Bridgwater & Taunton College (BTC) opened the doors of The Quantock Restaurant for a cultural feast crafted by English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and Hospitality students.

As part of Refugee Week, and in recognition of Eid al-Adha, the ESOL End of Year celebration recognised the achievements of students studying the programme in the past year.

Refugee Week is the world’s largest arts & culture festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary.

Eid al-Adha is one of the two blessed Eids, celebrated by Muslims across the globe. It is in remembrance of the sacrifice made by Prophet Ibrahim, and is celebrated for three days.

The event also sought to highlight the teams and individuals that have supported the students with their learning throughout the year, including Hospitality and The Quantock Restaurant.

The day opened with a welcome address from Paul Gibbs, Course Leader. Then, a selection of food was served to an eager audience.

ESOL students had been working hard with Hospitality students within The Quantock Restaurant to prepare a range of dishes that are both close to their hearts and representative of their cultures.

Roti, lahmacun, cabbage rolls, feijoada, jorda (sweet rice) and basbousa were just some of the dishes available to try, delivering a wide-range of flavours and showcasing a plethora of cultural heritage.

After students, staff, friends, and family, had enjoyed sampling the diverse range of food, a celebration ceremony took place where students were presented various awards for their achievements over the course of the academic year.

Louise Rowley, Deputy Principal, commented,

The celebration was a huge success, and it was incredible to see students from all walks of life working and coming together in such a productive and cooperative manner. Thank you to Paul and Ruby who were instrumental to this event’s success – and well done to every student who took part and attended. You make BTC proud!

For more information on future events and BTC’s multitude of educational offerings, please visit www.btc.ac.uk or get in touch with the Information & Advice team by emailing info@btc.ac.uk.