Springboard is delighted to announce the appointment of three new trustees, two of which benefitted from the charity’s programmes at the start of their careers in hospitality.

Jennifer Earland is head of talent acquisition at Hawksmoor and found her first role in hospitality after taking part in a Springboard employability programme. After starting in restaurant operations, Jennifer moved into people 10 years ago, working for Core Recruitment, Harts Group and now Hawksmoor.

Also joining the board is Alex Wilson, front office manager at the Goring Hotel, who first worked with Springboard during his time at school when he was crowned FutureChef champion in 2005. Alex has also worked at Brown’s Hotel in Mayfair, Elite Hotels and The Royal Household, and has been a Springboard ambassador for many years.

Jennifer Earland said: “After going through one of Springboard’s programmes which resulted in my first role in hospitality, I have first-hand experience of the positive impact they have on young people’s lives. This, alongside my belief that hospitality can be a rewarding and welcoming career for anyone, from any background, is the reason I am honoured to be joining the board and supporting all the fantastic work the charity does.”

Alex Wilson said: “I feel incredibly honoured to have been asked to join the amazing board of trusees for Springboard, a charity I have been associated with now for over 15 years in many different ways. Springboard gave me the platform to launch my career in hospitality through FutureChef in 2005 and in this role I intend to give back and support many more in to our wonderful industry.”

Meanwhile, Gareth Sharpe has also joined the board of trustees and will chair Springboard’s finance committee. Gareth is chief finance officer of Compass Group UK & Ireland and previously spent nine years at Tesco, most recently as CFO for Asia.

Springboard chairman, Alastair Storey said: “I am delighted to welcome Jennifer, Alex and Gareth to Springboard’s board of trustees. Their industry knowledge and first-hand experience of our work will be a huge asset in our mission to futureproof hospitality’s talent pipeline and attract the next generation of workers.”