A group of young unemployed people from Ayrshire have graduated from Diageo’s award-winning ‘Learning for Life’ training programme.

12 students celebrated completing the six-week training course during a special ceremony held at the Salt & Barrel training restaurant on Ayrshire College’s Kilmarnock campus on Wednesday, September 27.

And a Saltcoats teenager is among the 12 graduates.

Diageo Learning for Life graduate Chloe Brown, 19, said: “The course has been a great opportunity to learn new skills and gain qualifications, as well as making new friends.

“The visits and workshops that we took part in were a definite highlight, and I really enjoyed my work placement at The Lauriston Hotel - the team made me feel so welcome.

“I would highly recommend the course to anyone, it’s been so much fun and I’ve had a great time over the past six weeks.”

The Diageo Learning for Life: Hospitality and Bartending programme, provided by training partner Ayrshire College, provides students with coaching, core employability skills and specialist bartender training, plus seven industry recognised qualifications, which opens the door to a wide range of exciting hospitality career opportunities in Scotland.

The graduation marks the thirteenth Diageo Learning for Life programme to have taken place in association with Ayrshire College since November 2015. As part of their training, the students undertook two weeks of work experience with some of Ayrshire’s well known restaurants, hotels and bars including the Seamill Hydro, The Longhouse and the Park Hotel in Kilmarnock, Red Squirrel in Stevenson and The Lauriston Hotel in Ardrossan, to gain vital on-the-job experience to further their knowledge of the businesses.

Since its launch in 2014, more than 1000 young unemployed people have graduated from the Diageo Learning for Life programme, which is offered across Scotland, with over 78 per cent of graduates successfully securing permanent roles in the hospitality sector.

Nicola Reid, Diageo Learning for Life Programme Manager for Great Britain and Europe, congratulated the graduates: “The hospitality industry in Scotland is thriving, and continues to offer excellent career opportunities for young people with passion and drive, which these graduates have in abundance.

“The Diageo Learning for Life programme has provided a solid platform for training and development and we are all looking forward to seeing where this next step takes them, utilising their new found skills and confidence.”