Tasty meals and life-changing training for vulnerable young people in Coventry are on the menu at Metropolis – a stunning art deco restaurant that is set to open its doors on Wednesday 30th June. The new venue owned by PET-Xi Restaurants, will operate as a training ground for young people who are ‘Not in Education, Employment or Training’ (NEET), with the aim in this year alone to help 100 young people begin their journeys, turn their lives around and move from NEET into the hospitality industry. The first team members have been recruited – suited and booted and are ready to welcome the additional 2.5 million visitors that are expected to fuel an economic boost of £211 million, within the region during Coventry’s year as UK City of Culture.
Commenting on the opening, Fleur Sexton, Managing Director of PET-Xi, said, “We are extremely excited – Metropolis will provide life-affirming opportunities for unqualified young people to gain qualifications, experience and turn their lives around.”
Head Chef Sean Woodall, who benefitted from a similar scheme, is experienced in training and working with young people and is looking forward to being a mentor. General Manager, Kate Maguire from Holiday Inn who has a background of excellent hospitality management experience and mentoring has also joined the team.
Young people joining the scheme will gain experience in all aspects of restaurant work including training as chefs, sous chefs and kitchen porters as well as learning about customer service, bar work and marketing. Their traineeship placement will also include general employability and work prep, maths and English Functional Skills, and Level 2 qualifications in Customer Service and Food Hygiene. For those who show real potential, there will also be opportunity for Level 3 and 4 Leadership and Management qualifications.
On completion of their traineeship, each young person will graduate onto a Kick Start placement for six months with a 25-hour/week paid salary, progressing to an apprenticeship in Hospitality and Catering, and qualifications in Catering or Customer Service Level 3 or 4.
As well as PET-Xi providing training, Warwickshire College Group (WCG), will offer teaching opportunities. Angela Joyce, CEO of WCG, said, “This is a very exciting project that will help to change the lives of young people in the region and we are delighted to be supporting it. In recent years, we have invested significantly to expand our hospitality provision with the launch of our Professional Cookery course at Rugby College and our new on-site restaurant courses later this year. It is crucial that we are able to support the next generation of skilled hospitality professionals to help rebuild the industry following the pandemic, and projects like this will be essential to doing just that.”
During the pandemic, youth unemployment in Coventry rose by 107%, and with young people disproportionally employed in the hospitality and retail sectors they were hardest hit during lockdown.
“With an 82%1 decrease in apprenticeship starts during the last year, and NEET numbers due to climb in September due to school leavers without destinations and young people who do not attend or leave their 16+ provision at the start of September, training opportunities like this are essential for young people,” explained Dave Lewis, PET-Xi Management Team. “Experience such as that offered at Metropolis is truly life changing.”
“There is so much going on during Coventry’s year as the UK’s City of Culture 2021, making it a very exciting place to be in – it seemed the perfect time to do this. We look forward to welcoming hungry diners and tourists very soon.”
1 House of Commons Briefing Paper Number 06113, 30 March 2021 Apprenticeship Statistics
