The careers talk was delivered by guest speakers Katya Simmons and Elycia Rayner as part of the Choose Hospitality Pledge – a nationwide programme designed to improve the perceptions of the hospitality industry by educating secondary students about the industry’s wide range of entry-level roles and training opportunities, the breadth of roles available and the many career pathways on offer.

Katya is Managing Director of Nestlé Professional, co-founder of the Choose Hospitality Pledge. Committed to the future success of the hospitality industry, the business also runs a MasterChef-style competition for hospitality and catering college students, called the Toque d’Or. Since its inception in 1989, the competition has worked with more than 150 colleges across the UK, providing opportunities and learning to more than 10,000 hospitality and culinary arts students. Elycia was one of 12 Toque d’Or finalists in last year’s competition, which received almost 400 applications, and talked about her own inspiring journey.

The objective of these talks is to provide students with a taster of what hospitality can offer by focusing on:

Roles: showcasing the breadth of roles in hospitality

Progression: sharing the opportunities for progression

People: bringing to life the passion and camaraderie that exists in the industry, showing the important role employees play in putting smiles on customers’ faces and creating memories for guests during key life milestones

You can find further information here and at Hospitality and food | Explore careers (nationalcareers.service.gov.uk)