Our unique training

  • Have you been to one of our sessions and started dreaming of getting involved?
  • Are you excited by our mission and how we achieve it and want to be a part of what we do?
  • Are you looking for flexible part-time work that fits around kids?
  • Would you like to help bring Kids Kitchen to your area?

Our training and support will give you the skills, knowledge and community you need to lead family cooking sessions. You can also join our team and help us to help parents enjoy cooking with their children.

Fill out the form below to start your journey.

Starting your training

The first step in your journey is to complete our online video course. This covers all the key knowledge you’ll need to run a Kids Kitchen session. You will learn about recipe planning, health and safety and how to create a welcoming, inclusive and fun environment for parents and children.

When you sign up to the course, you will also get access to our training network. Here, you will be able to ask any questions you have about what you are learning and chat with other trainees as well as our experienced session leaders.

We run live online workshops in the network, enriching the content of the course. You can attend, join in and get immediate answers to your questions. These workshops will also be recorded and stored in the network – we know it can be tricky to make it to your computer at certain times when kids are involved!

"I'm definitely doing more savoury things with kids now, like chopping vegetables. I've learned about the set up of food activities, adapting and - importantly - keeping it simple! ”
Kay
Kids Kitchen trainee & childcare practitioner

The next step

When you have finished the course and started to get to know the community in the network, you are ready for the next stage. If you decide you would like to continue your training and start running Kids Kitchen sessions, this is for you!

Your power-up mentoring package will include: 1-1 support to use that learning from the course and plan and review your first session; support to find a venue, find funds, find the right equipment – all the things we had to learn by trial and error at the beginning!

You will continue to be a part of our network, asking and answering questions and sharing ideas with other session leaders.

"It brings out skills you may not realise you have and shows you how to do that for others - pass on skills and ideas. It has been set up to be all-inclusive to those with lots to maybe very little cooking experience. It is short and in-depth enough for you to feel you can set up sessions as soon as you complete the course, with continued support from the network, where you can stay in touch with other course attendees"
Sam
Kids Kitchen trainee & yoga instructor

How much does it cost?

The online video course ‘Cooking from Scratch with Young Children costs £80. It’s completely flexible and a great way to cover all the basics of the kinds of sessions we run.

When you’ve completed the online video course, you’ll have the option to sign up to our power-up package at £25 a month. We’ll be here as long as you need but you should be up and running in a few months.

We have some bursary places to help trainees on low incomes. Please email us if you would like more information on these.

"For me, having someone to work out costings with was essential – I was able to value what I was doing, and have the confidence to offer it to places in my area that wanted these kinds of sessions.”
Liz
Kids Kitchen trainee now running classes with older children

Becoming a Kids Kitchen session leader

When you’re ready, we’ll host your event on our website and help you get the word out.

If it’s going well and you’re up for it we’ll set you up with a couple of hours of support with our fundraising guru Jennie. We can help you to find and apply for funding locally that will help you continue doing what you want to do!

“I’ve run three sessions now. I definitely wouldn’t have done it without the team’s enthusiasm and encouragement! It’s helped me with confidence in getting back into some kind of work since having children.”
Annie
Kids Kitchen trainee and mentee

Training FAQ

You can see all the topics in the course outline in the video course, and  a more detailed breakdown is here.

  • Access to experienced session leaders for specific advice that suits your situation.

  • A 1-1 review of your first official session.

  • Monthly group Q+As with session leaders.

  • Templates galore! We’ve done all the things you might think of doing in making a great foodie stay-and-play and we’ll share them all with you.

  • Checklists. Sometimes, you need a template. But sometimes, you just need someone to ask you some really good questions or simply just Tell You What To Do. Especially if you’re sleep deprived! And that’s where the checklists come in. We have lots, including equipment, what questions to ask a venue and where to publicise your sessions.

This is the training that all our session leaders go through, and we are often looking for session leaders for our hubs. If you do end up working with us, we’ll refund you the cost of your training.

Absolutely. We believe that there are lots of ideas to share for all sorts of toddler and kids activities. You can only call what you do Kids Kitchen if you are working with us though.

Not in the traditional sense.

Have you heard of a social franchise? No, we hadn’t either. We do like this description though – you will invest some money and time, and get lots of personal skills from the experience PLUS you and fellow parents get a quality stay and play at a time you really need it.

Our aim is to create flexible work for people with current caring responsibilities. If you think you’d find it difficult to pay for the initial training and mentoring, please talk to us. We provide free places if we think that training is going to open doors for a person or a community and help us achieve more of our mission. We can then help you find the funds that are in your area so you can continue on your journey AND get paid.

Interested?

If you have any questions about the training, please email us.

Otherwise, enter your details below to get started.