To mark the advent of National Apprenticeship Week, a number of high profile hospitality operators have announced plans for new training programmes as well as increased apprenticeship opportunities in the future.
National Apprenticeship Week shines the spotlight on the positive impact apprentices have on the industry, and reports from Bighospitality.com and Hospitalityandcateringnews.com detailed the plans of several businesses keen to do their part for young people and the economy.
Compass Group UK & Ireland, the UK's largest food services company and one of the top 100 apprenticeship employers in the country, announced plans to increase the number of apprenticeships they offer to 1,500 by the end of 2017. This would be a significant step up from their already sizeable figure of 500 apprentices a year. The firm are celebrating National Apprenticeship Week with a series of events to allow current apprentices to demonstrate the skills they have learned.
Pub chain Greene King celebrated surpassing their target of recruiting 2,000 apprentices by March 2016 by announcing plans to take on 10,000 new apprentices over the next three years.
In answer to the chef shortage crisis that's never far from talks regarding the future of the industry, Malmaison Hotel du Vin has pledged to recruit 33 new apprentice chefs to undergo an 18 month training programme alongside head chefs based at the group's various premises around the country.
Some hospitality operators are also adapting their training programmes to offer qualifications equivalent to a foundation or bachelor degree. Global coffee giants, Starbucks, have pledged to recruit 1,000 new apprentices by 2020 and to introduce level four, five and six apprenticeships to their training scheme, whilst Pizza Hut hit the headlines earlier this year when, partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University, they became the first business in the industry to offer a managerial apprenticeship to degree level.
Skills Minister Nick Boles MP commented: "Apprenticeships open doors for young people around the country. That's why I am committed to three million more apprenticeships by 2020."
