News

Out and About 19th March 2015

By Johanna

We have over 30 chefs working all over Scotland

Grant Buchanan is back after a bad cut to his hand and is off to Beaufort Hotel in Inverness.

Douglas ‘Denzil’ Gillies is working up at The Moorings Hotel in Fort William with Victor Garcia they both worked together down at The Cairndale Hotel in Dumfries.

Sharon Shearer has completed a couple of relief jobs at The Beaufort in Inverness and Moorings Hotel in Fort William.

Obed Omwoma still working away up in Shetland he is into his 3^rd month now.

Gerry Mullen came down to meet us here in Moffat at our office and picked up a 4 week job at the Fiddlers’ Music Bar and Bistro over in Broddick on the Isle of Arran.

Edvinas Stankaitis started working at Ramnee Hotel over the weekend.

Lillian Clarkson is still working at Kames Hotel and getting on brilliantly.

James Sharp after working at The Moffat House Hotel he is away up to The Kenmore Hotel working with newly appointed Head Chef Kenny Bruce.

Ryan Williamson is getting on well at The Tolbooth Seafood Restaurant in Stonehaven where he has been asked to stay on.

Henry Samms’ time is coming to an end at The Palm Court Hotel in Aberdeen where he is also working with Ionel Rizea, Frank McDonald and Allen Jack.

We are still keen to meet relief chef whether you are just starting with us or whether you have worked through us for some time just drop me an email and I can let you know our availability.

Thanks again girls and guys for your hard work and support.

We look forward to busy season ahead.

Out and About 12th March 2015

By Johanna

Lillian Clarkson is still working away at The Kames Hotel in Tighnabruich.

Blair Mackay has joined the relief circuit and is into his 2^nd week over on Shetland at the Lerwick Hotel where he has been booked for 3 months.

Jamie Atkinson is up at The Golf View Hotel in Nairn working with Vytis Baltrunas.

Yousef Shengheer after being at Burts Hotel in Melrose for a couple of months he is over on Arran at the Auchrannie Resort.

Ben Mailer is getting on well down at The Dryfesdale Hotel in Lockerbie working with Roger Brown Jason Keenan.

Brian Scanlin is still working at The Kings Seat in Dollar.

Mark Shaw is over at The Crianlarich Hotel for a week working with Steve Moffat.

Relief work is steady and the guys and girls on our books are doing a really good job and providing an excellent service for hotels and restaurants across Scotland with a very high success rate. Very good.

Thanks for all your hard work and continued support.

Dumfries & Galloway Employability Partnership

Dumfries & Galloway Council Employer Recruitment Incentive Pathway to Employment(50% Funding)

Dumfries & Galloway Council has committed funding for an incentive to recruit adults aged 30+ through a wage subsidy programme. Funding of up to £3380 is available for employers who recruit an eligible client.

The target group are identified as those aged 30+ and who are furthest from the labour market and are facing complex barriers to work within the following criteria:

• Pre / Post Work Programme

• With a Disability, Learning Difficulty or Additional Support Needs (10 jobs will be ring-fenced for this client group)

• Facing complex barriers (e.g. Health, Homelessness, Domestic Abuse)

• Lone Parent

• Negatively impacted by Welfare Reforms

Each job will receive 50% of the National Minimum Wage relevant to their age for a maximum period of 26 weeks. They must work between 25 and 40 hours per week and have been unemployed for a minimum of 1 day to meet the eligibility criteria, and they must also have overcome multiple barriers to accessing work. Hours worked are flexible for those with a disability, learning difficulty or additional support needs, please contact the office for more details.

Job opportunities must be with a Small & Medium Sized Enterprise (SME); third sector, voluntary sector or charitable organisation.

Jobs created must be additional to the existing workforce and should be offered on the basis that the position will be sustained beyond the lifetime of the subsidy.

Pathway to Employment is a D&G Council Employer Recruitment Incentive and final decision in relation to accessing the funding rests with the Employability and Skills Service.

Dumfries & Galloway Council Young Recruits Programme (50% Funding)

• Available to young unemployed people aged 16-29 who are Pre/Post Work Programme and are not in full time education and are unemployed for a minimum of 1 day.

• Job opportunities must be for a period of 26 weeks and participants must be paid a sum of not less than the National Minimum Wage (NMW) for a minimum of 25 hours per week and a maximum of 40 hours per week

• Job opportunities must be with a SME; third sector, voluntary sector or charitable organisation and should:

  • enhance the longer term job prospects for participants through concrete job experience;

  • provide support to eligible individuals to move to sustainable employment

• Funding for Young Recruits is for a maximum of 26 weeks per eligible individual aged 16-29 years old. To claim a week for the individual must have worked (or if absent be covered by the employer’s sickness absence/leave policies) a minimum of 25 hours in that week. The total number of weeks paid for any eligible individual aged 16-29 years old will not exceed 26 weeks.

YP 16-17

YP 18 -20

YP 21+

Modern Apprentice Rate

NMW from 01/10/14

£3.79

£5.13

£6.50

£2.73

Maximum Funding Available (x40 hrs x 26 weeks)

£1970.80

£2667.60

£3380.00

£1419.60

DWP Work Experience

• Work experience is open to young people who are aged 16 to 24 years old and, in some cases, people aged 25 and over who don’t have any recent work history.

• Work experience will enable young, unemployed people to volunteer for placements lasting between 2 and 8 weeks. Volunteers will be matched with suitable host employers and complete a selection process.

• DWP will continue to pay participants’ benefits and also cover the costs of travel and childcare. Young people who have spent up to 8 weeks in a work experience opportunity can have their placement extended by up to 4 weeks where an employer makes an offer to take them on to an apprenticeship.

Jobcentre Plus Work Trials

A Work Trial is a way of trying out a potential employee before offering them a job. You can offer a work trial if the job is for 16 hours or more a week and is for a minimum of 13 weeks.

Benefits to employers include:

It is risk free and you can trial a potential employee before making a final decision

You know the jobseeker is committed because they are volunteering for the Work Trial

There are no wage costs and benefits continue to be paid to the jobseeker

There is very little paperwork.

The conditions for a work trial are:

The duration for the trial must be agreed in advance

Jobcentre Plus will check that the jobseeker meets eligibility conditions and is volunteering to take part.

Skills Development Scotland- Modern Apprenticeship

What is a Modern Apprenticeship?

A Modern Apprenticeship supports your business to train your employees. It also helps employees gain essential skills.

Who's eligible?

Modern Apprenticeships are available for anyone living in Scotland and are suited to all sorts of industries. Provided there's a Modern Apprentice frame work, every employee aged 16 to 24 is eligible for funding which contributes towards training. In some sectors over 25’s are also eligible for funding support.

How it works

When you take on a new employee they might not have all the skills you need right now. Similarly, a current employee might need new skills to take on a different role. Modern Apprentices get the skills they need while working, and a training provider helps them get a recognised qualification – meaning they’ll be a real asset to your business.

Who pays?

Your business pays the employee's salary. Skills Development Scotland contributes towards the cost of the training.

Other sources of funding

As well as the Modern Apprentice scheme, there are other sources of funding which could help when you take on a new employee. These include:

• Commonwealth Games skills legacy − payments of £1,500 for 16 to 19 year olds who undertake a Modern Apprenticeship in a sports or 2014 Games-related discipline. You can find a list of eligible MA frameworks that will attract a payment of £1,500 - staged over two payments in www.ourskillsorce.co.uk
• Employer Recruitment Incentive Until March 2015, Employer Recruitment Incentive (ERI) payments of £1,500 will be made available to employers who recruit a targeted young person (TYP) as a Modern Apprentice (MA) or into employment of 15 hours or more per week. This could be someone aged 16-29 with a disability, who is leaving care or who is a carer themselves. Or it could be an ex-offender who has been convicted or cautioned for a criminal offence and has completed their sentence.
• Adopt an Apprentice − this helps cover the wage and recruitment costs - up to £2,000 − of taking on a Modern Apprentice who has been made redundant from another employer

These initiatives will be delivered by SDS contracted training providers who are delivering the Modern Apprentice frameworks

The Employability Fund brings together a number of national training programmes (Get Ready for Work and Training for Work) and provides flexible training support which responds to the needs of employers and local labour markets. The Employability fund is delivered in partnership with training providers and colleges providing more than 17,000 places for people in Scotland. For further information call Skills Development Scotland on 0800 783 6000.

Flexible Training Opportunity

Scottish businesses with 100 employees or less can apply for up to £5,000 towards employee training costs. Funding is available for up to 10 employees per business and the money is not a loan so there's no need to pay it back. We will refund up to 50% of each episode of employee training up to a maximum of £500 for each employee. For example, if an episode of training costs £1,200 excluding VAT, we will refund £500. If it costs £300 excluding VAT, we will refund £150. Further information and the application is available on www.ourskillforce.co.uk

Certificate of Work Readiness

A qualification aimed at helping people demonstrate their readiness for employment enables you to offer short work placements to learners at no cost to the business

You’ll be asked to give your opinion at the end of the placement. If you’re impressed by them and want to offer them a job, we can help with finding support.

Skills for Growth

Working in partnership with Investors in People Scotland (IIPS), the fully funded Skills for Growth project is to support SMEs achieve their objectives. The programme enables organisations to access the right package of skills and learning support that is appropriate to their individual business needs. The support provided will also help the business to grow and develop and ultimately create additional employment opportunities.

With an Employee Engagement Adviser from Skills Development Scotland and an Investors in People Specialist we will discuss your organisations priorities, objectives and challenges. Once a plan has been established we will undertake a diagnostic of your current workforce and prepare a detailed Skills Action Plan. Upon completion we will then identify and signpost you to any appropriate training courses and maximise any public sector funding that is available.

All offers are subject to eligibility and availability

Contacts:

Employer Engagement Officers –

Gary Calderwood – Wigtownshire and DG2 postcode – 07824595440

LT Telfer – Annandale & Eskdale and DG1 postcode – 07725712122

Tracey Williams – Stewartry, Upper Nithsdale and DG1 postcode – 07802781281

DG Employment TAP

Dumfries and Galloway Council: 24 Nith Place: Dumfries: DG1 2PN

Tel: 01387 245191

Out and About 5th March

By Johanna

Ryan Williamson finished his stint at The Westerton Arms and is travelling to Stonehaven today to start a 2 week stint at the Tolbooth Restaurant.

Glyn Musker is travelling up to Airds Hotel today and will be popping in to our office on the way up.

Neil Hawthorne after a long stint at The Old Manor Hotel in Lundin Links he is now working in Pitlochry at the Scotland’s Hotel.

Graham Harrower is working down at the Moffat House Hotel, he also came in to the office for a chat. All the best with the new job Graham.

Max Nisbet finished his time at the Moorings Hotel in Fort William and is now working at the Ramnee Hotel in Forres.

Scott MacIntyre has joined Chefs In Scotland again and is up at The Highlander Inn in Craigellachie working with Leigh MacGregor.

Sharon Shearer completed her 5 days at Moorings Hotel in Fort William and is straight back out to work at the Beaufort Hotel in Inverness.

We are still keen to meet relief chef at our office in Moffat if you want to make an appointment please email me and I will check our availability jojo@chefsinscotland.co.uk

Thanks for all your hard work and support