Skills & Training

A well trained and highly skilled workforce is essential to delivering an excellent visitor experience.

Investment in training can help businesses flourish.  It can help operators achieve commercial goals and expand market presence.  By equipping staff with the appropriate skills they are likely to perform much better, which will have a positive impact on business.

Around 100,000 people are currently employed in the region’s tourism related industries. Working in partnership with People 1st and Sector Skills Council, EMT supports a range of courses and training programmes to help businesses tackle key issues such as customer service, management development, staff turnover and financial planning. By 2011 tailored courses will be delivered to around 1500 of the region’s businesses to help them up-skill their staff.

Training can help businesses to:

• Improve customer satisfaction
• Deliver exceptional standards of service
• Increase repeat business
• Generate new business

The easiest way to fast-track through the maze of training and development courses on offer to tourism businesses is to contact Business Link.  An initial consultation with a Business Link skills broker will help identify what help is required, and where best to find it. 

Brokers can offer advice on where both publicly funded and private training opportunities are available, as well as guidance relating to funding.

People 1^st,,  an employer-led organization at the heart of the skills agenda in the UK, offers a range of training opportunities for the hospitality, leisure, travel and tourism industries.

The region’s give Destination Management Partnerships also offer a range of courses covering everything from food management, quality and marketing to exceeding visitor expectations.