Making an impression in the kitchen may be difficult for some, but apprentice Joshua Clarke has definitely hit the spot as he was recently nominated for Team Member of the Year.
The 19-year-old, who is currently on an Apprenticeship in Food Production and Cooking at the Holiday Inn Solihull, fought off competition from colleagues in his team in the kitchen, to be nominated for the prestigious title.
Together with the General Manager, Martin Woods, Joshua joined six other nominated employees representing different departments of the hotel and attended a gala dinner with awards ceremony at the Best Western Stoke on Trent Moat House.
Despite narrowly missing out on the top title, Joshua comments: “I have always enjoyed spending time in the kitchen and making meals for other people, so this Apprenticeship is perfect for me. Being nominated for Team Member of the Year is a real honour and I’m delighted to be working for such an established organisation. It’s great to see the pleasure on customer’s faces when they’ve eaten food that I’ve prepared and I hope this continues as I further my career within the catering industry.”
With 129 bedrooms and extensive conference facilities, Joshua’s Apprenticeship at the hotel allows him to learn a variety of skills within a busy catering environment, from creating meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner, to preparing buffets for large conferences and weddings.
Edwina Blyth, Human Resources Manager at the Holiday Inn Solihull, comments: “We are absolutely delighted with Joshua and he thoroughly deserves this achievement. Since he started his Apprenticeship he has shown a positive attitude to the role and is extremely hard working, always keen to get the job done. The relationship with Solihull College has been fantastic and we would definitely consider recruiting apprentices in the future.”
After studying Travel and Tourism at Solihull College, Joshua knew he wanted to move into the hospitality and catering environment of the industry and after seeing a role advertised by the College, he secured his Apprenticeship in Food Production and Cooking at the local hotel.
Holiday Inn Solihull belongs to the QMH group of hotels, which operates 18 Holiday Inn, Best Western and Crowne Plaza hotels across the UK.
