Julie Collins and Tina Parkes

Academy of Floral Art

Academy of Floral Art, Julie Collins and Tina Parkes

Academy of Floral Art

Our Mission Statement "Providing excellence with passion and integrity"

We established the Academy of Floral Art in July 2008 to create an unique training experience in Floristry and Flower Arranging. We have created courses both for professional floristry development and for recreational enjoyment.

We have also become a City & Guilds centre of training enabling us to offer professionally recognized qualifications , level 4 and 5 which is being delivered in a beautiful, inspirational location just outside Exeter and at New Covent Garden, London.

In all the courses we aim to proved you with a complete experience, that depending on your requirements will address:-

- Academic and career development
- Connections and friendships
- Fun and creativity
- Time for you, in a relaxed and friendly environment

· Julie Collins BTec ND, ICSF,Cert Ed, City & Guilds Master Dip in Professional Floristry (English Master)

· Julie started her career in the Bank but found there was a limit to how creative you could be with a bag of coins, so in 1994 she undertook her training to be a Florist, which lead her to become a Floristry teacher for Bicton College for twelve years, whilst also running a successful Wedding Flower business.

· She has just completed her Master Diploma in Professional Floristry and is proud to have achieved Distinction in all her assignments and exams. She really enjoyed the creative challenge and design development the course gave her and looks forward to passing her enthusiasm on.

· She loves delivering the recreational classes which puts her design skills to the test, as each week she creates new up to date designs for the students to explore. She also enjoys demonstrating and workshops.

Tina Parkes NDSF, SFS, CERT ED, Dutch Master, AIFD

Tina started working in the Floristry industry when she was 16 and within her career has managed a Floristry shop,in Exmouth then become Head of the Floristry School at Bicton College where she also taught for 10 years.

In 2002 Tina took two years out to move to the Netherlands to study the Dutch Masters in Floristry, she is currently the only English Florist holding this qualifications and it has enabled Tina to originally pilot the Higher Diploma in Floristry, level 4. She has also been a consultant to other colleges around the country on professional qualifications.

Tina has demonstrated and held workshops all over the country including working with a team of top Floral Designers in America and whilst out there took and passed her American Institute of Floral designers qualification.