Diversity and Inclusivity

At Whitbread, we firmly believe that there should be ‘no barriers to entry and no limits to ambition’. We are delighted that there are numerous examples in our business where our team members have grown from starting out as a Receptionist or Kitchen Team Member, to running their own hotel, or restaurant, and it doesn’t stop there.

We invest £12 million every year on training our teams and we have a number of programmes across our brands, which focus on employment opportunities, training and development.

• Our internal MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT programmes focuses on supporting high potential team members and managers, helping them progress into their next roles to become our future leaders.
• Our two-year-long GRADUATE scheme is based at our Support Centre, and includes areas such as Operations Leadership, HR, Finance, Marketing and Property.
• Our Restaurant SKILLS ACADEMIES welcome thousands of team members every year, who take part in skills training such as customer service, food preparation, and cooking courses, amongst many others.

We are proud to feature as a leading example of best practice in partnerships and campaigns. Here are a few examples of how we are making a difference:

• We partner with People 1st, which was announced as one of the seven projects launched as part of the UK Futures Programme, created by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills, aiming to boost the careers of low paid workers in retail and hospitality sectors.
• Whitbread was a launch partner in Business in the Community’s “Future Proof” initiative – a campaign to help businesses break down the barriers in their recruitment processes and create quality accessible jobs for all young people.
• We support the Department of Work and Pensions ‘See Potential’ campaign, providing jobs and training opportunities to people, regardless of their background.
• Whitbread’s partnership with JobCentre Plus was further enhanced in 2015 by the launch of Hospitality Works – a national initiative led by The British Hospitality Association in partnership with Department for Work and Pensions. This initiative aims to promote opportunities to suitable jobseekers; enhancing recruiter’s knowledge to find the right people; and linking future workers into locally available training.
• Premier Inn has worked in partnership with Derwen College since 2013. Derwen provide training for young people with learning difficulties and disabilities aged 16 to 25, by giving them vital independence skills and preparing them for the workplace. Premier Inn provides the students of Derwen College with training and work experience opportunities at our local hotels.