Compass Group celebrates record cohort of apprentices

Compass Group UK & Ireland celebrated the graduation of 200 of its apprentices - its highest cohort to date - at a recent event at the Pavilion Terrace within the House of Commons in London.

Nearly 600 apprentices are already honing their crafts within Compass and a further 3,000 have qualified over the past four years.

The event was hosted by Nadhim Zahawi MP, apprenticeships advisor to former prime minister David Cameron.

Compass offers training programmes in a range of areas including foodservice, professional cookery, business administration, security, cleaning, finance, human resources, leadership and management.

Zahawi said: "Investment in apprenticeships is absolutely integral. With apprenticeships predicted to add £3.4b to the economy by 2022, it is these talented individuals who will be the driving force of our country in future decades.

L-R: Karen Woodward, Nadhim Zahawi MP, Melanie Hayes, Fiona Ryland

"I would like to congratulate Compass Group UK & Ireland on a proud day for their business. For so many apprentices to officially complete their courses is an excellent achievement. Their commitment to offering high-quality apprenticeships sets a great example for others to follow and demonstrates how the company is fully committed to offering young people a real start in their careers."

Dennis Hogan, managing director, Compass Group UK & Ireland, added: "The importance of high-quality, inclusive apprenticeships cannot be underestimated. People are at the very core of our business and we recognise that much of our future talent will come from our apprentices. Those apprentices who graduated, came to us with a hunger to learn and have developed into productive and engaged colleagues.

"We have seen first-hand the great benefits there are for both the employer and the individual when a company invests in highly skilled apprenticeships. I am so proud of what our apprentices have achieved and would like to congratulate each and every one of them."

In March this year, Compass Group announced its commitment to delivering 1,500 new apprenticeships by 2017. The apprenticeship programme is led by Melanie Hayes, resourcing and development director for Compass, who sits on the government's Apprenticeship Delivery Board.

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