Hospitality Guild launches Act NOW! campaign to promote apprenticeships

The Hospitality Guild has launched a new campaign called Act NOW!, designed to showcase career development opportunities in the hospitality industry through apprenticeships.

The campaign aims to raise both employers' and learners' awareness of the opportunities apprenticeships can offer and help 20,000 people gain paid employment.

Suzy Jackson, executive director of the Hospitality Guild, said that the campaign was designed to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes.

“We want everyone to be able to take part, from small businesses that have never employed an apprentice before, through to large companies that are already employing hundreds of apprentices each year.

“We’ve developed a series of five simple steps that an employer can take, regardless of how big or small they are or whether they’ve employed an apprentice before.”

The five steps the campaign promotes are:
1. Using pre-employment training designed specifically for the hospitality industry â€" or hiring someone who has completed the programme
2. Hiring an apprentice by working with an apprenticeship training association, which acts in a similar way to a recruitment agency for apprentices
3. Using innovative tools to deliver apprenticeships
4. Becoming a registered Good Employer on the industry’s careers guidance website, UKSP
5. Providing career progression by employing someone on a higher apprenticeship in hospitality management or progressing existing staff into new roles.

Jackson said: “We’ve been doing a lot of work to promote pre-employment training and apprenticeships to a wide range of employers, especially through the Pub Perceptions Group. Organisations like Bartlett Mitchell are committed to interviewing people who have been through the pre-employment training programme, Employment 1st.

“The Institute of Hospitality has also played a major role in helping to promote the new Higher Apprenticeship in Hospitality Management, while the BII has specific apprenticeship programmes to attract new people into the pub industry. The Academy of Culinary Arts also offers a highly specialised chef programme, which illustrates that there are clear and exciting career development opportunities available in our industry.

“We want to see more businesses and industry organisations Act NOW! on apprenticeships and pre-employment training, as there are a huge number of benefits â€" both for the business and for the learner.”

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By Neil Gerrard

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