The Rokbak site Christmas lunch offers local young people in the ‘No Limits Programme’ mass catering experience. 

This week, the site hosted a Christmas lunch for over 200 of the team. Served up in their on-site café by outside caterers, everyone tucked in to Christmas dinners, pigs in blankets and even some turkey topped chips! But beyond the usual festivities was a gift that will keep on giving.

The on-site café runs as a Training Kitchen by the No Limit Programme – a local council enterprise aimed at school leavers (16-19) with additional support needs. The programme provides vital support to young people with diverse abilities who face barriers finding employment. Through their placement in the café, young people are taught hospitality and catering skills, as well as being coached and mentored throughout the journey to give them the confidence, work experience and signposting to go on to future employment.

This week, No Limits and the outside catering company providing the Christmas lunch joined forces in Motherwell to provide valuable training in mass catering for larger numbers. The students were offered the opportunity to learn side by side with the catering company, assisting with the service during the event. The skills learnt as part of this will be used in the student’s evidence document when applying for their National Vocational Qualification.

John and Jules, mentors in the No Limits Programme at Motherwell said: “The No Limits Programme offers the students the opportunity to work in a real-life environment, learn basic cooking skills and further enhance their personal development to hopefully progress into the catering or hospitality industry.

 “We can see a massive difference in the student’s confidence since joining the programme – they now know what tasks need to be done and are confident to undertake these themselves. The Christmas Lunch offers the opportunity for them to work into a very different mass catering environment and the students can use this experience as evidence when applying for their National Vocational Qualifications.”

Students Taylor and Lisa said: “The No Limits Programme is a great opportunity to make the food, learn and develop. We love everything about it!”

Taylor especially loves baking, whilst Lisa eventually wants to own her own restaurant in the future.

Since the programme first began, the site has welcomed three cohorts of trainees – all going on to secure full time employment in the hospitality sector or attending college full time. Rokbak will continue to support the No Limits Programme in 2025, and all team members look forward to witnessing the progression of the students.