Bankfoot Primary pupils given a Taste (Perthshire) of working in hospitality

Four-star visitor destination, Taste Perthshire, welcomed a group of P7 pupils from Bankfoot Primary to the popular family run retail and restaurant business this week, giving them a taste of what it’s like to work in the hospitality industry.

The school visit gave the chance for the eleven P7 pupils to try their hand at various tasks including baking scones from scratch and decorating empire biscuits, working behind the counter at the deli, ordering and making sandwiches, labelling goods and restocking shelves in the gift shop, plus dressing mannequins in the leisurewear section with appropriate accessories.

The pupils were also taken on a full tour of the Taste Perthshire site, which included an introduction into how the on-site fuel station works, plus the opportunity to feed the Highland Cows which call Taste Perthshire their home. The pupils were rewarded for their hard work with a meal of their choice in the restaurant and were given a big ‘Taste Perthshire’ chocolate gold coin to take away.

The visit was part of the school’s P7 Leadership Week aiming to give the pupils the chance to explore some of their local community, providing them with an experience of the world of work and the career opportunities available to them in the hospitality industry.

Calum MacLellan, owner of Taste Perthshire, commented: “We are very fortunate that most of our staff come from the local area, Bankfoot and the surrounding villages and so our connection with our local community is strong. Our employees range from High School pupils, who do some shifts around their school hours, with the permission of their parents of course, to those who are in their sixties.

“Taste Perthshire will already be well known to most of these pupils’ families, so it was a real pleasure to be able to facilitate a class visit and offer them an insight into what it’s like to work in hospitality. It’s likely that some of these pupils will come and work for us in future!”

Suzanne Obure, P7 class teacher at Bankfoot Primary, said: “As part of our P7 Leadership Week we wanted to get involved with our local community. Taste Perthshire allowed us the fantastic opportunity to experience the world of work and learn more about what happens behind the scenes in a busy local business. The children received hands-on experience in all areas of the business, including the petrol station, the Teslas, the animals, the kitchen, the shop and the takeaway. They had an absolute blast and were all asking for jobs at the end of the day!”

Taste Perthshire is a popular all year-round visitor destination for all the family, offering a unique shopping experience and an indoor family friendly restaurant serving fresh local produce as much as possible. With a unique blend of high-quality products from gifts, leisurewear, to an extensive drinks cellar, Taste Perthshire also has a 24-hour fuel station and EV charge hub and is the first site in the UK to be chosen by Tesla to offer remote test drives.