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More than 400 staff working at the Excel events centre in London have completed a scholarship scheme designed to improve customer service.
The initiative was launched earlier this year to provide co-ordinated training courses for staff working for the wide range of employers at the 100-acre site in London's Docklands, which is used as venue for major events such as exhibitions and concerts.
Excel is now running 25 courses in partnership with the London Borough of Newham and the European Social Fund, in a bid to improve customer service from all employers at the site.
Maria O'Dea, HR and training manager at Excel, said the scholarship scheme was put in place to harmonise training between all the service partners, which include cleaners, security providers and retailers.
"All the partners are experts in training in their own businesses but we wanted to deliver better customer service training specific to the events industry, and this has created a one-team approach across the whole site," she said.
Employees can work towards industry qualifications such as GNVQs and CCNAs or work on more traditional subjects such as French to provide a platform for further development.
Excel will be providing the training to its own staff as well as to all 1,000 employees who work for its on-site partners.
