After a challenging few years, recovery is the aim for everyone involved in the hospitality industry.
With the country reopening for business following the Covid-19 pandemic, employers are looking to grow – and that means recruitment.
But with vacancies in the sector soaring, how do business owners attract the talent they need to succeed?
Apprenticeships can be the solution, offering an accessible pathway to a huge variety of flexible and rewarding hospitality careers.
BIIAB, an awarding organisation that is part of the Skills and Education Group, offers end-point assessments for a range of apprenticeship standards. Our assessments ensure that apprentices are confident and capable, providing businesses with the skilled employees they need.
If you’re a college, training provider or employer, you can work with us to deliver hospitality apprenticeships and take advantage of the huge demand for staff in this essential industry.
Read on to find out more about why there has never been a better time to support hospitality apprenticeships.
A national priority
Strengthening the hospitality and tourism sector has been a government priority since the publication of the Tourism Sector Deal in 2019, which set the ambitious aim of delivering 30,000 hospitality and tourism apprenticeships by 2025.
Now, as the hospitality sector recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic, there is huge demand for new staff. Labour market statistics published in February 2022 showed that there were more than double the number of hospitality vacancies than in the corresponding pre-pandemic period. Furthermore, data from September this year showed that nearly 40% of hospitality businesses in the accommodation and food industries were experiencing skilled labour shortages.
Therefore, new hospitality staff are in demand, and there is a wealth of opportunities for individuals to start a successful career in this industry.
Changing perceptions
However, many people do not even consider a career in hospitality due to the negative perceptions about this industry that continue to persist. According to UK Hospitality, only 1 in 5 UK adults of working age consider hospitality to be an appealing industry to work in. Furthermore, Umbrella Training’s White Paper Report 2022 surveyed more than 2,000 young people between the ages of 14-21 and found that only 1 in 10 of these young people would choose a career in hospitality. The top reasons for not being interested in a hospitality career included “The pay is not very high”, “I don’t know much about jobs in hospitality”, and “I don’t think I have the right skills”.
However, the industry is making a concerted effort to increase the appeal of hospitality jobs. The Hospitality Rising campaign is the official industry response to the current recruitment crisis and is backed by the Hospitality and Tourism Skills Board. It aims to raise £5 million for an advertising recruitment campaign to change perceptions of working in hospitality. This campaign has gathered support from high-profile organisations, including Pret a Manger, Hilton, Welcome Break and the BII. UK Hospitality has also launched a workforce strategy for solving hospitality’s staffing shortage, identifying recruitment, skills and training, and the image of the sector as key aspects of this strategy.
Ideal for young people
Though these negative perceptions exist, Hospitality Rising and other campaigns such as Hospitality Apprenticeships Week have plenty to work with when selling the benefits of hospitality careers. Umbrella Training’s survey also asked young people why hospitality was an attractive career for them. The top reasons given included “I like to make people happy”, “It is a fast-paced and fun working environment”, “I want to work flexible hours”, and “There are opportunities to learn progress and earn more quickly”. These are all great reasons why working in hospitality is exciting and offers young people long-term prospects.
For young people who want to make a positive impact on others, hospitality is the perfect environment. The Hospitality and Tourism Workforce Landscape, a research report conducted by Economic Insight for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport in 2019, noted that 45% of the hospitality and tourism workforce is employed in roles where staff behaviours make the crucial difference to a great customer experience, higher than most other UK industries.
Furthermore, there are excellent progression opportunities available in hospitality. It’s a sector in which people can learn on the job and continuously develop their skills, meaning apprentices can quickly move up the ranks into well-paid senior positions.
Inn Cornwall has been using apprenticeships for over 10 years, with their apprentices taking BIIAB end-point assessments before becoming full-time members of the team. Some of their staff have developed into managers after starting out as apprentices:
“Now that I have finished my apprenticeship, I have taken the role of sous chef in the kitchen where my journey began, doing work experience while at school. I now manage a team of chefs, which includes two Level 2 apprentice chefs that I train and help guide through their apprenticeships.”
– Darren Dunstan, former Level 3 Chef de Partie Apprentice
Here’s what Mark Holden, Director of Inn Cornwall and BIIAB Trustee, thinks about apprenticeships:
“People don’t necessarily associate pubs with having career path options, but the skill set behind the schemes is so diverse. Apprenticeship schemes can assist in many different areas of business such as accounting, marketing, HR and general maintenance etc.
“We found apprenticeships help with retention across our company. It also provides us with a great long-term progression plan, which is appealing for when we are recruiting.
“I love seeing our apprentices’ confidence levels grow from day to day and hearing what they’ve been learning about after each day at college.”
For all ages and stages
Hospitality apprenticeships are not just for young people though. They are also great options for those looking to change career, or individuals already working in hospitality who want to take the next step.
Even if someone does not have prior experience in hospitality, they can still succeed in this industry. As stated by Daniel Ciapponi, Senior Lecturer at EHL Insights, soft skills such as communication and customer service can take you a long way in hospitality:
“As employers are focusing on soft skills over hard skills, which can be taught on the job, those candidates who will rise to the top of the pile are those who have demonstrated experience in soft skills.”
– Daniel Ciapponi, Senior Lecturer at EHL Insights.
Hospitality is therefore an accessible industry in which people can use existing skills developed elsewhere.
Furthermore, at a time when more and more people want flexibility in their jobs, hospitality is ideally placed to provide this. Economic Insight asked a sample of hospitality and tourism workers what motivated them to pursue a job in this industry, and the main reason given was “It fits my lifestyle”. The hospitality industry is ideally suited to provide a flexible alternative to the 9-5.
Given the huge range of vocational hospitality qualifications available, there is always the capacity for hospitality employees to continue developing their skills on the job.
And even if individuals do not intend to stay in hospitality forever, they are developing cross-sector skills. Working in a hospitality business provides an opportunity to gain experience in a wide variety of fields, from customer service and health and safety to business administration and leadership. So, even if an employee chooses to leave the sector, they will have the transferable skills to thrive elsewhere.
Funding is available
Remember that apprenticeships are also an attractive option for employers because of the government funding available. The amount an employer can receive depends on their pay bill and number of employees, but many companies can have 90-100% of their apprenticeship training costs funded by the government. Apprenticeships can therefore be a cost-effective recruitment tool at a time when many businesses’ budgets are tight.
We enable hospitality apprentices to succeed
As an awarding organisation that specialises in hospitality, BIIAB should be your first port of call when looking for an End-Point Assessment Organisation. Our experience with the apprenticeship standards in the industry means we know exactly what employers and apprentices need.
We offer end-point assessments at different levels, so you can support learners at different stages. Here are all of our hospitality and catering end-point assessments:
- Level 2 Commis Chef
- Level 2 Hospitality Team Member
- Level 2 Production Chef
- Level 3 Chef de Partie
- Level 3 Event Assistant
- Level 3 Hospitality Supervisor
- Level 3 Senior Production Chef
- Level 4 Hospitality Manager
Take a look at the feedback we received from Truro and Penwith College, one of our Recognised Centres and an organisation that has supported several apprentices with BIIAB end-point assessments.
Case Study – Truro and Penwith College
“Our provision has grown greatly over the last two years as the demand for hospitality staff has grown. Staff shortages across the county have put pressure on businesses and their staff.
“With hospitality being such a large employer across Cornwall, it became clear we needed to provide the training and development for young people in the region to succeed. We work very closely with a wide range of employers across Cornwall to design programmes to meet their needs.
“I teach on the front-of-house programmes and we have worked hard to develop options across a variety of pathways including housekeeping, concierge, food and beverage and outlet supervisor. I am also a training advisor, so I go out to employers and apprentices in the workplace to provide support and guidance and ensure the apprentice is progressing and supported.
“I studied with BIIAB many years ago and then began working with them on end-point assessments when I joined Truro and Penwith College two years ago.
“BIIAB are one of the few End-Point Assessment Organisations who offer all the pathways, including the Level 4 Hospitality Manager pathway. We have worked closely with them over the last year to develop better ways of working and provided input into the end-point assessment process. This has led to an excellent working relationship and helps the apprentices experience a positive end-point assessment.
“We have had meetings with Richard [Ward, BIIAB Product Development Manager] to input on the new Commis Chef standards. We have a large volume of Commis Chef apprentices going through their end-point assessment, so this has helped us. BIIAB understand the pressure points and we have had discussions to help find the best solutions for all parties.
“Over the next year, we plan to continue developing our provision by launching the new Chef de Partie programme and trialling the Future Chef Manager programme. We will also investigate the Production Chef programme due to local demand.
“Over the last 12 months, BIIAB have been very supportive and open to discussions, which has been an excellent way to find solutions, so I would recommend BIIAB to our industry peers.”
– Vanessa Offland, Truro and Penwith College
Making an impact
BIIAB is also part of the Skills and Education Group, an organisation that has been supporting the further education and skills sector for over 110 years. Our mission is the advancement of skills and education to improve the lives of individuals. So, by choosing BIIAB for your End-Point Assessment Organisation, you’re working with a Group that makes a real difference. You can read more about the impact of the Group in our 2020/21 Impact Report.
There are other benefits to be gained through the Group too, such as access to a huge range of additional qualifications through Skills and Education Group Awards, plus professional development and funding opportunities through our membership.
Start your journey
Here at BIIAB, we make sure training providers, employers and apprentices are supported throughout the end-point assessment process. You’ll be in safe hands with us.
To start supporting hospitality apprenticeships, get in touch with our dedicated End-Point Assessment team.
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