Fortuitous is not a word often used to describe the hospitality industry these days.
According to reports, since March 2020 one in four UK hospitality businesses have been forced to cut opening hours or shut their doors because of staff shortages.
And trade body UK Hospitality has said that in November 2021 there were around 200,000 vacant positions in the industry across Britain.
But an initiative launched by some of this region’s hoteliers and development partnership Opportunity North East (One) during 2019, when the word “coronavirus” was known only to virologists, is delivering benefits in a Covid-ravaged local economy.
Supported by Skills Development Scotland, the Hospitality Apprenticeship North East (Hane) scheme offers 18 months of top-quality training for 16 to 25-year-olds.
It was introduced to attract young adults into the industry and show them a defined career route, while also preparing them for leadership roles.
And since Covid the scheme has become a major asset to the region in helping hospitality businesses to recruit the brightest talent and develop its future leaders.
So successful has the programme been to date, that it is being extended for 2022, thanks to additional support from One and the North East Economic Recovery and Skills Fund (NEERSF).
Alison Christie, area general manager for Jurys Inn and Leonardo Hotels, was one of the founding partners of the scheme.
With the Jurys Inn Aberdeen Airport remaining open for essential travellers throughout the pandemic, Jurys’ apprentice Hannah Kerridge continued to work during lockdowns and was the first to graduate from the apprenticeship programme.
Ms Christie said: “Hospitality Apprenticeship North East is already paying dividends for us in our hotels.
‘Significant dividends’
“Hannah is now so multi-skilled across all departments in the hotel, from the kitchen to reception, that she is a hugely valuable resource. She has an overview of the entire scope of hospitality.
“Time which the team invested in Hannah’s training is paying significant dividends.
“She can work in any area of the hotel, whether covering the reception desk or undertaking shifts as duty manager.”
Ms Christie added: “We’re so impressed by the quality of skilled employee which the scheme has enabled us to have on our team that we aim to recruit three new apprentices in the 2022 intake later this year.”
First to graduate
Ms Kerridge, who had some previous experience working in a hotel part time, is the first of the initial cohort of 2020 to complete an apprenticeship.
Her peers on the scheme are due to achieve this step soon following periods where their hotels were closed during lockdowns.
Explaining what it was that attracted her to the programme, Ms Kerridge said: “Because I had some hotel working experience, I knew it was hotels I wanted to work in and hospitality I wanted a career in.
“The apprenticeship was going to offer me a qualification and far more experience in different departments – which would put me in good stead to go further in my career.”
Gillian Currie, director at Douneside House Hotel, in Tarland, Aberdeenshire, is also an enthusiastic supporter of the scheme.
Ms Currie said: “The pandemic has raised the importance of an issue which has always been a part of the hospitality sector – how to attract, recruit, develop and retain young people.
“Local hoteliers, particularly those in more rural settings, were in need of ways to find young talent.
“Hospitality Apprenticeship North East has been invaluable and is giving Douneside a new generation of hospitality professionals.”
Ms Currie added: “An apprentice who has worked across all aspects of the hotel becomes invaluable very quickly.
“Because of their multi-departmental skills, they are hugely flexible in where and how they can work in the hotel, and this elevates their importance and status.
Hospitality Apprenticeship North East has been invaluable and is giving Douneside a new generation of hospitality professionals.”
Gillian Currie, director, Douneside House Hotel.
“The exposure and experience the apprenticeship gives, with its combination of hands-on experience and training through e-learning, group sessions and statutory training in areas of food safety and health and safety, gives our young apprentices confidence and experience which would otherwise take many years for them to acquire.
“I enjoy the ideas which our apprentices bring to our operations and the question I like to hear most is ‘why do we do it like that?’
“It shows a depth of thinking and is usually followed up with ideas of potential ways to do things more smoothly or more practically.”
Douneside House Hotel will also be recruiting more apprentices for the 2022 intake.
North-east hoteliers aim to secure sector’s future through new partnership
One chief executive Jennifer Craw said: “North-east Scotland is well-placed to develop a significant sustainable tourism industry within the low-carbon economy, drawing on its outstanding natural environment, adventure tourism potential, and the quality of its people and attractions.
“The Hospitality Apprenticeship North East scheme is helping leading employers to attract and develop talent, preparing them for leadership, and supporting the sector in recovery and into growth again.
“The funding secured from NEERSF by One is enabling more people to be supported in 2022 to train for an exciting career in hospitality as the sector re-builds for the future.”
This year’s Hane scheme is offering more apprenticeships than its predecessors.
The participating hotels, along with details on how to apply can be found at www.hospitalityapprentice.com