On January 1, I collected the keys to a venue in Jericho that I will share with Mariella Bliss to transform into our cookery school and, more importantly, a community hub.

It was exactly two years to the day when I first sat in Branca in Jericho and decided that my venture was going to happen and that it would be called The Jericho Kitchen.

To most it was an impossible dream – how can you start a cookery school with no money? Well, it took a lot of hard work, determination, and passion for searching out the right people for the job, who, like me, had the same belief in my dream.

It took a year to get the first classes up and running and I was incredibly lucky to have Mehdi Tavakkoly of the Hayfield Road Deli to be my first teacher whom, I believe, was instrumental in getting bookings as news of his classes spread quickly.

People who came along, relaxed and enjoyed his unique way of teaching. My favourite memory was standing outside in the pouring rain holding an umbrella over the grill for our Persian barbecue class.

Then, along came Mariella. I had worked with Naples-born Mariella briefly in the past, and our paths had crossed often. But she appeared at just the right time.

Utterly passionate about all things Italian, she is equally devoted to giving her time and knowledge to others, including working with the council on subsidised classes and often doing things for free.

Quickly the Jericho Kitchen looked as though it was turning into an Italian cookery school, and every class of Mariella’s has been fully booked every since, from the Italian Vegetarian and Trattoria in our former venue in Warborough, near Wallingford, to pasta and bread making in Barefoot in Walton Street, and a pop-up at Oxford’s Turl Street Kitchen.

Mariella and I enjoyed working together so much that when this opportunity arose we naturally jumped at it.

It will give us both a permanent base here in Oxford to expand. The space will enable to us to have larger corporate events – up to 25 people comfortably, possibly more if we are brave enough.

Warborough was a home too but we were limited to a specific number of classes and the times we could hold them. Now we can hold morning, afternoon and evening classes.

We also want this to be a community hub for local artists and residents, and are very lucky that Hannah Jervis, Jericho’s resident potter has agreed to show her work and Jackie Nevin her artwork to embellish our lovely new cookery school.

To tempt you we are putting together a comprehensive list of classes for the first part of 2017. We are adding more all the time as new teachers join us. Our latest is Christine Wallace, Great British Bake-Off Quarter finalist in 2013 who recently successfully arranged the first Didcot Food Festival.

Also coming from London is an old friend Carolina Catala-Fortuny, who will be teaching how to cook a variety of Catalan dishes and mouthwatering tapas. We also have Donato from The Eatalian Job, here in Oxford who will be bringing wine tasting, regional Italian cookery classes and Italian Evenings. Delicious!

Jericho Kitchen is at 6 King Street, Oxford. jerichokitchen.co.uk