The Act NOW! campaign is designed to raise both employers’ and learners’ awareness of the opportunities apprenticeships 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.
“With more than 2.5m people unemployed throughout the UK, the hospitality industry is in a fantastic position to be able to help move people into work, especially through apprenticeships – and at the same time address its current skills gaps.
“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.
“We wanted to create a campaign so that people knew exactly what they were being asked to do when we say Act NOW!”
The five steps the campaign promotes are based around:
Using pre-employment training designed specifically for the hospitality industry – or hiring someone who has completed the programme
Hiring an apprentice by working with an apprenticeship training association, which acts in a similar way to a recruitment agency for apprentices
Using innovative tools to deliver apprenticeships
Becoming a registered Good Employer on the industry’s careers guidance website, UKSP
Providing career progression by employing someone on a higher apprenticeship in hospitality management or progressing existing staff into new roles
Jackson said that a number of employers were already working with the Hospitality Guild and its partners to meet the target of 20,000 job opportunities.
“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.”
For more information about the Act NOW! campaign – and the steps that employers can take – visit the Hospitality Guild website www.hospitalityguild.co.uk/actnow