In 2009, the restaurant chain aims to provide Apprenticeships to up to 6,000 of its 72,000 UK workforce and then up to 10,000 per year from 2010, providing staff with the opportunity to gain a valuable, nationally recognised qualification that is equivalent to five GCSEs grade A*-C. This move will make McDonald's the UK's largest Apprenticeship provider.

David Fairhurst, Senior VP, Chief People Officer, McDonald's UK, said: In these challenging economic times, it is more important than ever for employers to invest in their staff. With the service and hospitality sector now one of the biggest employers in the UK economy - over 1.9 million people are employed by the hospitality and tourism sector alone - it's vital that we and others in the industry invest in skills and training now to ensure the sector is ready to shine when the UK emerges from the downturn.

Following the completion of a successful 80 restaurant trial, McDonald's will now offer employees across its 1,200 UK restaurants the opportunity to gain a Level 2 Apprenticeship in Multi-Skilled Hospitality. The qualification recognises job-specific skills acquired through workplace training, combined with GCSE-equivalent Maths and English.

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