CELEBRITY chef and restaurateur Mark Hix has opened the doors to the Hix Academy restaurant at Weymouth College.

The academy is a collaborative project between the two parties, with the restaurant based on the college’s Cranford Avenue campus.

Students studying catering and hospitality and apprentice chefs will receive expert on-the-job training at the academy, with chefs and members of staff from Hix’s other restaurants.

The first batch of students enrolled last month but the launch was the first time the doors were opened to members of the public. More than 100 guests from local businesses and civic communities, including the mayor of Weymouth and Portland Kate Wheller, attended the event.

To celebrate the launch, and with the help of staff from Hix’s London restaurant, apprentices prepared and served an array of canapés and cocktails College principal Liz Myles, said: “The Hix Academy is the first of its kind, putting the needs of employers at the very centre of learner provision and ensuring that our students can learn from the best and aspire to the best.”

The opening event also provided students of other disciplines the opportunity to showcase their skills, with media students on hand to capture the event on film, as practice for their major-project work.

Cllr Kate Wheller praised the college for creating the academy.

She said: “I think it’s a terrific initiative and the launch was great. It’s really good to see Liz Myles working with partners to develop the offering that the college can give to its students.

“The restaurant was great, it was quality stuff and I think it will be excellent experience for the apprentices and will look great on their CVs.

“The canapés were lovely and I’m told the cocktails were also very nice.”