This week is National Apprenticeship Week, which offers the chance to celebrate an invaluable way to recruit and develop people in the sector. 

Apprenticeships are a great way of attracting new talent into the travel industry, as new recruits earn money while working towards a nationally recognised qualification. But they’re not just for new people; our members are also using them to offer existing staff, at all career levels, an opportunity to develop new skills. 

Apprenticeships can also contribute significantly to profitability, with Government research finding that 78% of companies say apprenticeships improve productivity. 

We have been supporting the week on our social media channels, with inspiring examples from members who emphasise how much they value staff who joined their companies as apprentices, many of whom are still with the company after a number of years.

Apprenticeships also featured strongly in our Developing and Retaining Talent event, held earlier this week, with speakers sharing their experiences of offering a wide range of apprenticeship opportunities both for new starters, and as a way of developing and retaining talent within their businesses. 

Separate to our work around apprentices we, and other industry colleagues, have been working together to develop travel qualifications for pre-university level students. It’s important that this level of education provides students with industry approved knowledge that is timely and relevant. By having industry contributing to the development of these courses we can ensure that what students learn is what employers need. This will also have the additional benefit of helping students prepare for any relevant apprenticeships in travel, should they wish to take this route. 

Getting the right courses for students will not only help people looking to develop their careers in travel, but also provide members with a dedicated, enthusiastic and knowledgeable work force at a time when staff recruitment and retention are a priority. 

Mark Tanzer, Chief Executive