My apprenticeship journey

Cole first joined us as a young pupil at Portlethen Academy in Aberdeenshire, enrolling in a Foundation Apprenticeship in Hospitality. He realised being a chef was a career option he wanted to pursue. His passion and commitment quickly shone through, and in 2023 he was named runner-up for the Hospitality Foundation Apprentice of the Year.

Fast forward to today, and Cole has continued his development journey and is now undertaking his SCQF Level 6 in Professional Cookery at Mara wine bar in Aberdeen – a huge achievement in itself. He chose not to go to college to get his qualifications but to complete an apprenticeship and start earning whilst training in a live environment, learning skills from chefs working in the industry. Its challenging to work and complete the training, but really rewarding and working with the team is great experience.

To top it off, he has also gone on to compete in the North East of Scotland Chef & Restaurant of the Year Competition in 2025, entering the Young Chef category showcasing his skills among the best in the industry. This was valuable as some of the best chefs in industry were mentoring and providing feedback on my dishes.

We couldn’t be prouder of how far Cole has come – an inspiring journey from pupil to professional!