Member Article

Last chance to nominate your food and drink apprentice for brand new award

Don’t let the town’s best apprentices working in Chesterfield’s hospitality sector go unnoticed.

A brand new category – Apprentice of the Year - has been introduced to the 2018 Chesterfield Food and Drink Awards. Sponsored by Apprentice Town, the new award category is designed to recognise the valuable contribution young people are making to the town’s thriving food and drink sector.

Awards organiser Destination Chesterfield is urging businesses to now publicly recognise the hard work and achievement of their apprentices by nominating them for the prestigious award before time runs out.

Apprentice employers can also put themselves forward for the new Apprentice Employer of the Year Award, sponsored by Learning unlimited.

Nominations for both the Apprentice of the Year and Apprentice Employer of the Year categories close at midnight on Friday 29 June 2018.

Councillor Terry Gilby, Cabinet Member – Economic Growth, Chesterfield Borough Council, which is behind the groundbreaking Apprentice Town initiative, explained: “Apprentice Town is committed to raising the participation of young people in apprenticeships in Chesterfield.

“The Award category sponsorship is an important part of the initiative’s drive to raise awareness of the many apprenticeships within the food and drink sector. Equally important, is recognising and celebrating the achievement of the young people who are currently undertaking their apprenticeship, and this award does just that.”

Peter Swallow, Chair of Destination Chesterfield added: “Chesterfield’s hospitality sector is growing. The success of current business and many of the new developments like Peak Resort and the hotels at Elder Way and Chesterfield Waterside rely on young people entering and building their career within the hospitality industry here.

“It is important that we recognise both for the significant contribution they make to Chesterfield and I am delighted that we have been able to introduce these two new categories to the Food and Drink Awards.

“By putting the spotlight on both the young people working within the sector and the apprentice pathway, the awards hope to bring apprenticeships to the attention of young people and employers.

Last year Chesterfield became the first town in the UK to declare itself an Apprentice Town, demonstrating its commitment to growing the future and careers of young people alongside business and the economy. The Apprentice Town partnership seeks to develop Chesterfield as a leading apprenticeship destination, with 4,000 people already participating in apprenticeships in the town.

Other supporters of the awards include Kier Group, Banner Jones Solicitors, BHP Chartered Accountants, East Midlands Chamber, Shorts Chartered Accountants, MSE Hiller, Jumble Creative Design, Casa Hotel, Derbyshire Times, Elder Way (Jomast), Owen Taylor & Sons, Peak FM and Reflections.

To nominate an apprentice for the award, please visit http://www.chesterfield.co.uk/foodanddrinkawards/chesterfield-food-drink-awards-2018-apprentice-year/

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Joe Morton .