United Kingdom | At its recent Workforce and Skills event, UKHospitality unveiled further details of its Hospitality Skills Passport initiative, which will enable new employees to demonstrate completion of the universal entry standard, and will give employers confidence that new starters are competent across a wide variety of necessary skills.
The passport can be used at every level of the sector, from new starters to experienced staff, and will further professionalise training and development in hospitality.
The concept has been tested in partnership with the Department for Work and Pensions through five pilot schemes across England and Wales. The four-week programmes are aimed at providing jobs in hospitality for unemployed people. They offer work experience, compliance and customer service training, and a guaranteed opportunity to interview at the end of the course, where they also receive their Hospitality Skills Passport.
So far, success rates of the initiative have been significant. The pilot schemes have seen an 85 percent completion rate and 80 percent of those completing the course are now employed in hospitality. For the schemes and passport to be rolled out further, UKHospitality has asked for funding from the Adult Education Budget to be allocated to employment programmes such as this.
Kate Nicholls, Chief Executive of UK Hospitality, said hospitality’s variety is undoubtedly one of its strengths, but entering the sector to work can be one of its greatest challenges.
“There are multiple routes into hospitality, and with more than 200 different qualifications on offer, getting started can be confusing and deter potential entrants. That’s why a universal entry standard has never been more important," said Nicholls.
“The new Hospitality Skills Passport initiative that we’ve developed, which is backed by the sector and being piloted by Government, does just that and can revolutionise the way we recruit, induct and develop our people. The evolution of this passport, by offering one place where people can store and track their qualifications, we can improve the lives of employers and employees at the same time. It will streamline onboarding, identify training needs and help develop skills quicker than ever before."
Nicholls said that sharing the details of the passport has been a delight, especially as the pilot schemes have helped get people back into work.
“We now need to move into the next phase to roll this out on a wider scale. That inevitably requires funding and we’re encouraging the Government to offer greater flexibility by allowing Adult Education Budget funds to be used for this type of employment programme, given the clear benefits it can offer the sector and the economy.”
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