WEST DORSET: Celebrity chef and restaurateur Mark Hix has opened the Hix Academy restaurant at Weymouth College.

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 Mr Hix’s other restaurants.

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 centre of learner provision and ensuring that students can learn from the best and aspire to the best.”

The opening event also allowed students of other subjects to showcase their skills, with media students filming it for their major-project work.