ABOUT THE COOKS WORKSHOP
Cooking for Life
Engage, Empower, Educate, and Support!
Nutrition
Cooking!
Food Safety
Meal Planning
Budgeting and Shopping
Who We Are
The Cooks Workshop is a Sydney business dedicated to the promotion of independence through cooking skills. For people with a disability, learning to plan and cook their own meals improves opportunities for independent living, improves self confidence and the opportunity to adopt healthy cooking and eating habits.
Who We Are
The Cooks Workshop is a Sydney business dedicated to the promotion of independence through cooking skills. For people with a disability, learning to plan and cook their own meals improves opportunities for independent living, improves self confidence and the opportunity to adopt healthy cooking and eating habits.
Our Origins
The Cooks Workshop is owned and operated by founder Jennie Thompson, who developed a passion for healthy food after a Crohn’s Disease diagnosis forced her to rethink her relationship with and choices relating to food. Combining a lifelong interest in home cooking with her science background via a post-graduate diploma in Nutrition, Jennie was able to turn her health, and her life, around with positive dietary and lifestyle changes.
With over 35 years of experience working in the Western Sydney health sector, as a Podiatrist, Jennie developed an acute awareness of the growing social and financial burden that chronic disease imposes on our community. This strengthened her long-held belief in the importance of using nutritional cooking skills to help prevent and manage chronic diseases, many of which are greatly affected by diet and lifestyle choices.
Jennie founded The Cooks Workshop with the belief that by educating people about easy, nutritionally sound and enjoyable meal and cooking options, we can promote and actively support healthier lifestyles throughout the community, and particularly to those most in need. For those living with a disability, the need for cooking skills is even greater. It can be the key to living an independent and healthy life.
Our Mission
We believe that as cooking professionals, it is our responsibility to help Australians develop the skills and the confidence needed to instil nutritious foods and eating habits into their everyday lives. By working to share knowledge and skills on healthy food preparation, we can help people form and maintain the simple, nutritionally valuable diets that work to stave off and manage preventable chronic diseases.
We are liaising with major agencies in the Australian health sector to expand our reach and enhance our understanding of how we can help everyday Australians.
Our mission is to encourage a positive attitude towards nutritious food and healthy eating habits, within a fun, friendly setting. We aim to empower adults, children, and teenagers alike with the ability to make healthy, delicious food for themselves and the people around them, thereby creating positive change in the lives of many.
Our Work
In accordance with our aim to support those living with disability, we provide educational cooking programmes which support positive change at the community level, not just for individuals, but for, families, workplaces, and community organisations.
Help us lead the way in providing a consistent approach to skills for independence and healthy eating for people with a disability. For individuals and those living in shared living and group homes. Utilising available resources and support systems, we motivate towards adopting a healthy approach to food and improving health outcomes, whilst building real life skills and developing greater independence.
We believe in the power of every single person to better their life and the lives of those around them through healthy choices, so long as they are given the skills and the equipment needed to make them. Our programmes are targeted towards helping people towards independence and developing the ability to make food choices that suit their specific dietary and health needs, financial situation, and personal tastes.
Evidence supports the view that benefits to cooking that extend beyond nutrition may be helpful in increasing motivation and frequency of cooking and that cooking interventions may positively influence psychosocial outcomes, that determinants of home cooking are more complex than simply possessing cooking skills.
Testimonials
Lyndall - 2022
Christine - 2022
In 2021 I was on a mission to find a local cooking school for our daughter Emma, to capitalize on her previous learning. We were so fortunate to find Jennie Thompson, Director of The Cooks Workshop. Through Jennie’s patience, enthusiastic nature, and an individually tailored program we have seen an improvement in Emma’s kitchen skills including meal planning, preparation and confidence to try new foods. Emma has developed a positive and joyful relationship with Jennie as both role model and instructor.
Mel and Kai - 2022
It has been wonderful to watch the progress my son is making with Jennie. Not only is he gaining essential life skills but his confidence grows with every lesson. Jennie clearly has a genuine passion for helping those with additional needs. I couldn’t be happier with her service and of course the delicious meals I get to sample!
Peta - 2022
Without a doubt one of the best services we have had access too through NDIS is The Cooks Workshop. We engaged Jennie with the intent of helping our son develop healthy cooking skills in working towards his independence. The Cooks Workshop has gone above and beyond our initial hopes of what skills our son would learn.
Meal planning, healthy choices, safe practice in the kitchen both with utensils and food safety, and menu development are just the tip of what has been firmly established as a forever skill set that will without a doubt serve well in independent life in the future.
The beauty of The Cooks Workshop is that the program is developed centred around the needs of the participant. Our son met with Jennie and together they worked out likes, dislikes, favourite foods, textures and aversions, allergies and importantly realistic targets to work towards. All this critical information formed the basis of the individual plan that Jennie created and works with.
Jennie works one on one in our kitchen and via zoom as needed so the environment is comfortable and relevant as our son uses the equipment familiar to him.
The Cooks Workshop has given me as a mother the complete and utter confidence that not only will our boy make healthy and appropriately budgeted meals for himself, but also that he will do so safely and independently. Without a doubt the independence, confidence and skills learnt with Jennie means our son is developing a skillset that will last him a lifetime.
I cannot recommend this service highly enough as a parent. To add to my praise of this service are the words of my son. One day as Jennie left after their session he turned to me and said ‘Mum, everyone needs a Jennie.’
Cheryl - 2022
As a parent searching for the best supports for your children who have additional, or different, needs, it is so often hard to find someone who not only benefits them, but who also really listens to them, works as a team with you, and most importantly “gets them”. What we’ve found is all of this with Jennie. Truly the skills Jennie teaches, and experiences she provides, has been one of the most beneficial we have ever found for my teen son and daughter. Each of them with their own challenges and, with each of them, Jennie sees their different needs perfectly and creates a unique experience for them both. Both of them are enjoying their sessions, learning and growing so much through the program! So enjoying seeing the pride they both have in their new skills and delicious creations!
