A programme which aims to create greater social mobility, diversity and inclusivity in the travel and cruise industries has successfully completed its third year.
The Cruise Career Springboard, formerly known as the Compass Project, was originated and is run by Matthew and Edwina Lonsdale, owners of Mundy Cruising, and it has been supported by key industry figures, who have come together to invest in the next generation.
This includes representatives from the Cruise Line Industry Association (CLIA) and leaders from an extraordinary number of companies, including Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises, Silversea, Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Seabourn, Princess Cruises, P&O, Cunard, AmaWaterways, HX Expeditions, Uniworld, Real Response Media, Viva Cruises, and Windstar Cruises.
Respected industry veterans Graham Sadler and Jo Rzymowska have also given extensive support to the programme, as well as training guru Debbee Dale.
This year鈥檚 course took place over a period of nine weeks, and involved year 12 students (17 years old) from St John Bosco College in Battersea, Itchen College in Southampton and Nescot (North East Surrey College of Technology).
It aimed to introduce students to the very wide range of shore-based opportunities available in the cruise industry. They visited a selection of cruise ships including and, as well as cruise company o魛啹ices and the CLIA conference in May. They also undertook classroom work, visited and heard about operations at company headquarters and at the end made a presentation to industry professionals, where they pitched the opportunities for career pathways in the sector.
Matthew Lonsdale said: 鈥淲hen we started the project in 2023 we were simply trying to open young peoples鈥 minds to the vast range of roles, disciplines and opportunities in the industry, even if you join straight from school. But the wonderful way the cruise lines have responded suggested to us that the project itself could provide a good pathway to working in cruise. And so we changed the name to better reflect that.鈥
Edwina Lonsdale added: 鈥淢any young people look at the cruise sector and simply don鈥檛 realise it could be a career option for them, so we set out to change that. What鈥檚 really blown me away has been the continued positive industry reaction with over one hundred individuals from various companies, from the most junior to the most senior levels, giving their time and expertise to help us. We鈥檙e incredibly grateful, as with their support the Springboard programme can launch more careers than ever.鈥
Andy Harmer, CLIA UK and Ireland managing director, said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 heartening to see such a dynamic group looking to start their careers and contribute to the industry鈥檚 success. They are a talented pool of applicants who are now ready to take their first employment steps, whether via holiday jobs, apprenticeships or potentially a full-time position, into an industry which contributes 拢5.8 billion to the United Kingdom economy and supports more than 60,000 jobs.鈥
Industry professionals interested in finding out more about the Cruise Career Springboard can contact Edwina Lonsdale 鈥 [email protected]