Barrhead Travel has been praised by Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) for its “commitment to supporting young people with career options within the travel industry”.
Scottish Labour MSP Paul O’Kane originally submitted the motion in Scottish Parliament in support of the agency, which was then backed up by a further 16 MSPs.
The motion noted that Barrhead’s initial inspiration for this scheme was “recognising that many traditional travel and tourism apprenticeships in Scotland had either greatly reduced or stopped altogether”.
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“[Barrhead] therefore wished to help reinvigorate the opportunities on offer for young people in Scotland,” the motion added.
Last month, the agency started searching for more than 50 modern apprentices to join its retail network across the UK.
Barrhead aims to have an apprentice in every store and plans to release additional apprenticeship opportunities for head office positions.
Working in collaboration with Glasgow Clyde College and training provider Northern Training, the agency has designed a bespoke programme which incorporates college studies, workplace learning and group sessions.
Speaking about the accolade, Barrhead president Jacqueline Dobson said: “Relaunching our modern apprenticeship programme has been one of our biggest milestones this year.
“Barrhead Travel is well known across the industry for our passion for bringing young people into travel, but it is very welcome to receive praise at government level, particularly as we have been lobbying politicians to ensure that travel and tourism careers are promoted as positive options for school and college leavers.
“The young people we employ today are the industry’s innovators and leaders of the future.
“No investment is more important than training for our people – even more so for young people who are starting out in the world of work and looking to employers who can nurture and inspire their careers.”