Afternoon Tea marks a proud finale to Erdington Academy’s work experience at the Belfry Hotel & Resort
Erdington Academy students rounded off a week-long work experience placement at The Belfry Hotel & Resort by serving afternoon tea to their teachers and parents – a celebration of their hard work and growing confidence in one of the region’s leading hospitality venues.
Throughout the week, students gained hands-on experience across several departments, including Food and Beverage, Golf Retail, Guest Services, The Club and Meetings and Events. Their efforts were recognised during a special afternoon tea in the Whisky Room in the Ryder Restaurant.
All soft lighting and plush seating, the room had been carefully prepared by the Year 10 students themselves. A single long table ran through the centre, dressed in crisp linen, polished cutlery and elegant teacups. Teachers and parents enjoyed a fine spread of finger sandwiches, scones and glossy cakes as they admired the professionalism shown by every student.
Careers Lead Miss Millward said the students had put in a lot of effort to secure the placements.
“Students being here today hasn’t happened by chance. They attended a workshop at school, joined a day trip to learn how the hotel operates, applied and then completed an interview. We wanted today to recognise the effort they’ve put in at every stage.”
Year 10 student Patrick Ugochukmu said it had been an amazing experience.
“It’s shown me that I’m capable, and I’ve impressed quite a few people in the workplace. I’ve been told I can do things people train years to do, like carrying four plates at once, and I often picked things up first time.”
Erdington Academy’s partnership with The Belfry is part of Hospitality Connect, which is an initiative run by the Birmingham Hospitality Association designed to give young people meaningful insight into the hospitality sector, build confidence, and highlight the breadth of career pathways available.
Earlier this year, the resort welcomed the school’s Health and Fitness students to explore how their curriculum links to real-world roles, from coaching and performance analysis to leisure management and customer-facing careers.
Maia Breedon, People Manager at The Belfry Hotel & Resort, said the students had made a strong impression.
“This group has been great, and they’ve grown throughout the week. Every day they’ve been a little more confident, a little more chatty, and they’ve really looked after each other.”
She added that programmes like Hospitality Connect help challenge outdated perceptions of the industry.
“We absolutely love working in hospitality and know how many opportunities it offers such as international travel, food and meeting amazing people, but unfortunately some people just see it as a stopgap. We want to inspire the next generation. Many of our team have worked their way up to director level. While you can do apprenticeships, you don’t need qualifications to get started, and you can build a brilliant long-term career.”
This celebration also marked another milestone: the end of the second year of Erdington Academy’s partnership with The Belfry and the wider Hospitality Connect programme, with both sides committed to expanding opportunities for students in the future.
An end-of-year meeting on Tuesday 7 July, brought together representatives from The Belfry and the Hospitality Connect team to reflect on progress and plan the next phase. It follows Careers Lead Miss Millward presenting to other schools within the initiative to share best practice – a moment she described as a proud one, noting how advanced Erdington Academy’s programme has become.
