Former skills minister and BPP Education Group senior advisor Robert Halfon says companies must embrace vocational paths into the sector
It’s an understatement to say that the global travel and tourism industry has undergone turbulent changes in recent years.
The pandemic created a period of instability, during which the industry declined by as much as 75%. Business owners had no choice but to make redundancies, and many skilled employees also moved on to other sectors that were perceived as being more stable during this difficult time.
Things couldn’t look more different as we approach the end of 2024. Domestic travel is expected to grow 3% annually, reaching 19 billion lodging nights annually by 2030, and overseas travel has also rebounded strongly.
As the travel and tourism sector gets firmly back on its feet, this increase in demand has spotlighted the skills shortages that persist in a post-pandemic world. Skills gaps are higher in the UK travel and tourism sector (8.3%), compared to an average of 6.5% across all other Department for Culture, Media and Sport sectors.
While they are by no means a silver bullet for all business needs, apprenticeships have been key to bridging skills gaps, increasing workforce productivity and unlocking a robust workforce that can keep up with the wider travel and tourism industry’s growing demands.
Increasing staff retention in the long term
In 2022, as many as 130,000 jobs needed to be filled across the travel and tourism sector. As the travel industry recovers from these staff retention issues from previous years, employers must showcase their culture and why they’re a good place to work to attract the right talent.
Apprenticeships have proven to support staff retention. For example, offering tailored training and development opportunities can demonstrate the business’ commitment towards the personal development of its employees, encouraging them to remain and grow within the business.
Additionally, sharing the stories of candidates who have successfully completed apprenticeships as case studies can be a useful marketing tool to help with an external recruitment drive.
Creating opportunities for learners of all ages and levels
One of the biggest benefits of apprenticeships is their ability to support people of all ages and skill level who want to further their career or switch careers entirely. And while it’s no secret younger age groups have benefited from apprenticeships over the years, the uptake amongst older age groups has been lower.
However, a recent study that analysed older workers’ ability to fill skills vacancies found that 70% of people aged over 55 would be open to working in the travel sector, but 68% of those feel they do not have the skills they need to succeed, skills that could be developed through apprenticeships.
Older workers are often an overlooked corner of our workforce. They face unfair assumptions that they are somehow less adaptable, have poorer IT skills, or are less physically fit than younger workers.
These negative stereotypes mean older workers aren’t considered for apprenticeships or other types of training in the same way as younger workers. That needs to change to fill skills gaps in sectors like travel and tourism.
Enhancing our apprenticeship policy
According to the Office for National Statistics, 752,150 apprentices were employed across the UK in 2023, a 1.6% increase from the previous year. The Apprenticeship Levy, introduced in 2016, has driven this uptake.
The new government’s decision to widen the scope of the Apprenticeship Levy to a Growth and Skills Levy may allow businesses to use their levy contributions to fund training through routes other than apprenticeships. The refreshed policy promises added flexibility for employers.
While the timeline for the new levy’s rollout has yet to be confirmed, the government is still committed to boosting skills through apprenticeships, and there’s a real opportunity for the travel sector to take advantage of this refreshed policy.
Final thoughts
As the travel industry looks ahead to a period of prosperity, we shouldn’t overlook the immense potential within apprenticeships and the power of high-quality, well-structured training programmes to overcome talent shortages. Apprenticeship programmes develop the key skills, knowledge and behaviours needed to succeed in any career.
With related sector apprenticeships available from level two right up to higher levels, there is an apprenticeship offering for all kinds of employees and companies. They allow young people and adults to train and retrain throughout their careers, benefiting themselves and the businesses they work with.
To maximise opportunities for growth and development, the travel sector must recognise and embrace the crucial role that apprenticeships can play in developing a pipeline of future talent. This will be critical to accelerating and fulfilling the sector’s potential in the long term.
The Rt Hon Robert Halfon was minister for skills, apprenticeships and higher education at the Department for Education from October 2022 to March 2024. He was previously minister for apprenticeships and skills from July 2016 to June 2017 and is now a consultant for BPP Education Group.