traInIng InterContinental hotels in uK jobs pledge peTe hayman


InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) is one of a number of private sector com- panies to pledge to create new UK jobs in 2011 and beyond. The hotel operator con-


firmed that it will make 1,000 jobs available this year and a further 3,000 opportunities in the next ‘three-to-four years’. IHG was one of a num-


ber of major private sector employers to meet with Prime Minister David Cameron at Downing Street over how the private sector can be helped to create new UK jobs. Richard Solomons, the group’s chief financial


officer, said: “Hotels offer a quick and flexible way to get people back into work. Tese are jobs with real prospects for progression.


Change, challenges and opportunities


stephen studd is chief executive of SkillsActive


Te operator has pledged to create 1,000 new opportunities this year “Unemployment levels are the highest in the


kinds of jobs needed in the hotel industry – from bar staff, through catering assistants, to hotel porters.”


UWIC sports medicine facility opens Tom Walker


A new sports and exercise medicine centre – one of the first facilities of its kind in the UK – has officially opened at the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff (UWIC). Designed to benefit both


elite athletes and the gen- eral public, the new facility forms part of the National Indoor Athletics Centre and will support sport and exer- cise medicine research. Facilities and services


offered by UWIC’s new centre include ultrasound, sports and clinical biomechanics, echocar- diography, rehabilitiation and physiotherapy. Postgraduate medical education and a range of clinical services will also be supported by the new UWIC facility. Wales national football team manager Gary Speed said: “It is a forward thinking attitude


UWIC’s new centre features sports and clinical biomechanics facilities


and innovative system here at the new Sport and Exercise Medicine Centre.” Dr John Fairclough, professor of sports


medicine, added: “Our links with universi- ties in Wales and the South West of England will allow us to develop a pre-eminent research centre for sport and exercise medicine.”


People 1st calls for improvements in customer service Tom Walker


People 1st has warned that leisure businesses could lose out on Olympic revenue if they fail to improve levels of customer service. Te sector skills council for the hospitality, leisure, tourism and travel industries is urging


© CYBERTREK 2011


I


t’s a challenging time for the pub- lic purse, but if we are going to work through the ongoing recession, educa- tion and skills development needs to be


funded and supported appropriately. Te Conservative Manifesto promised


to create 20,000 additional apprenticeships across key sectors, and yet the coalition government is now stalling on its com- mitment to support the highly successful Young Apprenticeship programme, partic- ularly the Sports Management, Leadership and Coaching programme in our sector. In previous years the policy and process for future cohorts have been released 12 months before teaching begins. Following this model, Sector Skills


Councils, SkillsActive included, should have been informed of the government’s funding commitment in September 2010. Tis would allow time for the Young People’s Learning Agency to allocate funds to delivery partner- ships, and for learners to be recruited ready to start the programme in September 2011. So far, the government has not announced its commitment, so none of this essential process can be commenced. Launched in 2005, more than 2,000 14-16


year-olds have successfully completed the programme, which is now delivered by over 70 partnerships across England. With youth unemployment on the rise, this programme offers young people a much needed career pathway and also helps employers to source skilled talent for their workforce. Over the last five years colleges and


employers have shown incredible dedica- tion and hard work to establish a hugely successful programme and these efforts are now, unfortunately, in danger of being lost to indecision and uncertainty. Without an imminent decision from the


firms to invest in training now to make the most of the £2bn that could be generated from visitors to the 2012 Games. Te UK is currently ranked a lowly 14th in


the international customer service rankings by the annual Nation Brand Index Survey.


Twitter: @leisureopps


government this successful programme will be lost. As a result, young people will be denied an opportunity to prepare themselves for a highly competitive jobs market. On behalf of SkillsActive, I urge the coali-


tion to provide clear guidance on the future of the Young Apprenticeship programme.


Read Leisure Opportunities online: www.leisureopportunities.co.uk/digital 17


image: uwic


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