More than 2,000 students have gained invaluable work experience in the last 12 months through a range of sessions offered at Gulliver’s Theme Park Resorts.
The four resorts – Gulliver’s Kingdom in Matlock Bath, Gulliver’s World in Warrington, Gulliver’s Land in Milton Keynes, and Gulliver’s Valley in Rotherham – offer excellent opportunities for students to learn the theme park ropes by undertaking hands-on roles.
The range of structured, paid-for workshop programmes are designed to give students hands-on experience of working within a major leisure attraction. The immersive workshops help develop teamwork, leadership, problem-solving, communication and presentation skills while showcasing the wide variety of career opportunities available across the industry.
Workshop options include a one-day Careers in Leisure programme, where students explore roles across catering, retail, rides and animal experiences. There are also specialist sessions focused on maintenance and engineering, hospitality, and events and creative careers, giving students the opportunity to discover different career pathways while learning directly from industry professionals.
Schools can also choose a two-day immersive experience that combines careers-focused activities with an overnight residential stay, including meals and evening entertainment.
In addition to the structured workshops, Gulliver’s supports schools with a variety of work experience opportunities, including one-to-one placements and project-based activities that provide a practical understanding of how a leisure resort operates.
Students can get involved with setting up banqueting events, assisting in shops with stock management and pricing, supporting stores with deliveries, and learning about housekeeping operations in a hotel environment. They also have the chance to hear from professionals working in areas including accountancy and engineering.
Mel Burrows-Carr, group training and talent manager at Gulliver’s Theme Park Resorts, said: “Schools and colleges are increasingly seeing the value and importance of investing in work experience opportunities for their students to give them real-life experience of work and our workshops our meeting that demand.
“We provide students, as individuals or through partnerships with their school or college, with a unique chance to discover the wide range of careers available within the leisure industry, whether they’re interested in hospitality, engineering, events, retail or guest services, young people can gain real-world experience and develop valuable workplace skills.
“The workshops are really cost effective and designed to be engaging, interactive and informative, helping young people understand what different roles involve while building confidence and practical experience that will support their future career choices. We’ve seen many students progress from work experience placements into seasonal roles with Gulliver’s, which is incredibly rewarding. We are a family business so nurturing talent and supporting people into a career is really important to us.”
The resorts also work with students on longer-term placements. Young people from local colleges have completed day-release placements within departments including accounts, joinery, painting, guest services and administration, with several securing employment with Gulliver’s afterwards.
Registration is free and places are available in hourly slots.
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