Young unemployed people take part in two-week hospitality programme

The Sodexo Foundation donated £17,000 to support the programme for under 25s. The programme ran from 17 - 28 January at Deeside College, Flintshire, North Wales, and was delivered by Sodexo on behalf of The Prince's Trust. The Prince's Trust invited the young people, who are currently unemployed, to attend the 'Get Into' hospitality programme, which was facilitated by Sodexo's learning and development team. The first week concentrated on teaching the participants about food hygiene, health and safety, and customer care. The team also taught them about the importance of the Spirit of Inclusion, a programme created by Sodexo, which looks at diversity and inclusion from an individual, team and business perspective. During the second week the young people were given the opportunity to gain real work experience through working in various catering service areas at the college, which are all provided by Sodexo. These included the kitchen, Café Talk, Café Max, the Refectory and general hospitality. On the final day of the programme, all participants received a certificate at a special presentation ceremony, rewarding their commitment to learning and developing new skills. Around 35 people attended the event, including guests of the participants and representatives from The Prince's Trust, Deeside College and Sodexo. Simon Conway, Sodexo Education account director, said: "Feedback from the participants has been very good and they have expressed their enjoyment of the experience. There are many opportunities in the hospitality industry so we hope that their experience at Deeside College will help them secure work in this area."