“You are promised flexible working hours from the start and that promise has been honoured to the letter. Initially I worked three days a week, but then switched to two so that I could teach hairdressing at Furness College in Barrow. Making that switch was never a problem – I can’t speak too highly of the way the Lakeside treats its part-time Operations Assistants.”
After an initial Trinity House interview with Training Manager Sarah Kendall, Jackie began her New Starter Training Programme with an explanation of just what was planned for the new recruits before they would be able to take up their food and beverage roles at Lakeside.
Training Manager Sarah Kendall says: “It was a change of tack for us in that we wanted to recruit different people – more mature people if you like. Married mothers don’t give us a problem – we can give them work during the time their children are at school or nursery and make sure they are back at home by teatime.
“Or, for some who prefer to work slightly later, we can give them a shift from ten in the morning until six in the evening. Beyond that, from six in the evening onwards if that suits them better. We listen to what they want and take it from there.
“They get a total of nine days’ intensive training and, apart from the practical skills they need to learn, there’s also emphasis on honing their ‘people skills’ – interacting with guests after they have learned, with our help of course, lots of interesting things not only about Lakeside but also about the Lake District itself.”
Jackie, from Kirby in Furness, near Barrow, came through the nine days of initial training on that very first New Starter course with flying colours and says of her life at Lakeside: “The flexibility of hours I wanted to work they offered to me was just great – they go out of their way to accommodate your requirements.
“I have a son, Ryan, who is now thirteen, and working ten until six is perfect – I drop Ryan off at the bus stop for school in the morning and either my husband, Paul, or my Mum and Dad, are there for him when he gets home. In any event, I’m home myself before half past six in the evening after a really interesting day – no two are alike, by the way, because by the very nature of things hotel guests come and go all the time.
“Ryan is a very promising cricketer – a fast bowler – and sometimes when he’s playing it means I need to swap one of my days so that I can be there with my husband to support him. It’s never a problem – you just give the Lakeside advance notice that you want a particular day off and your request is granted. They could not be more accommodating.
“What I really like is that it’s not just about waiting on tables in the Lakeview Restaurant or the Conservatory – in a way we are ambassadors not only for the hotel in particular but for the Lake District in general. It’s nice to chat to guests, whether it’s just to tell them the times the steamers sail from Lakeside or perhaps to talk about Beatrix Potter. I’m invariably to be found in the Conservatory and it’s just lovely.”
Victoria Shepherd and Carlos Corris are more recent additions to the Food and Beverage staff and both have settled into Lakeside life as happily as the hotel’s ducks take to the water. Their backgrounds could hardly be more different – Carlos was unemployed for years before applying to join the Trinity House New Starter programme, whereas Victoria did kitchen design in Brighton before coming back home to Barrow with her three-year-old son Joshua.
Having come through the nine training days with flying colours Victoria (26) elected to work five days a week from six in the evening until eleven – “sometimes three to eleven” – in Ruskins Brasserie and from day one you would be hard pressed to find a happier Academy Apprentice. Sarah Kendall says of her: “We are delighted she chose to come back to her roots and that she landed at Lakeside.”
And of Carlos, who was out of work for a depressing three years before taking the Trinity House route to employment, Sarah says: “His is a heartwarming story – he was physically shaking when he first came to see us at Trinity, but then that’s hardly surprising given that he had been unemployed for so long. But despite his nerves we could immediately see that he had real potential. He has lovely manners and his work in the Lakeview Restaurant – he works from seven in the morning until four in the afternoon – has been excellent.”
Victoria says: “I can’t tell you how much I’m enjoying it and how easily I settled in from day one.” And Carlos believes: “Getting a job like this at The Lakeside has totally changed my life – it has given me a sense of achievement, boosted my confidence and restored my self-respect”.
Sound like a back-to-work scheme which might suit you? Sarah Kendall says: “We are looking for small teams to work hours that suit each and every individual and we have been delighted with many of our first recruits. We are genuinely prepared to be as flexible as we possibly can.
“And it’s not just food and beverage people we are interested in recruiting – we give hands-on training in many aspects of hotel work. By their very nature, hotels are twenty four-seven, non-stop businesses and that means we need staff of one kind or another virtually around the clock.
“All our training, by specialist coaches, is intensive with attention to detail always of paramount importance. We encourage all our staff to take a genuine pride in their work and for our part we go out of our way to try and give them the working hours that suit them and their families best.
“We know that there must be many good people out there, including Mums and Dads with families, who despair of finding meaningful employment again simply because of the particular hours many employers have to stipulate. But we certainly feel that we may have something to offer which could be mutually beneficial.”
Anybody interested should contact Sarah at either Trinity or Lakeside on….
email: Sarah.Kendall@LakesideHotel.co.uk
phone: 015395 39865
or via our enquiry form: enquiry form |
