The hospitality charity, Springboard, has now helped more than 2,500 young Scots secure jobs in hospitality as part of its ‘Springboard to 2022’ initiative, which set out to help support 10,000 people into employment in the sector across the UK.
The 10,000 trainees of all ages, backgrounds, and walks of life, have fallen in love with hospitality and secured work within renowned businesses, including IHG, Compass, Hilton, Jury’s Inn, Starbucks, Pizza Hut, and Nando’s.
Among the trainees, Maryna Tonka, a single mother who fled the war in Ukraine to find shelter for herself and her daughter in Scotland, has secured work as an F&B Assistant at the IBIS South Bridge in Edinburgh. Maryna signed up for the training hoping to learn new skills to help her overcome the language barrier faced in Scotland and enable her to find employment.
Discussing her experience, Maryna said, “As a refugee from Ukraine, I wanted to be useful to the country sheltering us. As part of my training, I learned valuable skills such as how to work in a team and how client relationships differ between Ukraine and Scotland. The training was hugely valuable and has helped me find a job I truly enjoy.”
Chris Gamm, CEO of Springboard, said, “We’re delighted to have reached and exceeded our goal, helping more than 10,000 people find employment this year. Hearing how the programme has changed the lives of participants – many of whom faced challenges such as mental or physical health conditions and the war in Ukraine – makes this achievement even more meaningful.
“Knowing we’ve been able to support the hospitality businesses we work with as they continue to face staffing challenges resulting from Brexit and COVID-19 is also incredibly positive – and we look forward to furthering this next year.”
The Springboard team supports people into jobs via a range of employability training programmes that include one-to-one mentoring, and soft and hard skills development, while also providing access to work placements for participants to gain hands-on, practical experience. Springboards efforts have helped leading industry businesses by ensuring they have access to a skilled and engaged talent pipeline ready for the industry when vacancies become available.
For more information on Springboard to 2022, visit https://springboard.uk.net/support-us/springboard-to-2022/