AN Oxford college has been chosen to house one of the Government's first training centres for school cooks.

A new Feast (Food Excellence and Skills Training) centre will open at Oxford and Cherwell Valley College, in Oxpens Road, in February.

One of only six centres in the south of England, it will offer anyone involved in the school meals service - from cooks to teachers and lunchtime supervisors to bursars - cooking lessons and the chance to study for formal qualifications at NVQ level 2 and beyond.

Cooks from two Oxford Schools - St Gregory the Great School, in East Oxford, and Cheney School in Headington - have already signed up.

Neil Edwards, business enterprise manager at Oxford and Cherwell Valley College, said: "We put in a bid to become a Feast centre and found out we were successful a couple of weeks ago. We are very pleased.

"As well as using existing facilities at the college, we will be building a new kitchen in 2008 and we will be going to work with people in their own work- places."

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver was the first to campaign for a network of "Regional Training Kitchens", which now form part of the Government's £220m overhaul of school meals.

School Feast grew out of a £2m Government grant to the School Food Trust last year by the Department for Education and Skills.

Mr Edwards added: "We are very confident about our teaching provision here - we train a lot of people who go on to work in restaurants around the county and at the universities and we have a great team."

Partnerships are starting off small - in Oxford, Cheney and St Gregory the Great Schools will use the centre, along with staff from Kent County Council - but the service will invite applications from further partners from Spring 2008.

Laura Hoskin, HR co-ordinator at St Gregory the Great School said: "The school is keen to be involved in the Feast Centre training at Oxford and Cherwell Valley College in line with the Food Trust guidelines."

Ed Balls, Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, said: "It's great to see another leap forward in our quest to get all young people eating healthily."