A wave of future and current talent has been unmasked in the hospitality industry as the winners of the first-ever HIT Heroes Awards are announced.

The awards, hosted by HIT Training – a leading provider of apprenticeships and vocational training in the hospitality and catering industry – celebrates HIT apprentices and employers and their outstanding dedication to training.

The winners of HIT Heroes 2020 are:

Apprentice of the year category winners

Hospitality Team Leader / Supervisor / Management Apprentice of the Year – Alex Bainbridge, studying for her Level 3 Hospitality Team Leader Apprenticeship with Aramark

Housekeeper/Cleaner/Facilities Apprentice of the Year – Gabriel-Razvan Petcu, studying for his Level 3 Facilities Management Supervisor Apprenticeship with RNLI

Chef Apprentice of the Year – Peter Szucs, studying for his Level 2 Production Chef Apprenticeship with Lilian Faithfull Care

Front of House Apprentice of the Year – Jessica Lumsden, studying for her Level 2 Hospitality Team Member (Food and Beverage) Apprenticeship with The Lambton Worm

The Extra Mile Apprentice Award – Karl Svendsen, studying for his Level 3 Hospitality Supervisor Apprenticeship with Caffè Nero

All our HIT Heroes 2020 winners

Employer of the year category winners

Small Employer of the Year – The Pig Iron (Amber Taverns) pub in Middlesbrough

Medium Employer of the Year – The Grand venue in Folkestone

Large Employer of the Year – The Deltic Group evening entertainment venues across various locations in the UK

Best Community Outreach Programme – Sodexo catering and facilities management experts across various locations in the UK

Jill Whittaker, HIT Training Managing Director, said: “Huge congratulations to all of our very deserving HIT Heroes winners! We were overwhelmed by the level of hospitality talent we unmasked during the – extremely difficult – judging process.

“Apprenticeships play a crucial role in nurturing and motivating the future talent in hospitality. They also enable businesses to grow by developing the skillset and expertise of their people in such a customer-facing industry. The dedication, hard work and passion that shone through in each of our winners was truly inspiring.”

The HIT Heroes Awards recognise the important role apprenticeships play in empowering people within the hospitality industry and tackling the skills shortage. The awards showcase the diverse range of apprenticeships in hospitality, with a number of different categories to enter, and celebrates apprentices’ individual development and drive to become the hospitality leaders and stars of the future.

Winners of the awards were presented with their prizes during a roadshow in March 2020.

HIT Training will be hosting a celebration event for all our winners in the near future – with a few extra special winners to be announced. Watch this space!