Marine Cookery Skills and Assessment

Requirement 1: Assessment in Marine Cookery

Complete a recognised three-day cookery assessment at an approved provider. Leiths is among a handful of providers offering the Assessment in Marine Cookery in England, and the only one based in central London currently. Successful candidates receive a Leiths Assessment Award which should be submitted to the MCA as part of a Ships’ Cook Certificate application. Full details of the Assessment are below.

Requirement 2: Level 2 Award in Food Safety in Catering

Candidates for the Ships’ Cook Certificate must hold a Level 2 Award in Food Safety in Catering, completed with face-to-face training. The MCA does not accept online-only certificates. This qualification is available from a range of accredited providers across the UK.

Requirement 3: STCW basic safety training

The STCW basic safety training package comprises four compulsory elements: personal survival techniques, fire prevention and firefighting, elementary first aid and personal safety and social responsibilities. These must be completed at an MCA-approved maritime training centre, where you will receive STCW certificates for each element on completion.

Requirement 4: Medical Fitness Certificate

Candidates require a current Medical Fitness Certificate, also known as a Fit to Work Medical Certificate, issued by an MCA-approved doctor. For vessels operating more than 60 miles offshore, an ENG1 certificate is required. ENG1 medicals are carried out by MCA-approved doctors across the UK.

How to apply for your Ships’ Cook Certificate

Once all four requirements are complete, apply directly to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency for the Ships’ Cook Certificate using application form MSF 4395. Leiths provides guidance on the application process as part of the Assessment in Marine Cookery.

You will work on the culinary skills relevant to your two day Assessment, which comes at the end of your course. ​

• The training days are led by Leiths chef tutors and shaped around the dishes and skills at the heart of the Assessment:​
• Pastry and baking, from pâte sucrée to an enriched overnight loaf​
• Fresh pasta, made, filled and cooked by hand​
• Filleting and pan-frying round fish​
• Classic sauces, including hollandaise and Madeira jus​
• Lemon tart, soufflés and Italian meringue​
• Preparing and cooking duck breast​

The Assessment in Marine Cookery​

• The assessment follows the format recognised across the industry: a written theory paper, then two days of practical cookery – pastry and desserts on one, savoury cookery on the other. Each dish is prepared, cooked and evaluated under assessment conditions, with a Leiths chef assessor confirming your competence against the standards in MCA MSN 1846. For the full picture of the assessment and how it fits the wider qualification, see our Ships’ Cook Certificate page.

Preparation ​

We will provide all the equipment and ingredients. Please bring your knife roll if you have one. ​

Assessments ​

Theory assessment:​

• This is a written examination which has a total of 45 questions: 40 multiple choice questions worth one mark each, and fivewritten answers worth four marks each.​
• The required pass mark is 70%.​

Practical assessments:​

• The outcome of these assessments will be decided by teachers and assessors at Leiths and will be determined as either‘Competent’ or ‘Not Competent’.​

Overall assessment:​

• The overall outcome of assessment by Leiths chef assessors will be determined as ‘Competent’ or ‘Not Competent’.​

Is this the course for you?​

• The Assessment in Marine Cookery is for working chefs who want to qualify to cook on UK-registered commercial vessels. It is a legal requirement for any chef working more than 60 miles offshore with ten or more crew.​

This course is designed for:​

• Experienced chefs looking to move into marine cookery or superyacht roles​
• Private yacht chefs seeking to qualify for commercial vessels​
• Catering professionals looking to qualify as a marine cook on offshore, cruise or ferry vessels​
• Leiths Culinary Diploma graduates pursuing a career at sea​

To be eligible, candidates must:​

• Be aged 18 or over​
• Have all fees settled in full at the time of booking​
• Have competent spoken and written English and numeracy skills, including the ability to use a calculator​
• Have reviewed the revision material sent following payment

​Booking and enrolment​

• To book, click ‘Book your course’ at the top of the page and select your preferred date.​
• To secure your place, you will need to pay the full cost of the assessment upon booking and complete our enrolment form, which will be sent to you by email along with further information from our Admissions Team.​
• To complete enrolment, candidates must also submit a CV, a covering letter and a copy of their passport. These documents are required under Annex 2 of the MCA Ships’ Cook Certificate criteria.​
• The covering letter should be written as a letter applying for a ship’s cook role on a vessel, not as a letter explaining why you want to take the assessment. This is an MCA Annex 2 requirement and is assessed as a workplace task.​

Payment​

• Full fees are required at the time of booking. Payment can be made by bank transfer, cheque or debit/credit card. American Express is not accepted.​

Qualifications​

• Leiths Education will provide successful candidates with a recognised Leiths Assessment Award to submit to the Maritime Coastguard Agency (MCA). Candidates must complete the Application for UK (MLC) Ships’ Cook Certificate of Competency (SCC) using application form MSF4395.​
• Please note that this Certificate of Competency will constitute part of the MCA certification and applicants will also need to comply with the additional requirements as outlined in MCA MSN 1846, Section 3, which can be found here.​

What to bring:​

• Chef’s whites, including skull cap​
• Closed-toed, flat-soled shoes​
• Your own knives (if you are able to travel with them)​
• A notebook and pencil​
• A refillable water bottle​
• All ingredients and equipment are provided. If travelling without knives, please arrange this with the admissions team in advance.​

Allergies and intolerances​

• Please read our full policy on allergies and dietary restrictions here.