Our story
How Lenny started
A first Saturday job changed one teenager. That's where Lenny began.
It all started with employing my 14 year old son, Lenny. He worked 2 hours a week, every Saturday morning, folding pizza boxes, setting up the restaurant, cleaning tables and preparing sauce pots.
A typical teenager who struggles to put a cereal bowl in the dishwasher, was now trotting off to work every Saturday, interacting with adults, doing a decent job and coming home with a smile on his face. Over the course of a few months, he seemed to grow in maturity, confidence and independence. Never moaning about going, looking forward to receiving his pay packet and saving up for things he wanted.
Seeing the impact on Lenny and noticing how genuinely hard it is for a young person to get a first job these days really highlighted the fact that 'the Saturday job' has all but disappeared. Parents in the playground would ask me about their teenagers and if I knew of any jobs going. It was clear to me that this was an issue. If there are no entry level roles, how do young people get experience?
Fewer businesses are now able to take a chance on someone with no experience, no CV and no references. But that first job is often where people learn some of the most valuable lessons of their working life. Showing up on time, following guidance, working as part of a team, earning their own money. Having these experiences when young, when you're able to ask questions, make mistakes and learn gradually is so important.
It is also good for the business. It's healthy and rewarding to have diverse teams. More experienced team members, mentoring younger ones.
So, I decided to launch an 'intro to work' scheme at Nell's. An entry level route in for a young person who wanted a part-time job.
In four days, Nell's had hundreds of applications. In 4 weeks it was up to 2000 applications, for the 5-10 roles I had earmarked at our Nell's sites.
This amount of interest was overwhelming and, realising I needed help just to make sense of the response, I called upon tech wizard, Nick Holroyd-Doveton, who runs Candid Hospitality, and hospitality legend, Lucy Noone Blake. I asked Nick if he could help us screen candidates by location and availability.
Nick didn't just help us sort a spreadsheet. He built an entire platform to do it properly. That platform is 'Lenny'.
People who stepped in to help
Since then, more people have stepped in to make the scheme better than we could ever have built alone:
Sideways have provided free training for all young people who register - entry level compliance training and a series of videos about the basics of hospitality.
Ward Hadaway solicitors are offering free employment templates and legal advice for the businesses taking part - an FAQ sheet and an email helpline for advice.
Stoiq is coming on board to survey the young people and help us properly measure the impact this scheme has on those involved.
Everyone I have reached out to has been nothing but supportive, and countless people have been in touch to see how they can help. Hospitality is the most generous of industries to work in and this has proved it. An industry under immense pressure at the moment, yet a sector willing to come together and make this happen.
Thinking of taking a chance on a young person?
If you're a business wondering whether to take a chance on a young person with no experience, please do. And now, thanks to Lenny and everyone who's got involved, it's easier than ever to do it.