7 Skills and training
Training for tourism
111. "Trailblazers" are groups of employers
who have come together to be some of the first to design new apprenticeship
standards and assessments (supported and approved by the Government).[157]
The British Hospitality Association argued that the tourism sector
provided a huge opportunity for young people to start their careers,
but "we want future Government funding and support for apprenticeships
more tailored to the needs of the SME sector which has struggled
to cope with some of the complexity of the first Trailblazer schemes."
Its chief executive, Ufi Ibrahim, noted that the tourism industry
was omitted from the first round of Trailblazers, which she considered
"shocking considering the volume of opportunities that we
are embracing in terms of apprenticeships". She spoke of
the role played by the Tourism Industry Council in bringing the
Minister of Skills and the Minister of Tourism closer together,
adding that she hoped that the Tourism Industry Council would
continue in its role, and even develop it to bring other departments
into the discussions on how best to support tourism for the future:
"We need a greater representation of Ministers across that
table beyond the next election."[158]
112. A focus of the submission we received from Travelodge
was on the company's views on how to tackle the skills shortage
in the tourism industry:
Travelodge believes that UK government needs
to tackle the perception that A levels followed by a three year
residential course is the only route to a good career.
Our own Junior Management Programme (JuMP) is
a proven alternative to going to university, where the average
graduate leaves with a debt of over £44,000.
On this programme school leavers can continue
their education and gain practical, vocational learning in hotel
management, retail, operations, marketing and customer service,
equipping them with the skills to become a Travelodge hotel manager.
On top of this they receive a salary.[159]
113. For Bourne Leisure, Dermot King said: "Unlike
others in the industry, we do not have a great need for Government
to spend on initiatives and training. We think the premium or
the benefit or the value that we bring as a business to our estates
is in the training."[160]
While major companies like Travelodge, Intercontinental Hotel
Group[161] and Bourne
Leisure[162] clearly
have the resources to put in place training programmes, the same
cannot be said for many of the smaller businesses in the tourism
and hospitality trades. The British Beer and Pub Association told
us: "There is a real concern about plans to ask employers
to part-fund apprenticeship schemes. For the majority of pubs
who are independent small businesses, providing some of the funding
will be too high a cost to justify employing an apprentice. The
apprenticeship funding is complicated and hugely difficult for
small businesses to understand or take advantage of. There is
a danger of a one size fits all approach to hospitality."[163]
Amid concerns over the lack of awareness of the opportunities
that exist, UKinbound told us: "The industry would welcome
clearer guidance on the support which Government provides for
apprenticeships, work placements, and greater engagement with
the education sector on delivering quality courses."[164]
The National Coastal Tourism Academy suggested to us that "the
main barriers to participation in training and skills programmes
by businesses (particularly MSEs that employ less than 10 people)
is lack of time, insufficient staff to allow commitment, and lack
of flexibility resulting in the inability to commit to fixed times
in advance."[165]
114. There is
a need for training arrangements and apprenticeships to better
recognise some of the features that make many tourism businesses
unique. These features include seasonality, scale and uncertainty
in customer demand.
115. The Government
should also do more to inform tourism businesses of the opportunities
and funding that exist to train people, particularly young people,
for the world of work.
Tourist guides
116. To many people—perhaps too many people—the
term "professional guide" merely means someone who guides
for a living. The Association of Professional Tourist Guides (APTG)
represents self-employed qualified London Blue Badge Tourist Guides.
The Association's written evidence begins with an overview of
the blue badge qualification and the significance of APTG membership:
"The Blue Badge is the highest qualification in the tourist
guiding profession in the UK." It costs £5,300 to do
the London course. Regional courses cost £3,000 on average.
Income for regional guides does not always cover the cost of doing
the relevant course, which results in a shortage of qualified
guides in some regions. The APTG adds: "We would welcome
financial support to training providers or students being made
available in the regions."[166]
The APTG goes on: "We believe the experience of visitors
is enhanced by our guiding. Many sites of interest to tourists
recognise this and apart from their own staff, will only allow
Blue Badge Tourist Guides to guide on their premises." Blue
Badge guides also have public liability insurance. The APTG evidence
also refers to some of the risks associated with engaging unqualified
guides: "The level of training required to receive a Blue
Badge and the continuous support of professional associations
such as APTG ensures that Blue Badge Tourist Guides are able to
provide a consistently high quality service to visitors …
This risks being undermined by unqualified guides."[167]
117. Themis Halvantzi-Stringer of the APTG acknowledged
that "some unqualified guides are very good"[168]
but her promotion of those with professionally recognised qualifications
found a supporter in Bernard Donoghue of the Association of Leading
Visitor Attractions: "The attractions run by our members
have more than a million visitors per year; that is anything from
Warner Brothers to the National Trust, national museums and galleries,
the Royal Collection and Historic Royal Palaces. They all invariably
use qualified guides, because not to do so has an impact on the
visitor experience of the attraction."[169]
Such an endorsement lends weight to what appears to us to be a
modest request put to us by Themis Halvantzi-Stringer: "The
only thing we want is approval and acceptance of the Institute
of Tourist Guiding as our awarding body and promotion of the term
'professional tourist guide'."[170]
She also said: "The Institute of Tourist Guiding is the Government-approved
body for awarding the qualification for tourist guide in the UK,
and it has not been recognised or invited to participate in the
tourism council. That is a big problem. People who are facing
tourists every day are not being consulted."[171]
118. We do not
believe the work of professional tourist guides has the widespread
recognition it deserves. We believe they should be represented
on the Tourism Industry Council, where they would be in a better
position both to promote their profession and to share the insights
regular contact with tourists provide them with.
157 The Future of Apprenticeships in England: Guidance
for Developers of Apprenticeship Standards and related Assessment
Plans, HM Government, October 2014 Back
158
Q 62 Back
159
Travelodge (TOU0020) Back
160
Q 85 Back
161
Intercontinental Hotel Group (IHG) (TOU0089) Back
162
Bourne Leisure Limited (TOU0012) Back
163
British Beer and Pub Association (TOU0026), para 29 Back
164
UKinbound (TOU0022), para 3.7 Back
165
National Coastal Tourism Academy (TOU0037), para 25 Back
166
Association of Professional Tourist Guides (TOU0028) Back
167
Association of Professional Tourist Guides (TOU0028) Back
168
Q 314 Back
169
Q 313 Back
170
Q 311 Back
171
Q 296 Back
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