is one of just 21 award winners from colleges and universities across the country to receive this accolade.
The Prize was awarded in recognition of TVU’s London School of Hospitality and Tourism’s excellence in the field of hospitality education and employer engagement. The University’s submission for the Prize, ‘Serving the Hospitality Industry – Widening Participation; developing excellence in education and skills and delighting the employer’, demonstrated the integrated approaches undertaken by the University to address the needs of the hospitality industry in gaining well trained and educated employees at all levels.
While the tourism sector continues to be a large area of growth for the UK economy, worth over £100 billion, concerns had been raised that although 10 per cent of the British workforce is now employed in tourism, inadequate levels of skill is hindering growth. TVU anticipated these concerns and the Prize recognises the University’s distinctive and unique approach to hospitality and tourism education, widening participation and developing close and mutually beneficial working links with the industry.
Initiatives introduced by the School include the Junior Chefs’ Academy (JCA), a Saturday school backed by the Academy of Culinary Arts and its Chairman and TVU patron, celebrity chef Brian Turner. The JCA offers young people, some of which would have had real difficulty finding employment, an insight into the hospitality industry. The average conversion rate of TVU’s Junior Chefs’ from Year 11 to full time craft courses in further education colleges is 68 per cent.
TVU’s dedicated philosophy of raising aspirations and developing excellence in students in preparation for employment through the Further Education Culinary Arts programme, which has significant support from industry patrons and professional associations, was commended by the Queen’s Award. The Culinary Arts programmes won the Restaurant Magazine’s UK College Restaurant of the Year 2007, and was a regional winner in 2009. The competitions and enrichment activities developed by the programme, which include the cooking and service at charity balls at 4 and 5 star hotels create a stimulating learning environment for students to excel.
The London School of Hospitality and Tourism has been in the business of providing expert training and development to the sector for more than 53 years, in fact the School recently celebrated its 60th anniversary as a centre of hospitality educational excellence. The School provides a variety of higher education courses which reinforce TVU’s commitment to widening participation and employer engagement. Undergraduate courses include BA (Hons) in Culinary Arts Management, BA (Hons) Airline and Airport Management, BA (Hons) Events Management and Hospitality and BA (Hons) International Hotel Management. Postgraduate courses offered by the School include MA Hospitality Management and MA Tourism Management.
Professor David Foskett, Head of the London School of Hospitality and Tourism at TVU, said:
‘I am exceptionally proud to accept this award on behalf of the London School of Hospitality and Tourism and TVU, particularly as this is the first time our university has been officially recognised in this way from such a high level.’
Professor Peter John, Vice-chancellor, TVU, said:
‘This award reflects the long history of high quality commitment by this University to meeting the needs, at all levels of education and training, of the Hospitality industry. We are also proud to be one of few modern universities in London to receive this high accolade from Her Majesty, which reinforces our reputation as a leading higher education institution for successful graduate employability.’
For further information about the courses on offer at TVU’s London School of Hospitality and Tourism or to apply, please contact TVU on 0800 036 8888 or email learning.advice@tvu.ac.uk. You can also visit the website at www.tvu.ac.uk.
For more information, please contact Fiona Chapman: phone 020 8231 2914 or e-mail fiona.chapman@tvu.ac.uk.
Notes:
About Thames Valley University
1. Named No. 1 for graduate employment (Times Higher Education, July 2008).
2. Home to London’s top hospitality school, providing integrated training from culinary arts to hospitality management.
3. Home to London College of Music, the leading specialist institution for pop music and music technology.
4. Ranked No. 1 for nursing and midwifery studies in England (Guardian university guide 2010).
5. The only university to offer a degree course developed in conjunction with Hewlett-Packard Limited, the leading technology solutions provider (Computer Systems Management FdSc).
About the Queen’s Anniversary Prize
The Royal Anniversary Trust produced the national programme to celebrate the fortieth anniversary of the Queen’s accession to the throne, and created the Queen’s Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education.
The Queen’s Anniversary Prizes reward universities and colleges that demonstrate work of a world-class standard of excellence.
To find out more about the Queen’s Anniversary Prizes, visit the website: www.royalanniversarytrust.org.uk