The hospitality industry is the third largest employer in the UK, employing 3.5 million people in ‘the friendly, generous reception and entertainment of guests'. The hotel industry alone accounts for nearly 7% of the nation’s workforce and with household names like De Vere, Stoke Park and Hartwell House based here in Buckinghamshire, alongside thousands of smaller cafés, bars and restaurants, the sector presents many exciting career paths for our young people.
And yet, there are currently 132,000 vacancies within the hospitality sector. Whilst perception around low wages and long hours are contributing factors, businesses feel the biggest barrier to recruitment is a lack of awareness of the paths on offer among both teachers and students – creating a gap between the skills candidates need to thrive in these positions and what they’re leaving the education system with.
Enter teacher encounters. Bucks Skills Hub has been connecting local businesses with schools to provide teachers with opportunities to discover how their curriculum can better reflect the real world of work. Our most recent collaboration saw a member of staff from John Hampden Grammar School, Chiltern Hills Academy, Alfriston School, and Chiltern Way Academy check into De Vere Latimer Estate, which recently earned a spot on The Sunday Times’ Best Employers list for 2024.
The visit was comprised of a presentation on the hospitality industry and its careers, including the lesser-known routes into finance, HR and communications, followed by lunch in the restaurant and a tour of the estate.
John Hampden Grammar School has utilised the connections formed during the encounter to build relationships between De Vere and relevant school departments. The hotel’s head chef has already taught a GCSE food technology class how to make choux pastry and a member of its People and Culture team met with sixth form students to run a session on CV writing, LinkedIn and what the hotel is looking for in a candidate.
John Hampden's Barbara Harrison said: “The De Vere visit was brilliant! The team structured a very interesting and informative day. We were even taken to the cells underneath the hotel where German Officers, including Himmler, were held as prisoners during the war.”
The geography teachers were equally inspired by what they learnt about the hotel’s unique architecture and landscape, which can be weaved into their lessons to help bring topics to life.
All of this demonstrates how the encounter, which lacked mass appeal at first glance, provided connections to many subject areas – from food technology and drama to history and design.
The message that another teacher, Divya Rajagopal at the Royal Grammar School in High Wycombe, took away to share with students after a similar teacher encounter: “It’s all about soft skills, character and maintaining professional standards. If you show passion for your work, you can go anywhere you wish to be.”