Employer Focus: Skern Lodge
This month we heard from Becky at Skern Lodge who shared feedback and updates from her hospitality apprentices.
What business do you work for and where are you based?
I work at Skern Lodge in Appledore, Bideford Devon
What is your job role role at Skern Lodge?
My roles is Catering, Housekeeping and Retail Manager
How many apprentices do you have and how are they settling in?
We currently have 2 apprentices, Keira is doing a level 2 Hospitality team member and Evanna is doing a level 3 Hospitality supervisor. They work across our hospitality departments. They have both settled in really well, are completing units and coursework on time and are thriving within our staff team.
What benefit to Skern as a business are your apprentices?
Training the next generation of hospitality staff is hugely important to the industry and having the flexibility of a work place apprenticeship gives the individuals the chance to gain qualifications while receiving quality training alongside getting the practical skills and knowledge to support and develop themselves.
We hope that both of their journeys here at Skern Lodge will inspire future new recruits.
What has gone well so far for you as an employer of apprentices?
The communication has been great. It’s super useful to have in advance the timetable of visits along with deadlines and work set to be able to follow up with them on their progress. It is really useful to be able to plan timetables and rotas knowing when online learning has been scheduled.
What feedback have you had from your apprentices so far?
They are loving it!
Jimmy our chef has said "It’s been a real pleasure to see Evanna develop from an enthusiastic 16 year old to her new role as an apprentice supervisor. Evanna left Skern to seek new life experiences, but as is a constant trend with Skern Lodge, she returned to begin a fresh challenge in 2021. She is already showing great promise!"
Keira is brand new to Skern and has already shown a high level of maturity with each task set for her. She has embraced her role in the kitchen and housekeeping, mentored by Evanna. The two have worked well together and its great to see them supporting each other.
