Invests in upskilling team members with Gaming Academy programme
The Grosvenor Casinos Gaming Academy is a six-week programme that teaches non-gaming team members how to deal some of the most popular casino games including Blackjack, Poker and Roulette.
As part of Grosvenor’s commitment to safer gambling, the Academy seeks to educate team members about the importance of ensuring that guests are playing responsibly at all times. Safer gambling is embedded in the entire programme, with team members taught to identify potential markers of harm and how to address player behaviour which may be of concern in terms of safer gambling.
Jonathon Swaine, Managing Director at Grosvenor Casinos said: “At Grosvenor Casinos we pride ourselves on offering our team members the chance to progress their careers with us. When we make a hire, we are committed to giving them the best possible chance to progress and have a career not just a job. The Gaming Academy is something we are really proud of; we have seen a really positive uptake in participation.
At its heart is a commitment to safer gambling. The importance of ensuring our team members embrace responsible play has never been greater and The Gaming Academy allows us bake safer gambling into the Grosvenor culture even more effectively. The past 15 months have been very tough for us all and now our casinos have finally reopened, and we have our teams back doing what they do best, we are determined to give them the best career development opportunities we can.”
The extensive course includes training on all aspects of gaming at Grosvenor Casinos. Weeks one to two cover casino terminology, odds and pay-outs, the correct way to spin the roulette ball and tutoring on times tables up to thirty-five – to help the team members manage the fast-paced nature of bets placed by guests when they visit the casino.
Alongside these modules in the first two weeks team members also learn stretching and chipping, pushing and dragging stacks, clearing the layouts, along with French Bets and marking up colour.
As well as traditional training, team members receive tips and tricks on how to improve their dexterity when it comes to collecting and gathering bets and chips, to ensure they can deliver the best possible service in the quickest way possible.
With the foundations being laid the modules from weeks three to six deep dive into some of the more advanced techniques gaming team members will have to learn at the casino.
Practice for games such as Blackjack and Poker with guidance on how to deal, collect cards, announce bets and hands and manage games. Team members will also gain experience on float management, fills and credit and interaction with Inspectors, which are all part of the course designed to create well rounded and exemplary gaming teams.
The Gaming Academies have been running across the country with casinos in Reading, the Midlands Cardiff & Manchester recently completing the course with team members gaining a range of new skills. Grosvenor Casinos in Manchester are currently running a second Gaming Academy, with plans in place to run further courses later in the year.
Nuphit Chumnuan in Cardiff
From Grosvenor Casino Cardiff, Nuphit Chumnuan, said: “The Gaming Academy was brilliant to be a part of and it gave me the skills I need to develop my career and to work in new roles at Grosvenor Casino Cardiff. I have always been passionate about my job and wanted to continue to develop, so I jumped at the chance to progress my role here.
“After the Gaming Academy finished, I felt inspired and ready to take on new challenges. My goal is to keep taking advantage of the opportunities here at Grosvenor Casinos and strive to get a more senior role in the business, now I have learned more skills that I can use across the board such as the safer gambling and dealer modules.”
Cynthia Paduraru in Reading Central
At Grosvenor Casino Reading Central, Cynthia Paduraru, added: “I started working at Grosvenor Casino Reading Central in October 2019 as an F&B host. I soon realised from watching the dealers and gaming teams at the club that their role was something that I would like to be a part of in the future. When I heard about Grosvenor Casinos running the Gaming Academy, I jumped at the opportunity to be a part of it.
“I really enjoyed the training as well as the chance to work with new team members from the other Grosvenor Casino in Reading. Elements of the training such as understanding the odds of the games, spinning the roulette ball correctly, and clearing the layout was a great achievement and it was not so daunting after all! I also really loved how the course helped us in understanding different customers’ needs and adapting what I had learned before to enhance this.”
Peter Roberts in Stoke on Trent
Grosvenor Casino Stoke, reports that, Peter Roberts, said: “The Gaming Academy has really helped with my career development and given me a new skill set that I will have for life, and a skill that will improve the more I use them at Grosvenor Casino Stoke. It has made me a more valuable team member, as I am able to support many departments across the venue now. Aside from learning new skills the Gaming Academy has also helped build my confidence, not only in daily duties but also interacting with customers as I have a better understanding of how the casino works, what we can offer and what the processes are.
“Going through the Gaming Academy will give me lots of opportunities to progress in my career in the casino industry as I will have a rounded knowledge of all aspects of how the business operates. I also really enjoyed learning additional skills from the safer gaming modules, which I can use in any department I am working in.”
Grosvenor Casinos is part of The Rank Group Plc and is the largest UK casino operator with 52 casinos nationwide. Grosvenor Casinos and The Rank Group Plc is committed to the promotion of responsible gaming practices with a range of tools and support services available. For more details on The Rank Group Plc’s policies on responsible gambling please visit www.rank.com/responsibility.
