The Professional Barista
A milestone has occurred in the development of the professional Barista
in the UK. For the first time Barista skills can be developed and rewarded
by an internationally recognised qualification - the City & Guilds
Barista Level 2 VRQ (Vocationally Related Qualification).
Months ago Jim Devlin, in his position of chair of the BSA, pursued
the initiative to develop a professional Barista qualification. He
convinced City & Guilds of his vision and put together a team of
Industry experts to assist. And these experts were not
just from the coffee world, as the qualification includes tea, chocolate,
juices and smoothies - the full range of drinks you would expect from
a quality cafe.
For those of you, like me, who have been out of education for some
time it may take some explaining as to what this qualification means,
who will take it and where. Certainly it seemed at times during the
development of the qualification that the team from City & Guilds
and our Industry experts were talking different languages. So
I hope the answers to the following questions will de-mystify the whole
process:
- What is an VRQ?
- What does the qualification cover?
- Who can take the qualification?
- Where do they take it?
- What is a Centre?
What is a VRQ? - a VRQ (Vocational Related Qualification)
is similar to a GCSE that you may take in maths or history, but directly
workplace related. The qualification involves both classroom-based
learning of the theory but more importantly demonstration of the craft
skills required for a professional Barista. The Barista Skills
VRQ is a ‘Level 2’ indicating that this is an introductory
level of knowledge. More advanced skills may be covered
in the future by a Level 3 qualification.
What does the qualification cover? - although
the qualification centres on coffee, espresso particularly, it also
covers filter coffee, tea, chocolate, juices and smoothies. For
these products four areas of learning are explored:
- The background to the raw materials, their history, production,
varieties etc.
- How to produce the range of drinks
- How to operate, care and maintain the machinery
- Customer Service
The information is passed on through a minimum of 20 hours classroom
time, as well as practice back in the workplace, before practical and
written assessments are taken.
Who can take the qualification? – any one. Whether
you are a student at the beginning of your career; opening your first
cafe ; or just want to brush up on your skills, then the VRQ
could be for you. As Barista training companies all the way through
to your local college start to offer the qualification then the course
becomes available to all.
My personal aim for the course is to reach out to those in their teens
who are learning catering skills at college. The teaching of
catering skills is long established for these people but with little
or no emphasis on coffee. The effect of these people starting
their careers with a desire to offer quality coffee could be a revelation
to our Industry.
Where do they take it ? – the course can be
taken at any ‘centre’
What is a Centre ? - for most of us a ‘centre’ would
be our local college, although any institution may become a centre
as long as they can fulfil a number of criteria assessed by a City & Guild
Verifier. The Verifier’s job is to make sure that anywhere
that wants to run the course has the means to do so from the equipment
required and the teaching skills, through to the administration requirements
and quality assurance (and there are some financial implications as
well!). Be it a college or a training institution, everyone
wanting to run the course has to prove they have the means to do it. So
far over 50 colleges have shown interest in running the course. All
will have to prove their suitability.
The BSA has been working to offer the course as well. From
late Autumn, the BSA will be offering the VRQ via Ben TOWNSEND and
myself, at London School of Coffee and at the Coffee Community in Huddersfield.
As well as this, it will be offering support to other centres wanting
to run the course by running specific training to those who want to
go on and teach it themselves. Finally, the BSA has developed
a team of Barista Trainers who have been trained in all areas of the
VRQ so that they can offer support, and ensure the quality of information,
being offered by the colleges.
For more information on the BSA Trainers Course, Itinerary, Course
Schedule & Booking Form click here
For more information on Level 2 City & Guilds VRQ in Barista Skills,
Course Schedule & Booking Form click here
Paul MEIKLE-JANNEY, Managing Director, Coffee Community
www.coffeecommunity.co.uk
