Foxes Community Kitchen has been up and running for just over a year now. It has been a fantastic initiative set up by our students and Williton Parish Council to help the community with getting people back out into a social environment where they can enjoy an affordable lunch at Williton Pavillion, socialise with others and support our students with their work skills. Watch our video to see what we get up to on a day at the Foxes Community Kitchen!
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21 March is World Down Syndrome Day – and that date’s no coincidence. It was chosen because it’s the 21st day of the third month, relating to the uniqueness of the triplication (trisomy) of the 21st chromosome which causes Down Syndrome.
The theme this year is With Us Not for Us. That’s something that Rebecca, 23, believes passionately.
Rebecca is a third-year student at Aurora Foxes in Minehead – a specialist college and training hotel for young people with learning disabilities. She’s studying for a level 1 NVQ in Hospitality Services.
James Martin, Oscar-winning star of 'An Irish Goodbye' has made a video message for students at Aurora Foxes, a specialist catering college and training hotel for young people with learning disabilities.
In response to the fantastic news about Northern Irish film 'An Irish Goodbye' receiving an Oscar nomination for the Best Short Film, students at Aurora Foxes have made their own short film, congratulating James Martin - the star himself!
Aurora Foxes, the Ofsted Outstanding specialist college in Somerset, is offering day provision from September 2022. Students have access to a variety of nationally recognised and accredited vocational and functional qualifications. Student timetables are 5 days per week and include teaching, study time and work experience.
Aurora Foxes has launched The Flying Fox food truck on the Minehead Promenade outside the Foxes Hotel. The truck gives Foxes' students the opportunity to cater for a variety of events, from food fairs to music festivals, boosting their skills and confidence while preparing them for employment in the hospitality industry.
Principal Emma Cobley MBE said the experience will "give our students the skills, knowledge and confidence to successfully shape their own futures."
The Flying Fox will welcome customers on the promenade three days a week throughout the summer term, serving a selection of paninis and rice boxes. Students will be running the truck, learning outdoor service skills including food preparation, hygiene and storage.
Students named the Flying Fox truck after the Flying Fox café, which was put in place during lockdowns, with menu ideas created by Foxes students, hotel chefs and Stuart Duff, Corporate Chef for the UK and Ireland, Hilton. The truck is funded by a £30,000 grant from the Hilton Global Foundation. Hilton has been a partner of Aurora Foxes since 2015 and has provided work placements for over 30 Foxes' students. They are set to offer a further number of placements later this year. Currently, seven Aurora Foxes graduates are employed in six of Hilton's hotels.
Foxes Hotel, part of The Aurora Group, trains young people with learning disabilities and today announced it has been recognized as a 2020 Travellers’ Choice award-winner for the third consecutive year, placing them in the top 10% of hospitality businesses around the globe. Based on a full year of Tripadvisor reviews, prior to any changes caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, award winners are known for consistently receiving great feedback.
Over the years Foxes Academy has transformed many lives through hospitality and catering training for young people with learning disabilities, leading to sustainable employment. Now in the face of COVID-19 the Hotel, formerly open to the public, has had to close. But this isn’t the end of the Foxes story. The staff and students are adapting to new ways of working as the situation evolves.
The mother of a Foxes Academy student and 2019 General Election candidate will be jumping out of a plane next week (21 March) to mark World Down Syndrome Day. Annabel Tall says she’s raising money for the Down’s Syndrome Association because the charity has helped her son Freddie, who has Down’s syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorder and is also deaf.
