The Minister for Economic Development John Shimmin MHK recently made presentations of certificates to eleven participants who undertook the Sleepwell Hotels Hospitality and Catering Training Programme. All participants on the course had been unemployed for some time. Since completing the course, offers of employment have already been received by several of the participants.
The initiative is organised with the support of the Department of Economic Development in conjunction with Sleepwell Hotels and aims to prepare local people for work within the Island’s Hospitality sector.
Minister Shimmin expressed his support for the programme. He said:
'This is an excellent example of Government and industry working together to address issues in our economy. One of Government’s key priorities is helping young people into employment and helping local businesses find the workers they need. It’s also very important that we encourage people into the hospitality industry with fundamental guidance from schemes such as this. I was very pleased to be able to present these awards to people who really put the effort into making the most of such a valuable opportunity.'
All eleven participants learned the basics of food hygiene and customer service receiving training in food and beverage service, food production, reception and housekeeping duties.
As well as the practical skills developed over the 4 week course, the programme also helped participants address some of the motivational challenges facing unemployed people by focussing on strengthening self-awareness and confidence-building.
Looking ahead to the 2013 intake, Linda Maddrell, HR Manager for the Sleepwell Hotels Group said:
'Initiatives such as this are a perfect solution to the problem of both engaging with young persons who may be struggling in the current economic climate while meeting the growing needs of the Island’s tourism and hospitality employers without looking further afield. I would like to thank the Department of Economic Development for their help and support throughout the formulation and launch of this initiative and look forward to working closely with them on future initiatives. As well as our investment in people, we have already invested over £1M into our hotel infrastructure over the past year, with further significant investment underway.'
