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Coaches cook up a storm for students

13/12/2019

The table is almost creaking with an array of festive treats. As well as the traditional roast chicken, roast potatoes, veg and Christmas cake, there’s also vegan friendly roast jackfruit and gravy and gluten free puds. Surrounded by a gentle hum of friendly chatter, the smell is divine and the food tastes amazing.

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The Coaches Kitchen is a great community-based initiative launched by the University’s Academic Coaches. Once a month they take over the Chaplaincy kitchen for a few hours and cook up a storm for students. So far they’ve made tasty burritos, quesadillas, pizza, lentil dhal, African fried rice, pesto pasta and lots of potatoes! There is always a vegan option and over the course of the day between 40 and 50 students have been popping in for a tasty treat and some support too.

Sarah Byrne is the Academic Coach for the Wolverhampton School of Art. She explains: “We aim to use cheap, sustainable, local ingredients that are seasonal and aim to highlight how to cook on a budget, but also create some really tasty food too!

“The Academic Coaches started as a team of nine staff members who get on really well (now there are 23) – we had fostered a really nice support network and were coaching each other in our new roles. We decided a Coaches Kitchen, where we cook a meal for students who can drop-in, would be a great way to introduce what we do as Academic Coaches but also enthuse students and educate them about food choices.

“The idea stemmed from a cross-discipline artist residency at the Wolverhampton School of Art which is held annually by the Fine Art team, called Dirty Practice. During the week that the residency was held, the Coaches came together to cook in the art studios to foster a space of community and comfort. This space in the residency unintentionally became a hive of discussion as well as fostering staff/student relationships. Staff and students were able to congregate within the residency studios having conversations varying from artwork and research, to food recipes, and the University curriculum.

“The added benefit is from a student well-being perspective – it can help students who are feeling lonely as they can meet new people and also access support from the Academic Coaches.

“We hope to be able to grow the idea eventually too, so that we may be able to teach the students how to do it and get them involved in preparing the food too.”

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Rifit Bibi is a Computer Science student and has visited all the Coaches Kitchens held so far. She says: “It appealed to me because the Coaches are super nice and super helpful, and I wanted to meet different students. The benefits are that its builds a relationship between students and the Coaches. It also gives me ideas of different foods to try – I’m lactose intolerant and it gives me ideas.”

  • The Coaches Kitchen takes place in the Chaplaincy on the second Thursday of each month from 11am – 3pm. It is open to staff and students. For more details and menus, follow @coacheskitchenwlv on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.
  • And, because January is hard, there are two Coaches Kitchens next month – on 9 and 16 January 2020.

For more information please contact the Corporate Communications Team.

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