BRISTOL HOSPITALITY businesses including restaurants, hotels and catering establishments from across the region came together yesterday, January 13th 2015, at the Mercure hotel on Redcliffe Parade, to pledge over 1,000 job opportunities, apprenticeships and work placements for young job seekers at the Big Hospitality Conversation.
The Big Hospitality Conversation is a nationwide campaign led by the British Hospitality Association in partnership with Springboard, Barclays, Believe in Young People, National Apprenticeship Service, and the DWP. Events like this offer a firm commitment to creating job opportunities for 16-24 year olds. Over 36,000 job opportunities have so far been created at events like the one at Mercure and the aim is for the hospitality industry to create up to 60,000 jobs for young people by 2016.
This is the 22nd Big Hospitality Conversation to date and kick-started an ambitious 2015 programme seeks to generate job opportunities across the UK at venues including Tottenham, Nottingham, Sheffield, Newcastle, Swansea, Belfast, Lambeth, Cardiff, Hackney, Legoland, Llandudno, Dundee / Perth, Preston / Blackpool, Leeds, Birmingham, Exeter, Maidstone, and the Isle of Wight.
Anne Pierce MBE, CEO Springboard said:“There is no substitute for hands on experience in the hospitality industry and lots of people don’t know what happens ‘behind the scenes’ so work placements and apprenticeships are vital. It is important that businesses make as many meaningful work placements and opportunities available to young people as possible. The Big Hospitality Conversation is a great way to bring together industry leaders and young people to create a meaningful dialogue resulting in many unemployed and disadvantaged young people gaining vital work experience, apprenticeship and employment opportunities.”
