Top chef and UCB graduate donates book collection to students

The chef director at Michelin-starred restaurant Carters of Moseley, UCB graduate Brad Carter, has given 30 of his own collection of recipe books to five Level 3 Professional Cookery students.

Students were each treated to a handpicked selection of classic texts and modern works, several of which were signed by Brad, including Nigel Slater’s Real Food, Darra Goldstein’s Fire + Ice and Jamie Oliver’s bestseller Jamie’s Great Britain.

Brad, whose restaurant Carters has appeared in the Sunday Times’ Top 100, said he was keen to hand over the collection to ensure UCB students had access to the kind of books he could never have afforded as a student.

“Cookbooks are about understanding a person and their work as a chef,” said Brad. “It’s a meaningful thing to hand over to someone, because it means something that has shaped your work will now have a hand in shaping theirs. There’s a culture of exchanging your favourites in professional kitchens.

“I had way too many recipe books at home, so I thought, what better way to use them than to hand them over to students at UCB? They are expensive at the best of times – not something you could afford hundreds of as a training chef. So I hope this keeps up the tradition.”

The five final-year students were selected to receive the texts on the basis of their hard work and commitment over the past year.

“Rewarding students who have gone the extra mile is in the DNA of UCB,” said Assistant Dean at the College of Food John Penn.

“Brad has worked closely with us ever since he graduated from here – and these books are an incredibly generous donation which will be a source of inspiration for these deserving students for years to come.”