BMet students are flying high with Co-op holidays, following successful college partnership

An ever-growing partnership with BMet and The Midcounties Co-operative, has given rise to rewarding employment opportunities for travel and tourism students at Co-op Holidays.

Sian Meenan and William Watkinson, from BMet’s Sutton Coldfield College, have secured permanent positions at Co-op Holidays, the in-house tour operator for Your Co-op Travel. Sian as a part-time Operations Executive in Birmingham and William as a full time Operational Administration Executive in Walsall, with much of the work being home based.

Their roles follow successful one-month long work experience placements with Co-op Holidays last summer, which enabled the students to gain practical and professional experience working alongside colleagues in the business.

Both Sian and William received glowing feedback from their teams and line managers, resulting in the tour operator offering them permanent positions.

William has a variety of responsibilities in his operations role, including collating global tour information and updating details on the website, competitor pricing analysis, amending bookings and circulating tickets.

He said: “I am very much enjoying my role, which is very rewarding and is helping me gain invaluable experience, to progress within the travel and tourism industry.

“Initially gaining a work placement with Co-op Holidays and then securing a permanent role in operations, has certainly boosted my skills and knowledge in this sector.

“It is my first permanent role, so it is all new to me, but I am learning as I go along, with the help of a supportive team.”

Sian is combining her part time role, with being a level 3 travel and tourism student.

Her responsibilities include dealing with administrative and operations enquiries for Business to Business and Business to Customer services, informing resort suppliers when changes are required, checking bookings and documentations and informing customers about schedule changes.

She said: “It can be quite a challenge combining my college work with the part time work, but one that I am excited about!

“This new phase in my life is very much suited to me, as I love routines and to fill my days with activities.

“Plus, I am very happy that I have the opportunity to enhance my knowledge and skills in a sector I am passionate about and it is all great for my career prospects.”

BMet is a Further Education College and Training Provider with over 10,000 students across the Greater Birmingham region, two-thirds of whom are from some of the most deprived areas of Birmingham.

The Midcounties Co-operative partnered with BMet college in 2023, to provide students in the West Midlands with more inclusive recruitment opportunities, supporting the college in meeting its ambitions of widening participation and recruitment.

John Garside, Travel and Tourism Lecturer at BMet, said: “We are very proud of the achievements of William and Sian in securing roles with Co-op Holidays, after successful summer placements. This is a fantastic opportunity for them both, as they start their exciting careers in the travel industry.

“We are delighted to have such a supportive partner as Co-op Holidays and have developed excellent programmes of collaboration with them – including guest speaker visits in college to work experience.  I am very excited about the future potential plans and opportunities.”

To date, the partnership has enabled pupils with diverse backgrounds to develop careers within The Midcounties Co-operative’s family of businesses, including Co-op Holidays, Your Co-op Travel and Co-op Childcare’s Little Pioneers nurseries.

Mark Mitchell, Head of Co-op Holidays, said: “We’re delighted to have William and Sian become part of our Co-op Holidays family, after both of them went above and beyond during their work experience last summer.

“From diving headfirst into learning all they could about the travel industry to assisting our colleagues in booking one-of-a-kind packages for holidaymakers, William and Sian delivered fantastic results during their initial four-week period with the business and we can’t wait to see where their new roles will take them.

“Our Co-operative values mean we’re passionate about establishing long-term partnerships that deliver genuine social impact within the communities we serve. We’re looking forward to continuing to work with BMet in doing good together, to remove barriers to employment for young people across the West Midlands.”

Following the success of previous work experience, Co-op Holidays plans to welcome a second group of students into the business over a four-week period, as well as looking at further work experience opportunities across a number of different departments within Co-op Holidays – to offer students either two or four weeks’ practical work experience, as part of their studies. This is a positive move for the partnership with BMet, showcasing support for helping young talent begin their path into a rewarding career within the travel industry.