In an industry that depends on safe, efficient, and reliable commercial kitchen equipment, we know that having in-house expertise in gas engineering provides a competitive advantage.

Our Level 3 Commercial Catering Equipment Technician Apprenticeship will help you to build this expertise internally, at little to no cost.

What the Apprenticeship Covers

To understand the benefits, it helps to know what the apprenticeship involves.

Key features include:

• Duration: 27-30 months, with about 20% “off-the-job” training at our Stockport training centre in block weeks) and 80% “on-the-job training.
• Qualifications: Apprentices will work toward ACS qualifications in 4 appliance categories/globally relevant commercial catering equipment standards (e.g. solid/open top ranges, deep fat and pressure fryers, etc).
• Outcomes: On successful completion, candidates can apply to join the Gas Safe Register.

Top 5 Benefits for you

1. Cost-Effectiveness & Funding Support

1. • Government funding: The course is ESFA-funded. For staff under 21, this means full funding; for those 21 or older, 95% funding is available.
   • Incentives: You may receive additional incentive payments (e.g. £1,000 for apprentices under 19) if eligibility criteria are met.
   • Reduced recruitment costs: Rather than hiring fully trained technicians (who can command higher salaries), upskilling internal staff spreads cost over time and often at lower total cost.

2.Tailored Skills & Quality Assurance

1. • Skills aligned with your equipment and needs: Because much of the training is on the job, apprentices will learn how to use your own equipment, procedures, standards, and culture. This ensures the skills gained are directly relevant.
   • Standardised certification: With ACS qualification and Gas Safe registration potential, you ensure compliance with safety and regulatory standards. This reduces risk and increases trust.

3.Retention, Morale & Employee Engagement

1. • Career progression: Offering advanced apprenticeships signals to staff that there is a future for them within your organisation. This boosts morale, loyalty and helps reduce turnover.
   • Motivation & pride: Being able to develop tangible technical skills and becoming certified gives staff a sense of achievement.

4.Operational Reliability & Reduced Downtime

1. • In-house expertise means quicker diagnosis and repair of catering equipment. This reduces downtime, which in a commercial catering environment, can be costly in terms of lost revenue and customer satisfaction.
   • Proactive maintenance: Technicians with deep understanding are more likely to spot issues early, meaning fewer emergency breakdowns.

5.Competitive Advantage & Reputation

1. • Having well‐trained technicians gives you more control over safety, compliance, maintenance schedules. This can become a selling point if you supply to or partner with larger organisations that demand high standards.
   • It can improve your brand’s reputation – safety, professionalism, reliability are key in catering and hospitality.

As a fellow ceda member, we believe that upskilling your existing staff via our Level 3 Commercial Catering Equipment Technician Apprenticeship is a powerful strategic investment.

It delivers regulatory compliance, technical excellence, cost savings, and staff engagement.

While there are some upfront time and resource demands, the long-term returns in reliability, efficiency and quality are substantial.

Our offer to you: 10% off any training course

As well as our Level 3 Commercial Catering Equipment apprenticeship, we’re offering 10% off any of our paid courses in Gas, renewables and electrician training.

Get in touch with us today to discuss more:

Level 3 Commercial Catering Equipment Apprenticeship:
Helen Walker
helen.walker@ectatraining.co.uk

Commercial training:
Carl Sutcliffe
carl.sutcliffe@ectatraining.co.uk