Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what information his Department holds on how many people attended the Hospitality Guild's centres of excellence in Asian cookery in each of the last three years; and how many such people successfully completed that training.

The ‘Centres of Excellence in Asian Cookery’ pilots were organised by People 1^st, which was operating on behalf of the Hospitality Guild, which received funding from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) through their grant with BIS. People 1^st reported that during the period of the pilot (October 2011 to September 2013), 79 people started training at the Centres of Excellence for Asian and Oriental cuisine, out of which 46 completed the pre-employment course, 22 completed work experience and 7 moved onto an apprenticeship.

£205,961 was provided to fund the Asian Cookery campaign. In total, UKCES allocated £1,745,785 to create the Hospitality Guild and to promote skills training, apprenticeships and innovation in the hospitality industry through a range of measures. These included apprenticeships as chefs, baristas, bar staff and hotel management, training provider accreditation, work placements and launching the Hospitality Guild Portal where careers tools, an employer guide and a vacancy matching service can be accessed.