The Importance of Hospitality

The UK hospitality sector (excluding hotels) comprised approximately 155,300 businesses in 2022. This represents 5.6% of UK businesses, contributing £53 billion to the UK economy, 2.3% of total UK output.

According to UK Hospitality, the industry employs 3.5 million people across the whole of the UK, investing £7 billion into every community and high street year after year. 

Recognising the significance of the hospitality industry, the Government published its first-ever Hospitality Strategy in 2021, to help the sector recover from the impact of COVID-19 and ensure businesses become more resilient in the future so that it continues to play a crucial role in the UK economy.

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The Origins of HSC

The Hospitality Strategy led to the creation of the Hospitality Sector Council: a collaboration between the Government and the hospitality sector, which aims to co-create solutions for our industry and support the delivery of the strategy.

Made up of experts who represent a cross-section of the sector, the Council will identify and oversee actions related to the 22 commitments in the strategy, craft long term solutions using their expert knowledge and assess the strength of the sector.

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Our Members

The Council is co-chaired Dame Karen Jones and the Minister for Hospitality and Co-Chair, Gareth Thomas. 

 

Full membership of the Council is below:

  • Karen Jones

    Co-Chair of HSC

    220215 Deliveroo Karen Jones 74613

  • Gareth Thomas

    Minister for Hospitality and Co-Chair of HSC

    Portrait Thomas

  • Tim Doubleday

    CFO, Burger King UK

    Tim Doubleday (Burger King)

  • Emma Heal

    Managing Director, Lucky Saint

    Emma Heal Lucky Saint

  • Kate Nicholls

    CEO, UK Hospitality

    Kate Nicholls

  • Jane O’Riordan

    Chair, Turtle Bay, Caravan Restaurants and FlightClub Darts

    Jane O'riordan

  • Steve Alton

    CEO, British Institute of Innkeeping (BII)

    Steve Alton1

  • Will Beckett

    Co-Founder and CEO, Hawksmoor and Rockfish Restaurants

    Will Beckett

  • Joe Carberry

    VP Communications and Policy, Deliveroo

    Joe Carberry (2)

  • Simon Emeny

    CEO, Fuller, Smith and Turner PLC

    People Icon (1)

  • Andy Hornby

    CEO, Restaurant Group PLC

    People Icon (1)

  • Nisha Katona MBE

    CEO and Founder, Mowgli Street Food

    People Icon (1)

  • Nick MacKenzie

    CEO, Greene King

    Nickmackenzie

  • Emma Mcclarkin

    CEO, British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA)

    Emma Mcclarkin

  • Rich McGinnis

    Nightclub and Events Entrepreneur

    People Icon (1)

  • Brian Perkins

    President, Budweiser Brewing Group UK, Ireland, Spain and the Canary Islands

    People Icon (1)

  • Rob Pitcher

    CEO, Revolution Bars Group

    Rob Pitcher

  • Andy Slee

    CEO, Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA)

    Andy Slee

  • Alastair Storey

    Chairman and Chief Executive, Westbury Street Holdings Ltd

    People Icon (1)

  • Nick Summers

    Managing Director, The Nationwide Caterers Association (NCASS)

    Nick Summers

  • Shamil Thakrar

    CEO, Dishoom

    Shamil Thakrar

  • Sarah Warby

    Chief Customer Officer, Nando’s

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A focus on delivery

To deliver the Hospitality Strategy, the Council has created working groups to focus on specific elements of resilience. These are:

Resilience working group, led by Kate Nicholls
High Streets working group, leadership to be confirmed
Sustainability Committee led by Tim Doubleday, including its sub groups: The Net Zero Carbon Forum and the Biodiversity sub-group 
Innovation Working Group, led by Jane O’Riordan
Hospitality Tourism Skills Board, led by Kate Nicholls     
Family business and Independents Advisory Board, led by Emma Heal

View our Council governance structure (last updated December 2023) here.

The Local Economies and Communities working group, led by Simon Emeny, ran from September 2021to August 2023 after the successful completion of its objectives. These objectives included producing a range of reports and recommendations related to business rates and the role that hospitality businesses play in communities up and down the country. 

For further information about the Terms of Reference or the minutes of each meeting, please go to Gov.uk.