Crosby Butchery Training

It was a busy day for our Butchery Trainer, , during her recent visit to in London.

Tara spent time with three of our apprentices. Yonas and Albert who are both completing the Level 2 Butchery Apprenticeship, and James, who is completing the Level 3 Advanced Butcher Apprenticeship.

During the visit, Yonas was watching the recording of the Poultry Workshop, James was developing his advanced beef skills, and Albert was completing his pork workshop.

Having a total of five butchery apprentices currently on programme demonstrates Wholefoods continued commitment to developing their colleagues and investing in the future of the trade.

Supporting apprentices through recognised qualifications not only helps to build practical knowledge and confidence, but also supports long-term career development and professional credibility within the industry.

It’s fantastic to see apprentices engaging so positively with their learning and continuing to develop their skills throughout the programme.

We’re looking forward to seeing their continued progress and achievements along the way.

⭐️📣 Congratulations to Ollie our newly qualified butcher! 📣⭐️

After approaching us himself at 15 expressing his interest in becoming a butcher he joined us fresh from school. He has now completed his apprenticeship over the past two years with Crosby training whilst working full time.

Now a qualified butcher and key member of our team please join us in congratulating him on here or in person if you are in the shop!

Well done Ollie, the hard work starts now! 🥩🍾🍻🔪🪓🥩

It’s great to see our Level 2 Butchery apprentice, Yonas Tedros, developing his lamb butchery skills 🐑

Practical learning plays a key role in building confidence and capability, and it’s clear to see the progress Yonas is making as he continues to develop his craft.

Yonas is based at Whole Foods Market, where he has shown strong enthusiasm and a real commitment to learning in the workplace.

It’s always rewarding to see apprentices growing in both skill and confidence throughout their journey, and Yonas is a great example of that.

Keep up the great work💪

Great to see our apprentice Finley Gamble developing his pork butchery skills 🐖

Finley is based at Ringrose Butchers, a business with a strong track record of supporting apprentices and helping to develop the next generation of skilled butchers.

Building practical skills like this is a key part of the apprenticeship journey, supporting both progression and confidence in the workplace.

It’s clear to see the effort Finley is putting into his development, and it’s great to see that confidence continue to grow as he takes on new challenges.

We’re proud to support both Finley and employers like Ringrose Butchers in developing future talent across the industry.

Keep up the good work!

A fantastic achievement from our apprentice, Jozef Thompson, on passing his lamb assessment 👏

Throughout the apprenticeship journey, a range of practical assessments help build and demonstrate knowledge, skills, and confidence across different areas of butchery.

Building on those areas is important for success following the completion of the apprenticeship, not only will you be a qualified butcher, but one who knows their strengths and how to utilise them.

It’s great to see the progress Jozef is making, you can really see the effort and commitment he’s putting into developing his craft.

We’re proud to support him on his journey and look forward to seeing what he achieves next.

Keep up the good work💪

Our Level 2 Apprentice Rachel Kidd has been working on her Lamb Butchery, clearly showing her skills in the trade.

Rachel works for Stanedge Grange Butchers, really making an impact in the shop and showing consistency in her work.

It’s great for us to see the dedication of our apprentices, and the work they put in to improve their knowledge and skills to develop and move forward within the Butchery trade.

We are looking forward to seeing where the apprenticeship takes you Rachel!

Keep up the good work💪

Two of our Butchery trainers, Tara McCaffrey and Matt Wigley M.inst.M, attended last week’s annual Worshipful Company of Butchers & awards at Butchers’ Hall, London. Also invited to attend was Crosby’s CEO, Paul Cadman Chartered FCIPD CMgr CCMI F.Inst.M who it turns out had a big surprise awaiting him!

In it’s 80th year the Institute of Meat’s Chief Executive, David Smith gave out more awards than ever, divided into three categories: Apprentice winners, newly awarded Master Butchers and those from whom the Institute wish to bestow a Fellowship.

Booker Wholesale won the Best Company Training Scheme award due to it’s relentless pursuit of excellence in fresh food and butcher through their extensive apprenticeship programme and their now 26 Master Butchers - something no other employer in the country can boast. Crosby are delighted to have nominated Booker for this award and wished to congratulate all of the winners.

It was very fitting therefore, that Paul Miles, Booker’s Fresh Food Development Controller, was awarded a well-deserved Fellowship of the Institute of Meat along with our CEO Paul Cadman.

Paul was recognised for his long-lasting support for apprenticeships generally, and butchery in particular, being a former Chair of the Trailblazer group. Paul was also a Board Member of IfATE for 5 years and Chair of IfATE’s Quality Assurance Committee. Whilst making clear he is not a butcher, he always reminds us that he worked for a couple of years as a Saturday boy at H.E. Jones Butcher in Wolverhampton whilst doing his A-Levels, in the early 1980’s!

It’s great to see another of our butchery apprentices getting stuck in with their Pork Butchery!

Ewan Brodie works for and has been making fantastic progress since starting his apprenticeship in October.

Keep up the great work, we’re looking forward to seeing more of your journey as you make your way through the apprenticeship💪

A great couple of days were spent at Kingfisher in Brixham for the official launch of the new Bidfresh Level 2 ”Sharpening your Skills Fish Filleter” Food & Drink Operator Apprenticeship programme, with a welcome introduction from our Quality Manager Gary Cooper, Business Unit Director at Kingfisher Brixham Marc Shipton and Head of Health & Safety at Bidfresh Mark Harley.

Bidfresh working in collaboration with Crosby, have developed a bespoke Fish Filleter Apprenticeship Programme to develop their next cohort of highly skilled fish filleters across the organisation. The apprentices will receive high quality apprenticeship training alongside expert Fish Filleting Training, provided by Bidfresh’s own highly skilled filleters, passing on and sharing their knowledge and skills.

Apprentices engaged in their first learning activities completing their introduction to fish filleting, food safety, their apprenticeship and the UK Food & Drink Processing and Manufacturing sector. 

The apprentices also had a tour of the Brixham fish market, where they learnt about the heritage of the fish industry in the Southwest, particularly around the Torbay area, the species of fish, the quality grading and auction process.

Crosby are looking forward to hosting the apprentices at Crosby HQ in Wolverhampton, where they will undertake their food safety and environment sustainability workshops.

Keep an eye out in the coming months to see what our apprentices will be up to throughout the duration of their apprenticeship!