SEVERAL young people took advantage of valuable work experience opportunities at The Midcounties Co-operative food stores in Worcestershire as part of the Government backed Feeding Britain’s Future campaign, which provides them with employability skills training.

Delivered as part of the Society’s relationship with the grocery research and training charity IGD, the initiative saw candidates gain hands-on experience of the food industry during the day-long placements, with store colleagues offering information and guidance on the breadth of jobs available in the sector.

Simon Hartland, manager of the Midcounties Co-operative Food in Franche Road, Kidderminster, said: “It was great to offer work experience to young people in our store recently, and we were impressed with their enthusiasm and application to the tasks we gave to them. Our colleagues were happy to share their knowledge of the industry, and we hope that the experience was useful as they consider their future careers.”

David Darlaston, head of young people’s engagement at the Midcounties Co-operative, added: "We are proud of our continued partnership with IGD and Feeding Britain’s Future, a campaign which saw more than 15,000 opportunities for young people to gain employment skills during 2013. This initiative was designed to ensure that the food industry works closely with young people to demonstrate the wide selection of great career opportunities within the sector. As a co-operative, supporting the community is a central pillar on which we are founded, so we are pleased to help people to gain hands-on experience to further their development.”