Falling within his constituency of Surrey Heath, the Rt. Hon Michael Gove visited Windlesham Golf Club near Bagshot, Surrey, to welcome new Kickstart recruits – Harry and Nick. Some of the first employees taken on via the Government’s Kickstart Scheme that was introduced to the golf industry by Promote Golf and The LSS Group in January.
The two new recruits join Course Manager Leigh Powell’s greenkeeping team on 6-month contracts with their salaries, up to 25 hours per week, fully funded by the Government. In addition, they’ll benefit from future employability support and education, alongside access to a wide range of online courses offered by Promote Golf.
While speaking to Nick & Harry, Mr Gove was told that they had already been at the Golf Club for two weeks. Even though it meant early starts, both of them have settled into their routines and enjoy working on the course.
Mr Gove said: “It was wonderful to meet Nick & Harry and to see first-hand the benefits that the Government’s Kickstart Scheme is delivering. Their enthusiasm for their tasks shone through and it is great to see they are benefiting from the opportunity and the training.”
Neil Dainton, Windlesham Golf Club’s General Manager, says “We’re delighted to be one of the first golf clubs to welcome Kickstart-funded employees to our club. We initially approached Promote Golf and The LSS Group back in February and since then, they’ve expertly managed the funding process on our behalf. We were presented with a number of applications in mid-March and today, we’re thrilled to see our new recruits working with the team and helping prepare our course for the summer.”
Nick comments, “It’s exciting and I’m really looking forward to working on a golf course and learning more about the profession of sports turf management. The Kickstart Scheme has helped me get my foot in the door with this new position and now I’m going to work really hard for Windlesham Golf Club over the summer period. I’m very much hoping to continue work in this area after my 6-months.”
Harry and Nick are being joined by over 475 new Kickstart placements across 220 golf clubs over the next two months, with funding for an additional 300 placements also set to be secured in the forthcoming weeks. The partnership between Promote Golf and The LSS Group have set the ambitious target of securing £10m of salary funding for UK golf clubs by the close of 2021.
The deadline for summer placements is rapidly approaching.
Visit www.promotegolf.co.uk/kickstart/ for more information and to make an initial enquiry.
