Wellington College Belfast Co-educational Grammar School
Home Economics

Latest News

The Future Chef Competition

The Home Economics department entered every pupil in Year 10 into a school heat stage of the Future Chef School Competition for 12-16 year olds. Every pupil had to create, cook and present a main course dish within a budget. There were many inventive and original dishes but there was only to be one winner. Calum Hutchinson’s main course dish of cod wrapped in bacon with a lemon mayonnaise was judged to be the best.

Calum then progressed to the Regional Final stage. In preparation for the final, he was mentored by Roland Graham, the Head Chef of the 5* Merchant Hotel in Belfast, who trained Calum in how to cook and present two dishes. The Regional Final was held on 24th February with 8 schools from across Northern Ireland competing in the final. Calum finished in 3rd position which was a superb achievement. Calum cooked pan fried local lemon sole with a nicoise garnish & baby potatoes for the main course, followed by a dessert of banana tart tatin with clotted cream (see photographs).

The Junior Chef Academy

The Junior Chef Academy was a ten week cookery course in Belfast Metropolitan College. It was geared to teach basic cookery skills whilst creating fresh dishes, teaching about nutrition, hygiene and health & safety. The course also aimed to develop pupils’ abilities to work in teams, improve their communication skills and enhance their appreciation of real food and healthy eating. Eryn Anderson from Year 10 participated in the Junior Chef Academy. Eryn made some delicious culinary creations such as a variety of pasta dishes, sauces and soups at the course. All this hard work culminated in a graduation event when Eryn cooked a special lunch for her family and friends.

Prize Day 

Congratulations to the winners of the Home Economics prizes at the College's annual Prize Day. The Key Stage 3 prize was awarded to Neil Moore.  Becky Moore achieved the highest mark in the centre and received the GCSE prize and Katherine Calvert received the AS level prize for best GCE Home Economics result in Wellington College.  The A level prize was awarded to Heather McKnight.  Well Done!

Celebrating Success

In November the College welcomed Sandra Weatherspoon from Loughry College to present certificates to Year 12 Home Economics pupils who had successfully completed an externally accredited course in food hygiene. The pupils had attended a one day course on Food Hygiene at Loughry College the previous term and completed a written examination. The pupils were presented with their certificates at a presentation ceremony held in the Home Economics department. The event recognized the achievements of the pupils and gave an opportunity for Sandra Weatherspoon to talk to the group about post-18 courses that are available at CAFRE as well as highlighting the careers that graduates can pursue following the completion of courses in Food Technology offered at Loughry College.

Winter Assessment 

December marked the period of winter assessment in practical skills for all pupils in Year 9-12. Year 9 were required to creatively present a stir fry vegetable dish, Year 10 were set the task of making and creatively presenting a quick pizza pocket and salad accompaniment. Year 12 pupils completed the practical food component of the GCSE coursework involving the planning, preparation and serving of 4-5 dishes which illustrated the use of fruit and vegetables in the diet. As always many pupils enthusiastically approached the task and the standard of presentation was exceptionally high as indicated in the accompanying photographs.

Mrs L Anderson, Head of Home Economics

INFORMATION RELATING TO KS3

There are 3 key concepts for Home Economics:

• Healthy Eating
• Home and Family Life
• Independent Living

The programmes of study for Year 8, Year 9 and Year 10 are designed to deliver the key concepts in each year in KS3

CCEA GCSE HOME ECONOMICS 

Three main areas studied :

• FAMILY LIFE - to include the concept of family, contribution of family life to the personal and social development of its members and the importance of developing and strengthening family relationships.
• DIET AND HEALTH -to include functions and sources of nutrients, nutritional needs of family members, current dietary advice, dietary disorders and their management, food hygiene and safety.
• CHOICE AND MANAGEMENT OF RESOURCES - to include factors influencing consumer choice, consumer legislation and sources of information available to consumers.

CCEA AS HOME ECONOMICS

Students take two teaching and learning modules for the AS course: 

• AS 1: Nutrition for Optimal Health: the study of macro and micro nutrients and other dietary constituents. Nutritional requirements and current dietary recommendations across the life span are also studied.                                                              

• AS 2: Priority Health Issues: the study of current research in relation to diet and health, mental health and sexual health. Targets, strategies, initiatives and campaigns for optimising health are also studied.

CCEA A2 HOME ECONOMICS 

Students take two teaching and learning modules for the A2 course:

• A2 1: Consumer Issues: the study of consumer issues prevalent in today's society. It involves consideration of factors which affect the ability of the consumer to make informed decisions and manage available resources. 

• A2 2: Research based assignment: requires the submission of a report on a research based activity which should not exceed 4,000 words. The chosen research area should come from AS 1, AS 2 or A2 1.

Mrs L Anderson (HoD)
Mrs K Latimer