Recognising Irish Floristry Qualifications
Mary here from Forever Flowers. I am delighted to say that I have recently joined the newly launched Institute Of Floristry, in Ireland. This Institute is the new nonprofit organisation which has come about due to the lack of regulation within the industry. Many Florists over the last century in Ireland, had to travel to England to train with the Soceity of Floristry or colleges such as Writtle to become professional florists. (This is how I personally trained after progressing from a horticultural background from studying at national Botanic Gardens. ) Many others florists went to Europe , to learn from the floristry masters in recognised schools to achieve their certification. However, not everybody could afford to travel abroad to gain this level of education and getting the recognition on paper was hard for many . There were no facilities within Ireland for many years. In saying that, many exceptional Florist where also bench trained ,and learned working the way up through shops from junior right up to senior Florist level Ireland. However, they never got the recognition or the piece of paper that they deserved after all their hard work. However things are changing and there is exciting news on the horizon.
I am delighted to be associated with the Institute Of Floristry. Going forward this Institute will work with current Florists continuing their professional development. This continuation will be on practical floristry and many other subjects associated with floristry business, plant husbandry, social media , health and safety etc. This will be achieved by working in conjunction with many of the educational and training bodies such as skillnets , helping to encourage high standards within the industry.
If you are a florist, trainee , or long time on the job already , I would strongly urge you to join this group. I have been a member for just six months and yes I can say , you learn something new every day.
The institution of Floristry is attending bloom this year for the first time ever. We will be located in the nursery village area, and we will have many professional Florists demonstrating , and sharing some of their secrets, tips and tricks. There will be some wonderful competitions among the Florist community, and some student Florist available to chat and talk about their experiences. Come come and visit us , network with other florists, find out about upcoming courses. Whether you’re starting out in your training adventure or whether you’re up skilling and continuing professional development this is the place for you. Looking forward to Bloom.