Partnership with Merlin Entertainments promises diversity boost for tourism industry

A new partnership which promises to provide a major boost for inclusion and diversity in the travel and tourism workforce is being developed between University College Birmingham and the UK’s biggest sector employers.

Merlin Entertainments have begun collaborating with the University to offer a wealth of new opportunities for students and graduates of diverse backgrounds who aspire to enter the dynamic fields of tourism, hospitality, leisure and events.

As one of the world's largest attraction operators, Merlin Entertainments runs hundreds of visitor attractions across the UK and around the globe, including resorts such as Alton Towers, Chessington World of Adventures and LEGOLAND Parks alongside city and seaside destinations such as SEA LIFE aquariums, LEGO Discovery Centres and Madame Tussauds.

As part of growing links with the company, University College Birmingham welcomed Dominique Sidley, Global Trade Strategy Director for Merlin Entertainments, to deliver a series of talks for students at the University's McIntyre House campus building on Wednesday, 23 November.

Students on tourism, hospitality, events and business courses had the chance to learn about career and placement opportunities with Merlin Entertainments, as well as attending a dedicated discussion around the company's commitment to diversity, equality and inclusion within its recruitment.

"One of the real positives about this university is the diversity of its students," said Dominique. "The profile of the students here absolutely matches what we believe the future of hospitality, travel and tourism needs to be.

"There are so many different characteristics required for the roles we have. We need diversity of thought and creative thinkers, to open ourselves up to community interest and input – two things I'm really excited about.

"We need all our employees to represent the visitors that come to our attractions," she added. "I'm working with a lot of mixed gender, mixed ethnicity and mixed age focus groups to try and understand how we can better attract those future employees.

"This university has great success in driving a diverse student body and partnerships like this enable us to see how this is done."

University College Birmingham has a community of around 7,500 students, over 40% of whom come from BAME backgrounds, as well as welcoming international students from more than 57 countries.

The linkup between the University and Merlin Entertainments promises exciting benefits for both parties, not only growing awareness among students of the company but also helping open doors to future talent through work experience and graduate opportunities, visits from guest speakers, practical sessions and other projects.

"I'm thrilled about this partnership as I feel there were people in the audience today who now want to work for Merlin," said Dominique. "The students were among some of the most engaged I've spoken to within a university setting."

Among those attending the sessions was International Tourism Management FdA student Laura Hulme, who welcomed the insight into opportunities for diverse minorities within the travel and tourism sector.

"I really loved this talk because as a transgender and neurodiverse woman, I felt like I have a place in that kind of workforce in the future," said Laura, who is also a marketing officer for the Aviation and Tourism Society at the University's Guild of Students.

"It's really given me a lot of inspiration and feeling like I can achieve a good position in the future, and it has opened my mind about a lot of the initiatives concerning diversity and inclusion.

"Having that as something people focus on within the business is a very promising thing for people in certain minorities, and knowing that the hiring of social minorities increases the business's financial success is also very inspiring to see."