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College students training for Olympic roles

Two Gateshead College students are building their CVs by taking part in a new training opportunity at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Jessica Wood and Matt Hewitt join 300 students at the college training to be stewards as part of Bridging the Gap, a London 2012 project which aims to address the ongoing skills shortage in the security industry.

Students on the scheme will gain an industry recognised qualification awarded by the British Institute of Innkeeping that guarantees a job interview for a role as a paid steward with the Game’s security contractor.

If selected, the students could find themselves at the heart of the world’s biggest sporting event, performing a range of tasks and duties to ensure spectator safety and security.

The BIIAB 2 Award in Door Supervision course covers working in the private security industry and as a door supervisor, offering training in conflict management and physical intervention skills.

Tim Poolan, Gateshead College’s strategy manager, said: “We are responding to a specific demand for training from employers.

“The Bridging the Gap scheme means our young people will be able to benefit from a guaranteed interview with the security provider at the Olympic Games.

“This is not only a once in a lifetime chance to be part of something very special here in the UK but also an opportunity for them to acquire the skills and qualifications needed to get jobs in a sector which recruits thousands of people a year.”

Eighteen-year-old Matt Hewitt, said: “I’m very excited at the possibility of working at the Olympics in London and will be using the skills and experience gained on my course to hopefully make a big impression at my interview.

“I didn’t think that I would ever have the chance of going, but through BtG and the college I have been able to get a chance to go, alongside gaining a qualification that I am interested in and that might help get a job in the future.

“Just to be there and experience it would be great, but it is even better to be able to say that I was a part of it and that I worked there.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Keighley .