Foundation gets cooking with The Prince's Trust

This month, Tottenham Hotspur Foundation has been offering 16 to 24-year-olds the opportunity to gain experience in the fields of cooking and football coaching, in association with The Prince’s Trust.

The week-long industry specific courses aimed at young unemployed people in Haringey have provided a platform for participants to explore a range of career opportunities in catering and sport.

With one in six young people in Haringey struggling to find work (15 per cent), Tottenham Hotspur is committed to delivering a number of education and employment pathways to help address the unemployment issues facing the local community.

Working closely with The Prince’s Trust, where three in four young people working with the youth charity are helped into education, employment and training, the Foundation has been delivering the programme designed to equip young people with the skills and training required to secure employment within the borough.

Get Started with Cooking, staged at Haringey 6th Form Centre, saw 12 young men and women try their hand at a variety of complex recipes whilst working towards a Level 2 Certificate in Food Hygiene.

Participants learnt a number of food preparation techniques, as well as studying budgeting, nutrition, and building transferable skills in confidence, teamwork, communication and leadership.

Those taking part in the Get Started with Football programme worked towards gaining an FA Level One coaching badge. Guided by Foundation coaches, the group learnt about the Club’s coaching philosophy, picking up vital skills to develop their employability across the sport industry sector.

Participants have been recognised for their efforts, receiving tickets to a Premier League game this season courtesy of AIA, the Club’s principal partner.

The work forms part of an extensive employment partnership between Tottenham Hotspur, Job Centre Plus and Haringey Council to deliver new jobs and training for local people as part of the new stadium development and regeneration scheme.

Nikki Kelly, Employment and Skills manager at Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, said: “We are delighted with the achievements of the young people on the programmes.

“Tottenham Hotspur is committed to providing local people with pathways through to employment. It’s paramount to deliver innovative projects like these to help develop the skills of the young people in our community, supporting them to achieve their goals.

“The young people on the project were delighted to receive their match tickets, so a special thanks to AIA for providing these and supporting the achievements of our participants.”

Mona Boghdadi, Programme Executive, The Prince's Trust, said: “Thanks to funding from the Premier League and the PFA, we’ve developed a strong partnership between The Prince’s Trust and Tottenham Hotspur Foundation.

“Across the two programmes, 24 young people will gain the skills they need to help them move into employment, education or further training, and will receive ongoing support from The Prince’s Trust.

“These are great achievements for our young people and I’m looking forward to strengthening our partnership with Tottenham Hotspur Foundation.”

Participants from both courses will now get the chance to apply for apprenticeships with Tottenham Hotspur Foundation and Centerplate, the Club’s catering partner, in addition to exploring the wider education and employment opportunities delivered through the Foundation.