Pathways into hospitality: how do hospitality workers interact with the Scottish education system?

In June, as part of our work with Serving the Future, a three-year research project into the hospitality industry, we published the results of a study that involved hospitality owners and managers discussing the biggest drivers of change in their industry. In this study, we created a workshop and gave these industry leaders a forum to discuss the biggest potential drivers of change for their businesses and the industry as a whole. A major theme of the discussion was about the efficacy of government policy, particularly concerning the educational system. They felt that prospective workers are not set up with the necessary skills required to work in hospitality, and that the system as a whole is confusing and difficult to navigate.

This workshop took place in September and gave us an insight into the skills development landscape in Scotland from one perspective. In May, an economy-wide report on the post-school learning system came out with similar results: that the current skills delivery landscape is confusing, disjointed, and creates “significant tensions” between educational institutions, industries, and the government. It is important to note that all sides have good intentions and good ideas, but the overall structure of the system lacks cohesion and clarity.

These two perspectives led us to a question – how do hospitality workers interact with the educational system, and how does the education system support the hospitality industry?