Co-hosted by UKHospitality and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), the event was supported by industry leaders: Compass Group UK & Ireland, Springboard, One Housing Group and Your Story.
Together, they provided the 40 attendees with insight on how a career in hospitality could work for them, skills development workshops, and Compass also discussed current vacancies within the organisation.
Head of apprenticeships and early careers at Compass Group UK & Ireland, Jonathan Foot, said: “Compass is a people powered business.
“We work at over 10,000 sites in the UK, covering a wide range of sectors, including healthcare, defence, education, sports and leisure, providing many different opportunities for a role within our business.
“We recognise the need to invest and train our people, and have 16 different apprenticeships available to help people learn on the job and develop a career with Compass.
“It was great to have the opportunity to work with Springboard, Your Story and One Housing to support people back into work.”
The event formed part of the DWP Hospitality Works 2019 campaign, #JobsWithASmile, which launched earlier this year to attract more workers into the sector and raise aspirations.
Springboard chief executive, Anne Pierce, commented: "I am delighted to see (Springboard’s) partnership with Compass continue to go from strength to strength.
“Compass has a dedicated team focused on developing talent within its business.
“Together with our joint commitment to creating opportunities that enable people to achieve their potential, and nurture unemployed people of any age into work, means we can provide a broad range of programmes thst help people develop and progress their careers.
“Our partnership demonstrates the benefits of investing in the future workforce and diversifying recruitment pathways to the Hospitality sector."
DWP’s Andy Woodcock added: “We’ve built on the success of the Hospitality Works programme year-on-year, and this has been the best one yet.
“We hope that, as a result of these events, we’ll see many of the candidates find work within hospitality and get the opportunity to climb up the ladder.”