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Liverpool's Art School
restaurant raises the bar
LIVERPOOL'S Art School Restaurant has
received the highest award from 1 of the Country's leading food and drink
quality assessment schemes.
The restaurant; which was launched less than a year ago; scored a prestigious
94% to achieve the 'Highest Quality Assured VisitEngland Taste
Accreditation'
from Taste Northwest; which promotes the national quality assessment scheme
throughout the region.
The Art School Restaurant is among only 8 eating places across the city area to
have this formal recognition of quality. Now chef patron Paul Askew has joined
Marketing Liverpool in a call for others to team up and raise the bar even
further for Liverpool's growing food and drink culture.
Taste accreditation is independently assessed for VisitEngland by Quality in
Tourism. The criteria is based on quality of food, use of locally and regionally
sourced seasonal produce and ingredients, as well as excellent customer service.
The Art School Restaurant was also scored on exterior impressions, interior
facilities and décor, cleanliness, hospitality and service efficiency, food
presentation and imaginative creative dishes. "We're pleased to showcase eating places, like the Art School Restaurant,
that offer great food combined with an inviting environment and a commitment to
excellent customer service; an all round winner for food lovers. The Art School
Restaurant represents all of this and we are excited about adding our mark of
food and service quality to Paul Askew's already recognised achievements. It
encompasses everything that Paul is about as an outstanding champion of North
West produce and a benchmark for the current generation of chefs." says
Mark Loynton, managing director of Taste Northwest.
Paul Askew, a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts and chair of the
Liverpool Restaurant Association, launched the 50 cover Art School Restaurant
last September after building a reputation as head chef and catering manager for
the Liverpool Philharmonic and chef director at Liverpool's 'hope street
hotel'
and 'The London Carriage Works'.
He is renowned for his commitment to using North West produce and suppliers. His
insistence on the finest high quality, locally sourced ingredients forms a key
element of his menus.
Paul's commitment to food tourism earned him last year's 'Outstanding
Champion and Pioneer' title from the Liverpool Food and Drink Awards as well
as a special industry achievement award from 'Northern Restaurant and
Bar'.
Paul said:- "This newest accreditation is an honour that reflects the pride we take in
our craft. People can easily underestimate what is
produced in our region, but we have world class ingredients to work with and,
coupled with great service, these help us to deliver a quality dining experience
with absolute confidence."
Chris Brown, chief executive of Marketing Liverpool, presented the award and
called for their 'city region' to team up and build on the recognition of
the1st 8 'highest quality assured' accreditations.
"Paul's early influences were in South East Asia, the Middle East and
United States, but his total belief in the North West
now showcases the best that this region has to offer and illustrates his
approach to real food, integrity of ingredients, flavours and presentation.
The VisitEngland Taste Accreditation Scheme is extremely useful for consumers to
identify restaurants, cafés and pubs that promote quality. I hope that others
will support it and share our enthusiasm to drive up standards even further
across the region."
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Almost 1,200 people every
week are being put at risk of losing their home in the North West
ALARMING new figures from housing
charity Shelter have revealed more than 1,200 people in the North West were put
at risk of losing their home every week in the last year.
In an analysis of statistics from the Ministry of Justice, the charity
identified how many people are at risk of eviction and repossession as well as
the 'home threat hotspots' across the North West where people are most
likely to face the risk of losing their home.
Manchester topped the list in the North West with as many as 1 in every 66 homes
under threat of eviction or repossession, followed by Rochdale (1 in 68),
Salford (1 in 76) and Knowlsley (1 in 76). And these shocking figures are borne
out by the sheer number of people visiting the Shelter website looking for
advice on repossession and eviction, with 360,000 unique visits in the last year
alone.
Bill Murdoch, 52, lost his job
as a bus driver after suddenly losing the sight in 1 eye last year. Things
started spiralling downwards when he missed two payments on a loan secured
against his home, and he contacted Shelter for help. "I'd always done my job with a smile on my face but once I lost my sight,
it was over. The bills started to mount up and, even though we'd had been making
the payments without fail for years, the loan company told us they were going to
take away our home.
Coming on top of losing my sight and my job, stressed doesn't begin to describe
how I felt when our home was under threat. I have never been more terrified than
I was on the day the court order came. The only thing that gave me hope was when
I contacted Shelter who helped us through the court process. If it wasn't for
that, we'd have lost everything."
Nadeem Khan, helpline adviser for Shelter, said:- "We're hearing from
thousands of people who have suffered in silence while they struggle to keep up
with their rent or mortgage, and come to us in desperation when the court papers
finally land on their doormat.
It's natural to feel helpless in the face of mounting bills, but getting expert
advice as soon as you start having trouble with housing payments can really help
you see the light at the end of the tunnel, and keep the threat of losing your
home at bay."
Alison Mohammed, Shelter's director of services, said:- "These staggering
figures show just how many people are fighting to keep their families in their
homes, after dealing with the double blow of welfare cuts and a drastic shortage
of affordable housing.
We're doing everything we can to give advice and support to anyone who faces
losing the roof over their heads, but the government must also play its part by
putting a stop to further cuts to the safety net, which helps ordinary families
stay in their homes."
Shelter helps 4 million people a year fight bad housing and homelessness through
its online, helpline and face to face services. For free, expert advice from
Shelter visit:-
Shelter.Org.UK/Advice or call the helpline on:- 0808 800 4444.
8 new Liverpool based
artists and organisations chosen for this year's 'Hannah Directory'
IT has been announced that 8 new
organisations and artists will be celebrated in this year's publication of the
'Hannah Directory', including the artist led Liverpool Small Cinema, the art
collective Re-Dock, digital media educators Defnet Media and artist of public
space Neil Winterburn. This annual publication showcases the best creative
projects, groups and individuals in the North of England and with a multiple
inclusion, Liverpool will be well represented.
The directory takes its name from the suffragette Hannah Mitchell (1872 to 1956).
Seeking to share the values of democracy and civic duty that Mitchell fought
for, the Hannah Directory showcases independent organisations working in
innovative ways.
The directory aims to connect and share these projects in the hope that others
may be inspired and learn from their successes. Make the most of the directory's
launch (8 June to 14 June) by joining the DoESLiverpool community for a celebration
night on 10 June, downloading Neil Winterburn's Hannah Festival hologram and of
course picking up a copy of the directory.
This year's directory has been designed by the Manchester based Textbook Studio.
Formed in 2011 and based at Islington Mill, the small design studio is led by
John Newton, Vicky Carr, and Chris Shearston.
The publication is distributed in Towns and Cities across the North including
Manchester, Liverpool, Leeds, Sheffield and Newcastle. |
