Our Story

A warm welcome to WhitePepper. The academy headquarters are based in regenerated horticultural buildings on the south-coast of England and just a stone’s throw from the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. Many have described the farm setting as a culinary retreat, igniting the ultimate space-in-time for professional training and development with purpose.

2010

Cookery School Founded

Founded by Chef Luke Stuart at age 30, taking charge of two disused horticultural buildings on a previous Longhorn beef farm.

2011

Short Courses Launched

The academy opened with five signature courses: Beside the Sea, Feathered & Furred, Forage Fungi, French Patisserie and Bread at Bere Farm.

2012

Kid’s Cook School Launched

This ran for 4 years, from 2012 to 2016, and was consistently sold-out six months in advance. We offered classes for ages 4 to 7 and 8 to 12. We are now seeing those children attend our adult courses.

2014

Best Community Focused – UK Finalist

We were runner up at the UK & Ireland Cookery School Awards for our children’s Food Safari concept, and our support work for a disabilities charity.

2014

Best 1-Day Experience – UK Winner

Our experiential British game course, Feathered & Furred, plucked the top spot from runner-up, Jamie Oliver Cookery School.

2015

Chef Academy Launched

A professional ladder of Bronze, Silver and Gold training is devised, all underpinned with accredited qualifications by the CTH and Ofqual.

2015

Britain’s Favourite School – UK Winner

A huge milestone, the WhitePepper Academy wins Britain’s favourite small cookery school by vote of the British public.

2018

BAPTA Education Award – Winner

A David and Goliath contest, triumphing against universities, colleges and language schools within a 50 mile radius of Bournemouth and Poole.

2018

Cookery School Of The Year – UK Winner

Scooped the coveted award at The Royal Automobile Club, London by Food & Travel Magazine (the same year Chef Tom Brown won ‘Rising Star’).

2020

Gold Centre Status – By Invitation Only

From The Confederation of Tourism & Hospitality’s Academic Council, making us just 1 of 3 worldwide, at the time.

2020

WhitePepper Online Launched

A blended and flexible pathway towards a Level 2 culinary award, for educators, enterprise and individuals.

2022

Best Culinary Academy – UK Winner

A prestigious award from Southern Enterprise Awards, whose judging panel upgraded a regional nomination to a national title.

Meet The Team

A team of experienced professionals who passionately strive to unlock the potential in every student.

Sustainability Unearthed

Sustainability Unearthed

WhitePepper is based on a former Longhorn beef farm in Dorset and within view of the spectacular Poole harbour. The location allows us to benefit from some of the UK’s best land and sea produce and there is a strong commitment to sourcing regionally. Connecting with the seasons is a skill we teach and this is telling on our plates. We work in partnership with our local suppliers to host provenance trips, showcasing the journeys of the food we eat.

Our Partners

Reviews

Trustpilot is our review hub. We have found this to host the most genuine and trustworthy reviews from our students, customers and clients.

I expected nothing else really as this place is 5 star all the way. Bread, fish, patisserie, Italian, Indian and all the many others on offer. Stop thinking and just book! Just a top place, wonderfully set up and run…

Marcus

As a teacher myself, I do not say lightly that the teaching of the CTH Award in Culinary Skills has been faultless – and so much fun. We covered so many skills, which have transformed me with so much more confidence…

Jess

My experience at WhitePepper has been fantastic. Their passion and guidance in the kitchen was a huge help and it gave me the confidence to push myself daily and overall reach my goal of becoming a chef…

Stuart