Food and Beverage Team Member - Intermediate Apprenticeship
Apprenticeship Summary
The Food and Beverage Team Member Apprenticeship offers a hands-on and customer-focused pathway into one of the most visible roles within the hospitality sector. Found across a diverse range of venues—from restaurants, pubs, and bars to coffee shops, hotels, and event spaces—this apprenticeship prepares individuals to deliver high-quality food and drink service while creating a welcoming and memorable experience for every guest.
For employers, this apprenticeship is a strategic investment in building a front-of-house team that is professional, personable, and performance-driven. Apprentices are trained to manage bookings, serve food and beverages—including cocktails and coffees—handle payments, and resolve customer queries with confidence and care. They learn to work efficiently under pressure, maintain hygiene standards, and contribute to the overall atmosphere and reputation of the establishment.
Apprentices gain valuable experience in customer interaction, teamwork, and service delivery, developing the ability to communicate clearly, upsell products, and manage groups of guests with poise. From greeting customers and managing stock to promoting menu items and ensuring seating areas are clean and ready, apprentices play a vital role in the smooth running of front-of-house operations.
Whether you’re an employer seeking to elevate your customer service standards or an individual ready to launch a rewarding career in hospitality, the Food and Beverage Team Member Apprenticeship is a practical, engaging, and impactful choice—one that builds the skills and confidence needed to thrive in fast-paced, customer-facing environments.
Apprenticeship standard dates
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Anytime
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Employer's Premises
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Next steps
As an Employer
If you would like to offer this as an apprenticeship vacancy within your organisation, enrol one of your existing employees on this apprenticeship or simply find out more about supporting an apprenticeship within your organisation, please complete the Enquire Now form above and a member of our Business Development Team will be in touch within 2 working days to advise you on next steps.
As an Apprentice
If you are interested in securing an apprenticeship as a Food and Beverage Team Member, please visit our Vacancies page to check for any suitable roles.
If there are currently no roles available, please submit an enquiry form using the Enquire Now button above to register your interest. We will use this information to let you know when a suitable vacancy becomes available and also to advise you of any courses we offer that might advance your career goals in the meantime.
Key information
Entry Requirements
There are no formal entry requirements as individual employers will determine their own. We will, however, undertake an assessment and skills scan to make sure this qualification is suitable for you.
How will the Apprenticeship be funded?
As the employer
How your apprenticeship is funded will depend on whether or not you pay the Apprenticeship Levy. If you do pay the Levy, your apprenticeship will be funded out of this, provided you have sufficient monies available. If you do not pay the Apprenticeship Levy, 95% of the apprenticeship will be funded by the Government, with the remaining 5% being funded by you. There may also be some further incentives offered by the Government which we will be able to advise you of when setting up your apprenticeship. Either way, B&FC's Business Development Team will be on hand to help you navigate the funding arrangements and support you through this process.
As the apprentice
One of the benefits of an apprenticeship is that, as the apprentice, you are not required to fund your training. You will also receive a wage for the work that you do with minimum hourly rates set by the Government. Your employer can choose to pay you more than the minimum wage, but they cannot pay you less. For details of current minimum wage rates for apprentices, please visit the Government website.
What will my Apprentice learn?
Knowledge
By completion, apprentices will understand:
- Standards for serving food and drink professionally.
- Product offerings, pricing, and promotional pairings.
- Sales techniques to boost revenue and enhance service.
- How to adapt communication to suit customer needs.
- Safe, hygienic, and secure work practices.
- Relevant health, safety, and food legislation.
- Proper use of tools and technology.
- Secure payment handling.
- Teamwork’s role in service success.
- Reporting faults and maintenance issues.
- Effective communication with colleagues.
- Task prioritisation and time management.
- Stock rotation and availability impact.
- Handling feedback and complaints professionally.
- Staying informed on product updates.
- Using feedback for self-improvement.
- Professional standards in conduct and appearance.
- Sustainable resource use.
- Principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion.
- Customer types and their service expectations.
- Licensing laws and alcohol service regulations.
- Food safety inspections and compliance consequences.
Skills
Apprentices will learn to:
- Serve food and drinks to business standards.
- Apply sales techniques and build rapport.
- Maintain hygiene and safety.
- Follow legal procedures.
- Use equipment effectively.
- Process payments securely.
- Collaborate with teams.
- Respond to service issues.
- Communicate professionally.
- Manage time and stock.
- Report faults promptly.
- Act on customer feedback.
- Stay updated and improve performance.
- Reduce waste sustainably.
- Support inclusive practices.
- Contribute in team briefings.
Behaviours
Apprentices will:
- Take ownership of wellbeing and growth.
- Be customer-focused and commercially aware.
- Work safely, professionally, and collaboratively.
Expert Tutors
All tutors involved in the delivery of courses and apprenticeships within the College are approved to teach the subjects and modules they deliver.
Our recruitment process ensures that tutors delivering a given programme are suitably qualified and, where appropriate, possess relevant technical and industrial experience and a familiarity with professional practice. This is especially important for apprenticeships where off-the-job training needs to align with apprentices' on-the-job experience.
How will the Apprenticeship be delivered?
The apprenticeship will typically be delivered over a 12-month period with additional time required to prepare for the End Point Assessment. Apprentices' time will typically be split 80:20 throughout the apprenticeship programme with four days a week spent at the employer premises learning on the job and one day a week spent off-site, undertaking classroom-based and workshop-based training at B&FC.
What support will I get from B&FC?
As the employer
Each employer is supported by an experienced member of our Business Development Team to set up their apprenticeship. For those employers who are completely new to the apprenticeship process, the Team will support them with all the necessary paperwork and administration to get their apprenticeship programme up and running as quickly and efficiently as possible. For existing employers, their dedicated Client Services Manager will be an ongoing point of contact for all their apprenticeship queries, however big or small.
We can also help employers who are looking to recruit new apprentices by advertising their vacancy, finding suitable applicants and supporting them with the interview and selection process. Once an apprentice is onboard, our Curriculum Tutors and Apprenticeship Trainers and Skills Coaches also step in to support the employer-apprentice relationship and ensure the apprentice is on track to succeed.
As the apprentice
In the first instance, we aim to give potential apprentices all the support they need to find a suitable apprenticeship. That can mean working with them prior to an application to improve their CV, hone their interview skills and advise them of any additional training that may help them secure an apprenticeship vacancy.
Once they start their apprenticeship, we continue to support them with their off-site training and with regular meetings with our Apprenticeship Trainers and Skills Coaches to ensure they are progressing and acquiring all the knowledge, skills and behaviours that will ensure they complete their apprenticeship successfully.